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Loving Your Man of God
2 Samuel 23:15-16
"And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate! And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD."
What an incredible story about these three men who risked their life to get David a drink of water. In the verses above you find that David quietly longed for a drink of water from the well of Bethlehem. David had been out fighting battles for the LORD, when he got a little homesick and simply wanted to have a taste of the water he had drank for so many years. Three men heard David speak about his longing, and they decided to do something about it. Their action was not a normal action, for they literally risked their lives to fulfill the desire of their man of God. No one would ever question their love for their leader. No doubt these men held a special place in David's heart because he knew they loved him.
Let me ask you a question; does your man of God know that you love him? I did not ask you if you think he knows that you love him, but does he unequivocally know that you love him? What do you do to show your love to your man of God? Though you probably will never have to risk your life for your man of God to prove your love, I do believe this story shows us how you can demonstrate your love to him.
Let me make this clear, every man of God needs people to love him. One thing a preacher will constantly wonder is who loves him. I know this may seem petty, but when you are constantly being analyzed by people, knowing that someone loves you unconditionally is comforting and strengthening to a man of God. Your preacher needs to know that your love for him does not have strings attached.
Moreover, you will never know how to demonstrate your love to your man of God unless you listen for his desires. Often your man of God will expose his desires through his sermons. He may use his desires as an illustration to prove a point. Though he probably is not doing this to get anything from you, if you listen you will know what he truly desires.
Furthermore, you will never be able to demonstrate your love to your man of God until you lay your agenda aside. Too many people have an agenda to get close to the preacher so they can receive position. Your desire to love your man of God should not be so that you can get position, but to simply love him for his position and for who he is. To the man of God who is observant, he can detect when someone demonstrates love for position. This does not endear that type of person to the man of God, but rather it puts him on edge to wonder what they will do if he doesn't give them position. Your purpose of loving your man of God should be for the sole purpose of loving him.
Last, your degree of sacrifice determines your degree of love. The three men from the story above were willing to sacrifice their lives for David. There was no question as to the degree of their love, because their sacrifice proved it. Most of the time it is not the amount of money spent on something that shows your sacrifice, but rather the time out of your busy schedule to show your love that demonstrates your depth of love. With the busy schedules of today, simply taking time to express your love to your man of God will help him to know that you love him.
Listen for the little desires that your man of God expresses and try to meet those desires. Your man of God needs to know that you love him, and little expressions of love on a regular basis will help him to know how much you love him.