Striking Shepherds

Scottish audio version here

Zechariah 13:7 "Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who is close to me!" declares the LORD Almighty. "Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn my hand against the little ones. (NIV)

This is one of my least favorite verses from the Bible. It disturbs me and every time I go through some trouble or turbulence in ministry, this verse keeps popping up at the back of my mind.

I’ve seen this happen in other churches. I’ve watched pastors lose their position at a church because of their theology. I’ve seen congregations become divided over denominational issues that the pastor couldn’t stop. I’ve known sessions and elders to be split over money, ministry or mission conflicts. In most of those situations, the pastor has left, defeated and demoralized. The shepherd has been struck, so the sheep begin to scatter.

Ministry is not easy, just like any other caring, counseling or teaching profession. On any given day, you can go through a whole gamut of emotions. Every phone call can be a crisis. Every email can be demanding. Every visit can be serious. The church is never quiet, for there’s always someone, somewhere in the congregation who is carrying painful burdens and facing personal problems. To be a good shepherd means to lead people through tough times, as well as celebrating the joyous moments in their lives.

What I fear is happening across the country is that pastors are becoming the scapegoats in a theological tussle that is presently splitting every mainline denomination in America. We are loading our leaders with an unbearable burden of trying to please and satisfy everyone, which cannot be done. The shepherds are showing fatigue and losing their energy. They’re being struck by discontent and malcontent. They’re being paralyzed by people who use churches to feed their ego and slake their thirst for power. Pastors are easy targets, so the shepherds are being struck, causing the sheep to disarray and scatter.

Maybe we should pray for our pastors today and ask God to uphold them.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You call women and men from different places, backgrounds, and cultures to serve Your Kingdom as pastors in the church. Their lives are different from most folks and the demands that are sometimes placed upon them are unbearable. Pastor our pastors and save them from being struck; for without our pastors, the sheep would scatter all over the place. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Letting Go

Scottish audio version here

Colossians 1: 28 We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. (NIV)

Part of my seminary training was spent dealing with people who had emotional problems. A group of our seniors students were tutored by professional social workers who were attached to a local hospital. The purpose of the tutoring was not to show us how to help people with problems, but to learn that there are some situations where people cannot be helped.

This was not something that we accepted readily. As would be ministers and zealous servants for the Lord, we believed that everyone could be helped, cured, and saved. There was no emotional problem that prayer could not overcome. There was no person who would end up being left behind. We had the power of the Spirit within us and we were ready to save the entire world.

One of the senior social workers kept telling us that we had to accept our limitations. If people had severe emotional and mental issues, we had to learn how to let go and refer them to a specialist. Time and time again, he admonished us on how important it was to let go of our pride and zeal when people were beyond our help. Too many pastors held on to people in counseling captivity instead of referring them to specially qualified counselors.

One of our group wouldn’t accept this. And when we were each assigned different patients to counsel, he went on a one-man mission to rescue, save, and cure the person under his care. He even visited the patient at her home, which was strictly taboo.

Well, to cut a long story short, the patient ended up taking an overdose whilst he was at her apartment. The paramedics rushed to her home and managed to save her life. A couple of days later, we were all ushered into the presence of the senior social worker. He plainly told us about the situation and this time admonished us to remember the event and to recognize there were limits to what we could do to help people as pastors. It’s a lesson I have tried to put into practice throughout my years of counseling. There are just some people that I personally cannot help. There are limitations in some situations to what I can do.

Sadly, the student who over-stepped his boundaries only remained a pastor for a couple of years. He never learned this lesson and took a nervous breakdown because of what we call “Savior Syndrome” in the ministry. He just didn’t accept his limitations. He just wouldn’t refer people to other specialists.

Perhaps your trying to help someone in a severe situation. Maybe you’ve been carrying that person for years, but your support has only enabled her or him to continue in their personal crisis. Sometimes the best help we can give to others is to offer no help at all by letting them go and saying “no.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, even You could not heal everyone or solve all of their problems. There were times when people rejected Your advice or ignored Your admonitions. You healed many, but not all. Help us to understand this hard lesson and grant us the courage to let go of those whom we cannot help. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

Warning: Pastor Disaster!

William Willimon is dean of the chapel and professor of Christian ministry at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.

In a recent article, William Willimon says he worries when seminarians report that they are going into pastoral ministry because "I just love people. I want to work with people."

Willimon responds by asking, "Have you actually met any of these people?"

Food for thought,eh?