I just wonder what it would be like if for six months if all of us had preachers like those in Acts 6:4. If the preachers’ only task was preaching and praying. If deacons really did what deacons are supposed to do, I wonder how different our churches would be?
If your preacher had a week, locked away in seclusion with just his Bible and his God, no books, no internet, do you think his preaching would improve? What do you think?
Royce
Grace Digest 
Here’s a fun exercise:
Step 1 — Go into your elders and say, “Here’s my new job description: Acts 6:4.”
Step 2 — Make a U-Haul reservation…
Yes it would, Royce. Thanks for the thought question.
Wonderful.
Prayer is so powerful as I have seen in my own life.
I appreciate your blog and you challenging us to grow.
Love for you to comment any time.
I appreciate your wisdom and advice.
You are the closest thing I have to a mentor.
Hope you have a great week!
Perhaps an equally good question would be: How much would our personal lives improve if we practiced stillness with God and His Word on a daily basis? Shut out all of the dozens of distractions that call out for our time and attention, and devote an hour or so to communing only with God. We would, no doubt, be much better people.
I vote for more study time and more preaching/teaching from preachers.
When T. B. Larimore was preaching 15 times a week in that months-long meeting in Sherman, TX (first half of 1894), David Lipscomb heard about it and wrote to Larimore.
Lipscomb asked, among other things, how Larimore was doing it, what it was like., etc.
Larimore wrote back and said that he studied most of the day, every day, using a Bible and an English dictionary. That was his library.
Lipscomb published some of the correspondence in the Gospel Advocate and editorialized. He noted that in ordinary schools, teachers taught for several hours, several days a week. Why can’t preachers do that? he wondered.
No, not every preacher is able to do that. But many preachers and teachers I know among the Churches of Christ are excellent ministers of the Word. I say, Give them a lot of time and opportunity for study. Then, ask them to preach and teach many hours a week. People are hungry for God and for His Word. Let’s feed them!
I am not a paid preacher, but I love to preach. I value the position of minister as one who is in Christ. Why just limit this to the preacher? We all could use a good dose of this.
Tim – Their response might be Acts 13:13.
John – Wouldn’t it be nice?
Kenny – You are in bad need of mentors! LOL You are very kind and I agree that we all need more personal prayer.
Frank – Those several hour messages are still not uncommon in some parts of the world as you know. Most of our U.S. congregations get antsy at about 35 minutes. I can listen with interest to great Bible teaching for a long time. However, I can’t listen to what some folks pass off as preaching for very long at all.
Tucker – Of course you are right. I was just speaking of preachers/pastor/teacher types when I wrote the post. Thanks for your visit.
Royce
The first thing that would happen is everyone would get upset because the pastor isn’t “there for them.” The second thing that would happen is that everyone would mock the pastor because he “doesn’t do anything all week.” The third thing that would happen is that eventually everyone would leave AND THEN good things would happen! Acts shows how the church started, we show where it’s come. To get it back to the beginning you have to start over!