About Pastors by Ann-Louise
Have you ever heard the joke about having roasted preacher for Sunday dinner? Perhaps this is something that bothers me more because my father is a pastor and I have had the opportunity to interact with many people in various ministry positions over the years. But, even a casual, off-hand comment about a pastor (or even any member of the body of Christ), is not something that should be taken lightly.
When you hear someone bad-mouthing your pastor or another pastor, how do you respond? Do you engage in tearing him down? Or, do you take a stand and tell that person you have no desire to participate in gossip and encourage them to take their concerns directly to the pastor himself?
I have some friends who are in the ministry. They are a wonderful couple - very real, very transparent, and very humble. This pastor and his wife have been having some difficulties recently which they shared with me very briefly. This weighed heavily on my heart and I sent them a message to let them know that, though not a member of their church, as their sister in Christ, I'm standing with them. I'd like to share just a small part of that email with you..
When I was growing up, people often expected the pastor's kids to be
saintly, serene, angelic beings running around with halos and harps.
If we got a little boisterous outside after church, you would have
thought the unpardonable sin had been committed. The not-so-quiet
whispers among the certain elements of the congregation provided my
brothers and me with some amusement at times. "Oh, did you see
pastor's kids?" "They got their Sunday clothes all dirty." "How could
they do such a thing?"
If there have been some of those not-so-quiet whisperers within your
congregation, perhaps they need to take a look at 1 Samuel 24:6 and
give careful thought to how the Lord would have them treat those He
has chosen for His purpose. When encouraged by his men to attack Saul,
David said, "The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my
master, the Lord's anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is
the anointed of the Lord."
Pastors are human. Pastors make mistakes. Pastors can't please everybody all the time (and shouldn't try to). Pastors carry an enormous weight of responsibility. Pastors in general, and your pastor in particular, are all in need of support. Is it possible for one mouth in a congregation to undermine an entire God-ordained ministry? You bet it is. I've seen it happen.
The devil is in the business of tearing down pastors, churches, ministries and lives. As members of the body of Christ, we need to build each other up, not help the devil tear down! Let me ask you this. The next time you hear a bad comment (or are tempted to make one yourself) about any pastor, what will you do? I pray we will all respond like David:
"The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord's anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the Lord."
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