Pastor Appreciation

I am a Pastor. For four decades people have allowed me to love them, to lead them, to live life alongside of them in every situation, to share the Scripture with them.  It is hard to imagine a better life than I enjoy, being a friend to many, enjoying hundreds of relationships through the years that enrich me.

In October many churches observe “Pastor Appreciation” Sunday.  It always makes me uncomfortable to be praised for simply doing my job, to be publicly ‘appreciated’ for just responding to the Spirit’s call. In writing today, I am not as fishing for compliments, nor as a ‘poor pastors’ complaint! I’d like to try to let you see my heart and to understand my calling.
People greatly misunderstand the person of the pastor much of the time. One of the aims of my ministry is to be ‘authentic,’ not projecting an image. This can be difficult for those who apparently believe that with ordination (taking vows for service to the Church) the sinful nature disappears, who prefer the fantasy of a "perfect pastor."

They are shocked when I become discouraged, when my temper flashes when pressed or fatigued, when I somehow fail to say ‘the right thing’ all of the time.  Though you ‘know it’ I’ll say it for the record, I wake up to the same kind of day that you do, with the same kinds of mood swings, my faith sometimes weak- sometimes strong.  My dad, a pastor as well, used to say, “I wish people understood I pull on my trousers one leg at a time just like they do.” It was his way of saying he was not super-human.
 
Some think that the work of the pastor begins and ends with the public preaching and teaching he does. In fact, when you hear a 30 minute sermon, you are seeing the result of hours of work and the overflow of a life. Depending on the person, preparation to preach for that time can take from 10 to 20 hours!  “I saw my pastor just sitting in the office reading. Must be nice!” someone remarked. In order to preach well, the mind must be fed constantly. Then too, time in reflection and prayer is also critical to effective preaching to assure the inspiration of the Spirit. To me, the worse preaching is that which is dry, disconnected from real life, and without passion!
 
One of the most stressful parts of pastoral work involves the range of emotions required! In a single 24 hour period, it is not uncommon for me to rejoice with someone who has a new baby or a new job, to weep with someone who is walking through divorce, grief, or job loss, to advise a person who wants my perspective on a pending life change. In between, I have to think about how the Word (in my life) remains relevant to the world in which I live.  I stand beside the bed of a person in a nursing home and ‘feel’ their loneliness. I text with a young adult and ‘feel’ the uncertainty. I refuse the ‘professional distance’ that could protect me from the stress because I love the flock God has entrusted to my care.
 
I will open my heart here. The most difficult part of ministry is experiencing loss of friends who leave the church, often without a word of explanation. Paul told the people he cared for that he was like a father to them. His words may seem prideful at first, but consider his heart. "For even if you had ten thousand others to teach you about Christ, you have only one spiritual father. For I became your father in Christ Jesus when I preached the Good News to you. So I urge you to imitate me." (1 Corinthians 4:15-16, NLT)

I feel that kind of love as well as responsibility for those that the Lord brings into our church, especially those who first find Jesus Christ as Savior under my care.  It is heartbreaking to sense that a person is wavering in faith and not be allowed to talk about it. It is even more painful to experience a broken relationship, especially when it is because I fail (or seem to) the expectations of a Christian.
Visiting with 3 of my adult children this week, I was delighted to see their choices, to learn of their successes, to watch them parent, to understand how they live. In much the same way, when I watch someone grow in faith, becoming mature in Christ and fruitful in the Spirit, I feel tremendous joy. Yes, friend, though you may not always perceive it, my heart is that of a father, the love deep, the weight heavy at times.

Pastoral ministry is not a career choice and God help the person who enters it as such. It is a way of life, a calling. Jesus spoke of being the Good Shepherd and is the model of those who serve as His undershepherds. He compares the careerist with the called saying  "A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will abandon the sheep because they don’t belong to him and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock. The hired hand runs away because he’s working only for the money and doesn’t really care about the sheep." (John 10:12-13, NLT) Sobering words, at least for me.

This month, whether you are a part of the church I lead or another, you may be asked to participate in “Pastor Appreciation.”  Thank you for your love. The best gift is a daily prayer – “Lord, keep my pastor’s heart tender towards You. Renew the vision. Sharpen understanding. Give him (or her) love, patience, and joy in equal measure.”

Here is a word from the Word. "Be responsive to your pastoral leaders. Listen to their counsel. They are alert to the condition of your lives and work under the strict supervision of God. Contribute to the joy of their leadership, not its drudgery. Why would you want to make things harder for them? Pray for us. We have no doubts about what we’re doing or why, but it’s hard going and we need your prayers. All we care about is living well before God." (Hebrews 13:17-18, The Message)   Amen

When the dark is deep

I cannot even imagine the terror to be felt by those who were standing in the open at a concert, coming to the realization that bullets were raining down from a hotel window, seeing people fall – and knowing there is no safe place to hide!  In these days following the shooting in Las Vegas we have all wondered, ‘why?’  If we know something of the why, then perhaps we can know what to do.

Can any explanation actually work for such an act?   For me, there is a basic understanding. This is yet another evidence of the evil that is at work everywhere, all of the time, that springs up every now and then to capture headlines with a truly horrific act. It shows up in the callous disregard for others that ranges from disrespect to murder! 
That child who lives with a parent who ignores her basic need for love experiences evil.

The spouse who is emotionally battered by the one who is supposed to protect their heart experiences evil.

The person with dark skin who is demeaned with words of prejudice experiences evil.

The employee who faces a tyrant at work every day experiences evil.

Knowing this, what can we do?
Must we just ‘grin and bear it?’ Is the best we can do is hang on, hoping for Heaven?  No, Christian, no!

Our magnificent purpose is engagement and transformation.

Jesus explains the conflict this way: "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10, NIV)  Understanding this cosmic conflict, we are not cowering victims. He invites us, by His grace, into the Kingdom (the rule) of God in our lives. When we respond in faith to His invitation, kneel humbly to confess our sin and accept His salvation, we enter a new way. The Spirit takes up residence in us, breaking sins hold on us, and we become people that bring life to a dying world, light to a dark world! When  Jesus commissioned His disciples, He did not say, “Go tell people that they can now go to Heaven!” although that is true. He told them "to preach the news of God’s kingdom and heal the sick." (Luke 9:2, The Message)

I am well aware that some Christians see Jesus’ words and take off – to attempt silly things in the Name of the King! Like the first disciples who did not understand the nature of the Kingdom and wanted to destroy Jesus’ critics, (“Master, do you want us to call a bolt of lightning down out of the sky and incinerate them?” - Luke 9:54) come think that Christ has given them the power to call down fire from Heaven on sin. They invest way too much time and energy condemning and rebuking.  Others misunderstand the Kingdom as only for the eternal, a state achieved in the future, and thus they fail to accept their divine privilege of a new character, like that of Christ. They live as victims of sin and Self;  fearful, and weak.  Still others take His invitation to mean that we are to enjoy all the best things of this present life; wealth, health, a trouble-free existence. These disciples arrogantly demean those who suffer as having an inferior faith, an inability to ‘confess and receive’ their inheritance now.

In truth, Jesus invites us into the rule of God, beginning with us individually. “Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.”  Led by Him, we gain a depth of character and insight that is key to the proper exercise our spiritual authority. 

The Enemy of God takes aim at those who humbly receive the call. Knowing this, we can live without fear because "despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:37-39, NLT)

Today, and everyday, pray first to be a humble subject of the King, and then, walk in the Spirit. He will fill you with Light, with Life, with Hope, with Patience. And, you and I will become ambassadors of a kingdom, presently unseen, that pushes back the darkness. Oh, Lord, make this our magnificent obsession!

Here is a word from the Word -

“Jesus Christ, … is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. ­­­To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood,  and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—

to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.”    (Revelation 1:5)

The Magician

Nathan, my little friend who’s 9, loves doing card tricks. His delight in watching my ‘amazement’ is better than the trick most of the time.  But, he manages to fool me often, finding that ace in the middle of the deck, producing that 8 of hearts that I mentally noted at the start of the trick! Even though I know it is impossible to make a jet disappear with a wave of a hand, I’m still captivated by those who entertain with ‘magic.’ Why do these tricks work?  Because we suspend our reason and are willing to let ourselves believe that it is possible to make a person float on air or move from one place on a stage to another invisibly.   

Yes, we ‘know’ that they are not really defying natural law, but we let them distract, divert attention, and make us believe in boxes that have secret compartments. And, our distraction causes us to ‘’see” a lie as true! We want to think, somehow, that they have defied the limits of time, space, and gravity! That’s entertainment.

On this Monday morning, let me renew an old warning about a Beautiful Liar, the Devil, who is much like a magician. He invites us to believe what we know is not true, seducing us with a lie! “Oh, no, Jerry, I know that the approach of evil will be obvious. I’m sure I have enough discernment to hear the alarm bells that signal his deceit.”  In that you are mistaken.  In the Genesis story, Satan approaches Eve urging her to disobedience.  He promises “you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5, NIV) He made her forget the Truth that God had spoken, that she would certainly die in disobedience, that she would lose intimacy with her Creator, and that she would become subject to pain and suffering.

He is still lying. And, we can be tricked. Why? The Bible says that he "masquerades as an angel of light." (2 Corinthians 11:14, NIV)
He makes selfishness appear sophisticated.
He recasts marital infidelity as a sure route to the happiness we crave.

He turns gifts of God into addictions when we worship them rather than the One who gave them to us.

He shines a shadow on the kind or loving person that causes us see them rather as “naïve” or “childish.” 

If allowed, he will work his magic on sincere Christians. He hates those who love the Living God.

Sound scary? It need not be. There is a security for the Christian. Temptation can be defeated and more quickly than we might think. Part of his trick is to keep telling us the lie that we are powerless, that the attraction is irresistible. How many times have you avoided responsibility telling yourself that the ‘devil made me do it?’ 

We have a choice. He cannot compel us, does not control.  When we know God’s Truth, his whispered seductions that appeal to our base nature are stripped of their allure. If we live in Truth and are relentlessly authentic, temptation loses much of its luster.  His tricks, his smoke and mirrors become obvious under the bright Light of the Gospel of Christ. The human tragedy is summed up in these words: "They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. …Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done." (Romans 1:25, 28, NIV) But, God did not abandon humanity in that hopeless condition! He intervened with the gift of His Son, showing us the Way back home, calling us to reject the beautiful liar.

Disciple, will you live in the Truth today?

Sometimes the Truth is brutally ugly, terribly crushing. Face it, confess it, speak it.

And always remember this crowning truth – The One who knows you best, loves you most!

Memorize this amazing passage and tell temptation to take a hike when it seems overwhelming. "My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world." (1 John 2:1-2, NLT)

Will you pray for a discerning heart and mind that God, the Holy Spirit, offers to you?

Will you love the light of Christ?

Here’s a word from the Word. Own it as you read it. "The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires." (Romans 13:12-15, NLT)

I pray a beautiful week of grace for you.  CWTW will be sporadically sent this week as I will be visiting my grandchildren!
Thanks for reading along.