Valentine's day is round the corner and it briefly crossed my mind to write something "relevant"; this was immediately followed by the thought- "why I would not write something 'relevant.'" You see, people want answers. They want direct answers to questions that are bothering them, such as,
"Should I as a Jesus follower, celebrate the day?"
"How far can I go to physically express romantic love?" etc.
They want a quick solutions for the difficult moments in life and that's ok.
The point though, is that the pastor is not the guide, the Bible is. A pastor is an under-shepherd. He directs the flock under the instruction of the Shepherd. Though he is called the shepherd, his job is to lead the sheep to the point where they can follow the chief shepherd unaided. The shepherd of the sheep is Christ. He is the chief shepherd of the flock. HE is the guide. The pastor's job is to direct into an intimate relationship with Christ through the bible, such that you may know and love Jesus enough to follow his ways without confusion. Therefore, I will teach you the fear of the Lord. And I will encourage you in knowing the HOLY one. So I say, seek wisdom not just answers: Go for full relationship knowledge of God not just one off answers. For wisdom is the Lord and in him is all knowledge. He is his word and his word is wisdom. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.Daniel 2:22 NIV Choose to live in reverence for Him: acknowledging his headship over your life and decisions. Recognizing him as not just friend or father but also as DIETY to be respected and worshiped not just with words but also in everyday life. Be honest to yourself, those around you and to God. Know him as Light in whom is no darkness at all. For if we say that we share in life with God, but we continue living in darkness, we are liars, who don’t follow the truth. We should live in the light, where God is. If we live in the light, we have fellowship with each other, and the blood sacrifice of Jesus, God’s Son, washes away every sin and makes us clean. 1 John 1:6-7 ERV Love truth (no matter how difficult) and hate evil. Run from those who "... who call evil good and good evil, who change darkness into light and light into darkness, who change bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter! (Isaiah 5:20 CJB). Run from the very appearance of evil - if it looks bad, chances are that it is bad. Because, dear sister/brother, Wisdom (i.e knowing right from wrong and applying the knowledge rightly) begins with fear and respect for the Lord. Knowledge of the Holy One (God as pure, virtuous and holy) leads to understanding." Proverbs 9:10 ERV
Further Reading:
The Bible (the book of John is a good start)