O Master Let me walk with thee

O MASTER LET ME WALK WITH ME

We're continuing our series in which we're looking at the stories behind some of our best-loved hymns. Today we'll look at a hymn that was born out of a deeply moving event in the life of a discouraged pastor.

The story takes place in the year 1879. This pastor — his name was Washington Gladden — found himself overcome with discouragement. He had been serving God for 20 years, but had yet to see much fruit in his ministry. He was also beset by personal problems and family problems. And now he was at the point of despair — frustrated and discouraged; weak and weary. He felt like a failure in ministry, and a failure in life.

Now, I'll give away the ending and say that in the years to come, his life and ministry would be much different. He would write dozens of books and hundreds of articles and editorials and publish a national magazine. He would become an influential voice in matters that shaped our cultural values in the early 20th century. He would also pastor a thriving church in Columbus, Ohio.

But on this day in 1879 Washington Gladden couldn't see what was to come. He could see only what was today. He could only see his discouragement.

That afternoon he climbed up to the top of the church bell tower to be alone and to think for a while. The thought even crossed his mind that he could jump from the ledge and make his troubles disappear.

But he didn't jump. Instead, he poured out his heart to God, putting into words what would eventually become a hymn that has since appeared in more than 400 hymnals, and has been sung in hundreds of thousands of churches throughout the world for the last century and a half.

This is what he wrote...

O master let me walk with thee In lowly paths of service free Tell me Thy secret; help me bear The strain of toil, the fret of care.

Reverend Gladden experienced what every pastor, every staff member, every Christian worker, every missionary, every leader has experienced. He experienced what every person who desires to live a difference-making life has experienced.

I'm talking about discouragement. Disappointment. Frustration. Fatigue. Not the kind of fatigue where your body is worn out. The kind of fatigue where your soul is worn out. Where your will is worn out. And you're not sure how much longer you can carry on.

You find yourself saying:

"I've tried and tried and tried to make this marriage work, and I feel like I'm the only one that's trying. And I'm tempted to throw in the towel."

"I've tried and tried and tried to train my children in the way they should go, and the more I try, the more they seem to resist."

"I've tried and tried and tried to serve in this area of ministry, or lead in this area of ministry, because I want to do good in the lives of others, but no one seems to care."

"I've tried and tried and tried to build my business or do my job with integrity because I know that I have something of value to offer this community, but no one seems to find use in anything I do."

I think we have all, at one time or another, experienced this level of discouragement — and, by the way, if you haven't yet, I can assure you that you someday will. The more you strive to accomplish something good in your life, the more certain you can be that at some point you'll have to deal with the demon of discouragement.

It's the kind of discouragement that leads to a fatigue of the soul, and it causes us to just want to get up and get out and get away from it all.

We all get discouraged from time-to-time. We all go through seasons in which the results we hope to see never come together. Churches organize an ambitious ministry event and nobody shows up; writers spend months and months pouring their heart and soul into a book, and no publisher wants to publish it, or no reader wants to read it; parents make sacrifices to provide opportunities for their children and the sacrifices go unnoticed and opportunities go ignored.

It's inevitable that you will experience certain kinds of disappointments throughout your life, but you don't have to succumb to soul fatigue; you don't have to come to the end of your rope. There's a way to power through these days of disappointment. And even when your circumstances don't change right away, you can discover a renewed attitude — a renewed perspective — that will enable you to carry on and walk in victory.

The Apostle Paul was not unaware of what discouragement can do to a believer. For this reason, in the book of Galatians he tells us to be on guard against it, and he shows us how to overcome it.

Today we'll look at a few verses in Galatians that show us how to avoid soul fatigue. You do that by developing, instead, a soul-empowering, soul-refreshing attitude toward Christian service. So, today I want to talk to you about three adjustments we need to make in relation to our ministry mindset and what motivates us to do what we do.

We'll be looking at a few verses in and 6; our key verse is chapter six, verse nine.

9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

If you're struggling with discouragement and you're on the verge of soul-fatigue, here are three key areas of focus I encourage you to consider. First of all...

1. Focus on the good you do rather than the good you hope to get.

Another way to say it is: Focus more on sowing, and less on reaping. Focus more on your job performance, and less on your payday.

Make no mistake: the payday is good. It's good to see results from your hard work. And, of course, I'm not just talking financially. It's good to see lives being changed. It's good to see relationships get better. It's good to hear others express appreciation for all your effort. We all want to feel useful and we all want to feel like we're making a valuable contribution, so it's good when the results start rolling in — this goes without saying.

But the key distinction is this. We must each ask ourselves: What motivates me more — the work or the reward? What motivates me more — the process of sowing, or the prospect of reaping?

I can tell you this: The more passion you have for the process of sowing, the less likely you are to become weary in well-doing. The more passion you have for the work itself, the less likely you are to succumb to soul fatigue.

Great writers are motivated more by the process of writing than the mere prospect of selling books. Great musicians are motivated more by the process of making music than the mere prospect of selling records. It's not that they don't want to see results, it's that the results are secondary to the process itself.

It's the same in the Christian life. We're called to serve more than we're called to succeed. We're called to minister to others more than we're called to build a huge following.

In God's economy, we are measured more by our faithfulness than by our results. Our emphasis needs to be — and our motivation needs to be — more about the process of serving than the prospect of payback.

That's why Paul says...

2 Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

We are called to serve others, and life's greatest satisfaction comes in service itself, not in the success that may or may not follow.

It's this idea of serving others that Washington Gladden spoke of in the second verse...

Help me the slow of heart to move By some clear, winning word of love; Teach me the wayward feet to stay, And guide them in the homeward way.

Yes, he wanted to see the fruit of his labor, but his prayer was for the labor itself.

Here's what I'm saying: Ask God to give you a passion for the labor itself. If you're struggling with soul fatigue, ask God to re-ignite your passion for the process of sowing, and to re-ignite your passion for the ministry of serving others.

"God, give me a passion for serving my wife, serving my husband, serving my family — not so they'll do what I want them to, but because I love serving them."

"God, give me a passion for this area of ministry to which you've called me — not for the rewards that may come along down the road, but for the mere joy of serving you."

"Give me a passion, Lord, for the labor to which I'm called — not so I can get a promotion or earn a raise, but so I can bring a blessing into the lives of others."

I can tell you this: The more passion you have for the labor itself, the less likely you are to give in to soul fatigue.

Let's look at the second area of focus.

2. Focus on God's proper timing rather than your preferred timing.

When it comes to waiting on God, we have a habit of looking at clock, and God's timing is often scheduled according to the calendar. Have you noticed that?

It's not that God's timing is slow. It's that God's timing is right. That's why Paul said...

9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap of harvest if we do not give up.

At the proper time. There's a difference between God's proper time and my preferred time. This is an area in which I struggle, because my preferred time was yesterday. I don't like to wait.

This is a problem, because a significant part of the Christian life is spent waiting, in expectation of God's promises to be fulfilled. We spend a great deal of time in the land of in-between, where we go through seasons in which we're sowing and sowing and sowing, and the reaping part is still beyond the horizon. It may feel, at times, like God is dragging his feet, but the truth is, most often, he's waiting on us. Our preferred time is now, but his proper time is when you're ready.

God will not use you before the proper time, and he will not bless you before the proper time. Sometimes the reason the results don't come right away is because God needs to prepare you to receive all that he has prepared for you to receive.

I mentioned earlier that Washington Gladden eventually became an influential voice in early 20th American culture. I would venture to say in 1879, on the day his discouragement led him to that church bell tower, he was not yet ready to be that voice. He was not yet ready to pastor a great congregation. He was not yet ready to write the books and articles and editorials that he would eventually write.

1879 may have been his preferred time, but it wasn't yet the proper time. I think he sensed this, in his spirit, when he wrote the verse...

Teach me Thy patience; still with Thee In closer, dearer, company, In work that keeps faith sweet and strong, In trust that triumphs over wrong.

Don't make the mistake of thinking, when it comes to God's blessing in your life, that if it hasn't happened yet, it will never happen at all. The fulfillment of God's promises are never a question of if, they're only a matter of when.

Paul makes it very clear: You will reap what you sow. This is both a warning and a promise, because ...

8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

God's promises will be fulfilled...at the proper time.

In the book of Habakkuk, God said to the prophet...

For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. ()

If you're weary in well-doing ... if you're soul-fatigued ... then I encourage you and I exhort you to re-evaluate the way you measure time. Stop focusing on the clock, start focusing on the calendar. Understand that the harvest will come at the proper time, and not before. Right now, God is preparing you to receive all that he has prepared for you to receive.

Most people would agree that the waiting is the hardest part, but there's something you can do to make the time count. This leads us to the third essential area of focus.

3. Focus on who you're walking with, rather than what you're waiting for.

Near the end of Paul says...

Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. ()

Another way to say it is: Let us walk by the Spirit.

In other words, God wants you to have a daily relationship — a daily fellowship — with him. He wants you to understand that it's not just about the work and it's not just about the reward, it's about the daily walk. It's about living in his presence.

Jesus said in that he wants us to abide in him, and he wants to abide with us. Abide means dwell; it refers to your residence — where you live.

He's saying, in effect, "I want you to walk with me where ever you go, and I want our journey together — my presence in your life — to be your source of joy and peace and hope and strength."

In the gospel of Matthew he said...

Come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ()

So many times we think: I'm discouraged now, and I'll only be happy when the harvest comes in. But that's not how it works. The solution to soul fatigue is not found in the windfall that you've been waiting for. The solution to soul fatigue is found in the presence of Jesus. It is found in a daily walk with him.

This begins, of course, by spending time alone with God in the morning — prayer, Bible study, and worship. And equally important, it involves keeping ourselves in constant contact with the Holy Spirit all throughout the day.

Washington Gladden wrote about this ...

In hope that sends a shining ray Far down the future's broad'ning way, In peace that only Thou canst give, With Thee, O Master, let me live.

If you're feeling soul-fatigued, I encourage you to re-evaluate what matters most, and to re-evaluate what motivates you to do what you're wanting to do. Focus on who you're walking with, rather than what you're waiting for.

CONCLUSION

We become discouraged and soul-fatigued when we focus on the wrong things.

When we focus too much on the results we hope to achieve and the success we hope to attain, it's easy to become weary when things don't happen according to our preferred timetable.

For this reason, rather than focusing on the good you might get, I'm challenging you to focus on the good you can do. Develop a passion for your work that is not dependent on the reward.

But there's more to it than that.

While you seek to do good at every opportunity, you also need to keep in step with the Spirit. And that simply means that you abide in Jesus all throughout the day — that your focus is on who you're walking with, rather than what you're waiting for.

In 1879 Washington Gladden found himself fatigued and soul-weary, overcome with discouragement. It wasn't long before the harvest came in ... but the point of this message is not what his life ultimately became. The point of this message is how he learned to power through his most discouraging days. He did it not by his own power, but by the power of the Holy Spirit and by the presence of Jesus in his daily life. 

If you're discouraged, if you're weary in well-doing, make his prayer your prayer: O Master let me walk with Thee...every moment of every day.