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The Apostle Paul summarizes the point of the whole section in verse 15b: Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. To what "matters" is he referring? He explains in verse 16a: Watch your life and doctrine closely. I'm going to devote my next two posts to those areas: life and doctrine. That is, watch over ?who you are' and ?what you teach.' Preachers need to make progress in both areas.

Mid-life has a way of assaulting those two areas. Or perhaps the lack of progress in those two areas simply surfaces in mid-life. That's not surprising given the phenomenon that most of the Bible characters who failed did so in the second half of their lives. I'm thinking of leaders like Noah, David, Moses, and Solomon. I've watched preachers in mid-life fall into sexual immorality, battle disillusionment, and question their call. As some age, they lose their edge by clinging to old wineskins which fail to accomodate new wine. I expect to see that happen with increasing regularity since we are living, I believe, in an unprecedented culture shift. Change happens so fast these days! To use an old Youth for Christ slogan, how can a preacher keep "anchored to the Rock but geared to the times?"

Paul's counsel is so critical for preachers in the 21st century: Watch your life and doctrine closely. Paul sketches some details in verses 12-14. My question is, what will it look like for preachers today to flesh this out in their lives? How do we watch over our person life and our preaching ministry? Wrestle with these questions for the next few days. I'll share some thoughts in the next two posts. Our well-being and the well-being of our hearers is at stake (see verse 16)!