Tag: God

  • Letter #9–The Boss

    Dear Small Church Pastor,

         The first summer job I had as a teenager was loading watermelons for a local farmer.  He was the one who contacted me to come to work, and he was the one who gave me my “job description” in relationship to all the other farmhands he employed.  He was the one who paid me at the end of the day or week, depending on the job we had to complete.  He was the boss.  (Just to let you know how long ago that was, the going rate for teenaged farm labor was $.50/hour, which netted us $5 at the end of a 10-hour day.)

         We all knew who the boss was, and we all knew we were expected to live up to his expectations when it came to handling the melons correctly as they were harvested and loaded for transport from the field to the packing house.  We knew he had the answers to any questions about our work that we might have.  We also knew any correction or discipline that might become necessary in the field would come from him.  After all, he was the boss.     

         When you were called (contacted) by God and given a job to do as a minister in His kingdom, God became your spiritual “boss.”  God is the one who established your job description.  God is the one who placed you in the body of Christ as a pastor.  He is the one to whom you answer and the one from whom you will receive any necessary discipline.  God is the one who will reward you at the end of your time in his “field.”

         Why am I making this comparison?  Simply put, we sometimes forget who the boss is.  Pastors sometimes forget whose expectations we need to meet and who it is that anoints us, equips us, guides us and, yes, even disciplines us as we move forward for His kingdom.  We sometimes forget who it is for whom we are working.

         Pastors are given to the church by God.  Church administrative boards, deacon boards, and congregations did not create the office of pastor.  God created this office, and he did so in order for the members of His church to be guided, strengthened, and motivated to become mature in faith and successful in fulfilling God’s great commission to go out into all the world and make disciples and God’s great commandments to first love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and then to love one another with unconditional love.

         In our modern church environment, pastors are often misled by social constructs and traditions into thinking man is the boss.  We are told to “read the by-laws and go by them.”  We are told the “board” has the last say on all matters.  We are separated from our ministry partners by the titles “clergy” and “laity,” and heaven forbid if we don’t follow the prescribed patterns set by our ancestors.  We’re even sometimes threatened by dismissal if we do not adhere to what has always been done in a particular church setting.  Essentially, we are deceived into believing man and his rules are our boss. 

         There is nothing wrong with traditions, by-laws, titles and patterns within the confines of a congregation.  They help to create stability and purpose in a congregation.  However, if these concepts are not used properly under the spiritual umbrellas that God places within a congregation, they tend to tempt people into trying to become “the boss” in response to those traditions, by-laws, titles and patterns.  (More about spiritual umbrellas in another letter.) 

         When a congregation understands the Biblical role of the pastor in relationship to the congregation, it is less likely to try to become the one to whom the pastor is ultimately accountable.  The expectations of the congregation will reflect the expectations God has already established for the office of pastor.  The pastor can then fulfill his responsibilities to God’s calling without having to worry about whether or not he is keeping the congregation contented because they have expectations that do no line up with God’s expectations as noted in scriptures.  The congregation and the pastor will both know who is in charge of the body of believers called the church.

         This knowledge will empower and liberate the pastor.  A congregation who understands who the pastor’s boss is will allow the pastor to flow in God’s anointing.  They will accept God’s messages that come to them through the pastor and will learn how to apply those messages to their lives.  They will be a blessing to their spiritual leader because they want to obey the boss as much as the leader does.  Such a congregation allows the pastor to bring truth into their lives, and that truth is brought without fear of rejection by those who learn it.

         That type of congregation can exist.  The Pastor will have to teach the congregation who is in control of his ministry and who is in control of the overall ministry of the congregation.  Among other concepts, the pastor will have to help everyone involved understand who the head of the church is, what the pastor’s Biblical job description is, and what the individual disciples of Christ should be doing as they all minister under the auspices of God.  The pastor who leads such a congregation will be a blessing to them, and they will be a blessing to the pastor.

         First, though, the pastor must remember who “the boss” is.

    Sincerely,

    A Small Church Pastor    

  • Letter #8–Seasons

    Dear Small Church Pastor,

         In the course of a year, we experience seasons as the weather changes from one general type of weather to the next.  The dormancy of Winter yields to the vibrancy of Spring.  Then the growth of Summer produces the harvest of Fall.  We continually experience these changes of seasons because God set all that into motion at creation.

         In addition to weather patterns, life has a way of flowing through seasons, too.  Childhood is referred to as the Spring of life, our working years as the Summer, retirement as the Fall and finally old age and Winter.  If we look around us, we’ll see that there are seasons in almost every aspect of life.  Some seasons are brief and some are lengthy.

         Do you remember how Moses was initially raised in the education and knowledge of Egyptian royalty?  Then he learned how to watch over and guide sheep.  Finally, God sent him to lead Israel out of Egypt.  Do you remember how long each of those seasons was in his life?  That’s right—forty years.  Those were long seasons, weren’t they.

         In my own life I’ve had some short seasons.  My first pastorate was two years.  I’ve also had some long seasons.  My wife Kathy and I became the managers of a Christian campground in April of 1993 and remained there in that ministry until the end of September of 2020.  That was a much longer season.

         During the seasons I have experienced, I realized God was teaching me some things I would need later in life.  Those lessons were expanded in succeeding years as I learned more about life and the various ministries into which I was directed by God.  He was always in control, guiding me and teaching me more about living as a disciple of Jesus.  God was preparing me in each season to deal with life and ministry in the next one.

         Jesus pulled together a small group of people and prepared them for about three years so they could enter their next season.  He taught them.  He demonstrated how to minister.  He told them how to pray.  He gave them the example they were to follow.  Then He sent them abroad into their next season.

         God is doing the same thing in your life.  Look back on where you were when you started your journey of faith.  Have you grown in faith?  Have you gained more knowledge and understanding about Jesus?  Are you better able to fulfill your calling from God today than you were when you first felt that call?  Can you see where God brought you along from one season of life into the next and into the next?

         Here’s the exciting part of this letter—there’s another season coming, and you’re being prepared for it right now.  God knows exactly what He wants you to do next, and He’s getting you ready for that something.  He’s teaching you, strengthening you, moulding you and anointing you for your next season. 

         God is getting you ready, just like He got Moses ready.  Jesus is preparing you, just like He prepared those original disciples.  Every trial, success, failure or achievement has been arranged to prepare you for the next season.  Every lesson learned, every gift sent, every moment of anointing by the Holy Spirit has been designed to get you ready for your next season.

         Get ready.  A new, exciting, potential-filled season is coming.

    Sincerely,

    A Small Church Pastor

  • Letter #4 (K.I.S.S.)

    Dear Small Church Pastor,

                K.I.S.S. (Not the rock band.) Keep.  It.  Simple.  Stupid.  It’s been said so much that it has become a cliché.  But it’s still a great rule of thumb for ministry.  The gospel is the simple and uncomplicated news that anyone can be restored to a right relationship with God through faith in Jesus because Jesus is the Messiah.  The enemy of your ministry will do anything he can to prevent you from staying on track with that simple, uncomplicated message.

                As pastors of a small part of God’s flock, we feel responsible for any and all activities, programs, outreaches, hospital visits, encouraging phonecalls, discipleship training, prayer meetings, youth outings, special songs on Sundays, or any other “good works” that occur in, for or through our congregations.  As the shepherd of that local flock, you definitely are the leader of the flock and should be aware of what’s going on in, for and through the flock.  But you have not been called to do all the good works yourself.

                Each sheep in your flock has been given gifts, talents and strengths by the Holy Spirit.  Part of your job is to help the sheep discover the attributes God has placed in their lives and to use them to fulfill the work of the whole body in the local church.  The body won’t achieve its calling from God if the only part working is the heart.  You do not have to do everything by yourself.

                Satan tries to get you to become so busy directing all the activities of the congregation that you lose focus of what your job as pastor really is.  He tries to complicate your life with so many meetings, reports, trips, and responsibilities that you forget to focus on the good news you are to keep before them as they mature as disciples.

                The truth of the matter is that you are to help your people become mature disciples so they can take their place in ministry within the local church body beside you as the whole congregation moves forward for the kingdom of God.  The truth of the matter is that you cannot do it all by yourself, and I, personally, believe you will overload and undermine your ministry if you try to do everything alone.  Sometimes we small church pastors become so distracted in our ministry that we fail to realize this.

                We become overwhelmed by ministry because, without recognizing what is happening, we have allowed the devil to complicate what we do for God’s kingdom.  I’ll say it again—you do not have to do everything by yourself.  One effective way to uncomplicate your ministry is by including your congregation in ministry.  And teach them to keep their own ministry uncomplicated, too.

                The gospel is simple.  Ministry does not have to be so complicated that we lose sight of that simplicity. 

    K.I.S.S.  (More to come about this topic later.)

    Sincerely,

    A Small Church Pastor

  • Letter #3–Timing

    Dear Small Church Pastor,

                Trust God’s timing.  He gave you the vision to pursue.  He promised to meet all your needs if you will seek His righteousness first.  He will bring the vision into reality if you will focus on it and follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit, but it will happen in His timetable, not yours.

                Allow me to illustrate what I’m saying.  Our congregation was led by the Holy Spirit into creating a safe place for local youth and children to gather with their friends.  Since God uses people to achieve His works on this earth, He began to put people with the right skills, knowledge and resources into our path. 

                However, the moving of those people took time.  We had hoped to have the buildings ready in a particular time frame.  That didn’t happen.  I firmly believe it didn’t happen at the time we wanted it to happen because God had something greater in store for us than we originally envisioned.  He was orchestrating peoples’ lives to be a blessing to us and to work their own lives out for good, also.  And that takes time.

                If you can believe God has given you the vision to achieve, believe He will bring it to pass at the right time.  Exercise patience.  Keep praying.  Keep on leading your flock toward spiritual maturity.  Continue to cast the vision before your congregation and encourage them to persevere in the face of difficulties or delays.  Trust God’s timing.

    Sincerely,

    A Small Church Pastor