Pastoral ministry, Apologetics, and Optimism for the Church

One of the things that I sometimes do while working at my desk during the week is listen to Dr. James White's online program The Diving Line from Alpha and Omega Ministries.  These Youtube videos often deal with topics that interest me, in particular Biblical textual issues.  One of the things that I have noticed of late, is that Dr. White's perspective, as an apologist who spends a lot of his time debating, is as a result at times negative about the state of the Church today.  When you spend all of your time and effort combating error and heresy within the Church, and fending off assault from those who are supposed to be on your side, as well as those who are not, it is no wonder that Dr. White doesn't get the chance to see the positive things that are happening in the Church that I have the good fortune of witnesses on a regular basis as I go about pastoral ministry here in my little corner of the world.
It may be that there is theological rot in many of the seminaries, some of which have wandered away from Orthodoxy, but here on the local level, at least in my own experience working with the 50+ churches that we've come into contact with through Mustard Seed Missions, I've only worked with men and women who are preaching, teaching, and living the same Gospel message as our ancestors in the faith.  If certain denominations are heading into danger, and that's something an apologist like Dr. White should be focusing on, that same trend is not evident here on the local level.  Working here in Venango County these past four and a half years, has given me a tremendous optimism about the work that God is doing, an optimism that stems from our ecumenical work for the poor through Mustard Seed Missions, as well as the food pantries, the cross walk, the 40 Days of Prayer, and all the other ways in which God's people here in this place have been working hard for the kingdom of God.
Just today as I listened to yesterday's program while working on my PowerPoint for Sunday, James expressed some of his own frustration after spending the first 45 minutes talking about some of the struggles the Church is facing by those who are wandering from orthodoxy, he said, "And I know in my  mind, God is still on is throne, I'm only seeing a small portion of it.  We've seen all sorts of people brought out of error...I know all that, sometimes you just start getting tired."  After that, Dr. White commented that he takes a long ride on his bike to help clear his mind of the weight he feels on his shoulders when fighting day after day on these issues, a sentiment that I can wholeheartedly agree with (for me, it is running on our awesome running trails in the woods at Two Mile or Oil Creek State Park).
I know that a lot of you are worried about the future, about the future of our nation, and the future of God's Church here.  There are things worth worrying about, trends that need to be countered, battles that must be won.  When that fight ways heavy on your mind, the antidote that I have found may offer you solace.  Find your fellow Christians who have a passion for those in need, and get busy doing something to help in the name of Christ, and get together with your neighboring churches to worship together.  You're not in this alone, and neither is your church.  God has brought revival to this nation through his Church before, he can do it again.  Instead of waiting around for that to happen, get started on kingdom work today, who knows, you may end up being a part of how God turns that blessing of revival into a reality.

{Update 11/21  The James White that I used to listen to while working no longer has the same ministry.  In the past 3-4 years he has followed Eric Metaxas down the road of political 'sky is falling' conspiracy theory laden hysteria.  I no longer recommend listening to his messages with the exception of the older material related to textual criticism}