Ever feel overwhelmed by the challenges you face in ministry? Jehoshaphat did.
(1)…the Moabites and the Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to make war on Jehoshaphat. (3) Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord…
Faced with an overwhelming situation, Jehoshaphat turned to God. Continue reading
Every Marine is a rifleman regardless of his MOS (Military Occupational Specialty). That is, the Marines in the kitchen, motor pool, air wing, and front lines all have basic training as a rifleman. I propose that every pastor needs to be, at the core, an intercessory pray-er in order to enjoy Enduring Ministry. Continue reading
The Apostle Paul writes…
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2 NIV)
A constant challenge to pastors is the temptation to “conform to the pattern of this world”. Too much of the world’s influence and our decision making begins to look just like the world around us. And, if we’re not careful, our ability to discern God’s will becomes compromised. Continue reading
The Problem with Balance
One of my first posts on this blog was on the topic of “Balance as an Essential of Enduring Ministry“. Some good friends with great minds weighed in on the subject and challenged the notion that “balance” is a proper aspiration. Continue reading
This is a re-post from a blog that I have all but abandoned (Daily Build Up). I share this post with you here, because I think vulnerability is a part of the puzzle of Loving People.
Vulnerability (Originally posted January 25, 2011)
Dr. Brene’ Brown studied the essence of human relations from the perspective of a social scientist. She discovered, much to her chagrin, that at the heart of relationships is vulnerability. Her research taught her that relationally successful people, labeled “wholehearted” people, have the common trait of being vulnerable to others in their relationships. [View her TED presentation here.]
The world we live in teaches us that vulnerability is something to be avoided. We are taught to protect ourselves, don’t take risks, and avoid looking weak. These lessons are learned from infancy, and we learn them well. We avoid the sense of vulnerability like it’s the plague.
The problem is that deep relationships depend upon two people making themselves vulnerable to each other. This could explain much. Why don’t marriages last? It could be that our relationships are stunted because of our culturally learned unwillingness to allow ourselves to be sufficiently vulnerable with one another.
Further, this vulnerability issue is a problem for us Christians. Jesus calls us to voluntarily take on the posture of vulnerability.
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:24-25 NIV)
Denying ourselves, carrying crosses, and losing our lives are images replete with a sense of vulnerability. Thereby, they are things, acculturated as we are, to be avoided.
Christ’s command to lose our lives is a command that He was willing to follow Himself. Jesus could have come as a king commanding thousands of troops. Jesus could have demanded the worship of the world. Instead, Jesus showed us the way. He showed us about vulnerability. Jesus laid down his life.
Jesus commands us to love one another. C.S. Lewis writes, “To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken.” Jesus commands us to be vulnerable in our relationships with people.
Please join me in striving to live according to Christ’s command to live counter culturally, to live vulnerably.
Last week we looked at Loving God as an essential of Enduring Ministry. This week I want to turn our attention to the need to love people. When Jesus was asked which of all the commandments is the greatest, He responded:
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Matthew 22:37-39 NIV)
One of the common obstacles to Enduring Ministry are the very people we are assigned to shepherd. Face it, church people can be very hard to live with! In order to endure, we must learn to love our people no matter how badly they behave.
“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you…” (Luke 6:27-28 NIV)
Have you had any success at this?
I love reading Oswald Chamber’s, “My Utmost for His Highest”. The devotion I read today spoke of the need to “maintain a vital connection with Jesus“. Our relationship with Christ must be our first priority above all others; even our work! Unchecked, our ministry itself will get in the way. Chambers writes it this way:
“Christian work can actually be a means of diverting a person’s focus away from Jesus Christ.”
How do you maintain your relationship with Christ in the midst of the whirlwind we call ministry?
I attended our denomination’s “Annual Conference” last week and was reminded of a visual aid that I have used in the past. To give proper credit, I believe the first time I saw this demonstration was about six years ago by Bill Allison from Cadre Ministries.
God's Pouring
In this image God is the “Pitcher” and we are the glass. When we get ourselves in the right relationship with God (i.e., loving God) then we are in position to receive His outpouring of blessings and power. The problem is that most of us only accept a small portion of God’s outpouring and then we run off to minister to others. Unfortunately, the power doesn’t last and soon we are tired, exhausted, and burned out. Empty, we return to God, and we receive again.
The path to Enduring Ministry requires us to position ourselves under the flow of God’s blessings/power and stay there! In other words, we must stay in love with God. In doing so, God will fill us so full that we begin to overflow.
Enduring Ministry happens in the overflow!
I know, you’re thinking that Loving God is a no-brain-er as an Essential of Enduring Ministry. Sadly, we must not be too swift to jump to this conclusion, because too many pastors report that they do not have a close relationship with God.
Enduring Ministry requires that pastors cling closely to the LORD. Through that relationship God’s blessings and power fill us to the point of overflowing. It is from the overflow that we minister.
Without God’s constant “filling” we are unable to rise to the task under our own energies. Quickly, our energy is sapped, our ministry and life suffer, and most leave the ministry.
How do you keep your spiritual tank full?
I read a post today that further underscores the need to discuss the Essentials of Enduring Ministry. Here is an excerpt from the post by Thabiti Anyabwile:
Consider these figures compiled by the Schaeffer Institute:
Hours and Pay
90% of the pastors report working between 55 to 75 hours per week.
50% feel unable to meet the demands of the job.
70% of pastors feel grossly underpaid.
Training and Preparedness
90% feel they are inadequately trained to cope with the ministry demands.
90% of pastors said the ministry was completely different than what they
thought it would be like before they entered the ministry.
Health and Well-Being
70% of pastors constantly fight depression.
50% of pastors feel so discouraged that they would leave the ministry if
they could, but have no other way of making a living.
Marriage and Family
80% believe pastoral ministry has negatively affected their families.
80% of spouses feel the pastor is overworked.
80% spouses feel left out and under-appreciated by church members.
Church Relationships
70% do not have someone they consider a close friend.
40% report serious conflict with a parishioner at least once a month.
#1 reason pastors leave the ministry — Church people are not willing to go the same direction and goal of the pastor. Pastors believe God wants them to go in one direction but the people are not willing to follow or change.
Longevity
50% of the ministers starting out will not last 5 years.
1 out of every 10 ministers will actually retire as a minister in some form.
4,000 new churches begin each year and 7,000 churches close.
Over 1,700 pastors left the ministry every month last year.
Over 1,300 pastors were terminated by the local church each month, many without cause.
Over 3,500 people a day left the church last year.