DO YOU PRAY FOR YOUR PASTOR?: PART I

PART I: WHY YOU SHOULD BE PRAYING FOR YOUR PASTOR
PART II: HOW TO PRAY FOR YOUR PASTOR (coming soon)
PART III: HOW TO BLESS YOUR PASTOR (coming soon)

At one point in my youth ministry career, I knew of nine girls between the ages of 14 and 18, who had been sexually assaulted.  Two of those had been by family members.  Those nine were simply the ones I knew about.  I did some (rudimentary public school) math and realized that worked out to about 15% of the girls in our high school group.  Those were the ones I KNEW about and I would guess the number was more like 25-35%.  Possibly due to shame or guilt, some never sought help from us. Later, one girl came to me years after her assault, revealing her ordeal and saying she had been afraid God thought she was dirty and wouldn't love her anymore. I wept at the hurt and damage done to these girls.  At times it kept me up at night. Even today, years removed, I get emotional about them.  I used to say being a Youth Pastor was the Best and Worst job in the world.

Even with the strength God gives a Pastor, especially a Senior Pastor, and the confidence one has in being called to Pastor people, being a Pastor in a church is one of the most difficult, stressful, "jobs' you could imagine. It is one fraught with conflict, joy, rejection, miracles, heartbreak, power, and wounds, all while seeing God's love at work in the world.

Pastors need prayer.  Everyone does, obviously, but the responsibilities that lay in the hands of a pastor are extraordinarily heavy.  A Pastor "works" while others receive ministry.  Pastors pray for people when they probably need immense prayer themselves. When others are grieving, the Pastor has to be strong, even when their own hearts are breaking.

I AM NOT writing this for people to feel pity for the Pastor. Nor am I trying to manipulate people into praying for their pastor.  My only point in this blog is to hopefully bring attention to people who desperately need prayer.  Pastors are human.  They are flawed, wounded, fallible and lead with a limp, then expected to be perfectly holy. 

SOME REASONS WHY A PASTOR NEEDS PRAYER:

THE 24/7 PASTOR:

• Pastors are on-call 24/7, required and expected to jump into ministry mode no matter how bad they feel or what stress is upon them.
• In counseling or leading people - the emotional, spiritual and physical issues,and sins, which are shared with the Pastor, are a heavy burden to bear, constantly on his mind and heart. They linger with him - even on vacation.
• In the midst of being the 24/7 Pastor, He or She has to clear space in his world for study, prayer, worship and meditation, so that his own personal / spiritual life is strong enough to lead.
• The Pastor knows things that other people don't know.  He knows the finances of the church, the plumbing issues, and deals with the complainers. He knows people who are cheating on their spouse, and how much a new copier is going to cost.

THE PASTOR AS LEADER - NEEDS PRAYER

• The Pastor has to determine, with God's guidance, how to "steer" this ship called the "church", trying to successfully show the church the vision God has given him.  And, people don't like change.
• The Pastor is responsible to listen to God's leading and make decisions about what the church needs and where it is going.  At these times, the Pastor needs encouragement, confirmation and continual prayer that he is hearing correctly from God.
• The Pastor can get surprisingly little real encouragement. People of his church want his time, they want to inform him or influence him. But few know how to encourage him.  Everyone, especially Pastors, receive encouragement differently. People will say "I really enjoyed your sermon" -yet if pressed, if the pastor asks "what specifically spoke to you or changed you?' - often people have no answer.  Rather than encouraging the Pastor, the Pastor is often discouraged, feeling like he or she failed.
• The Pastor is the guardian of the church, protecting it's theology, it's reputation, it's operation and anything or anyone who would try to damage the church.

   

THE PRIVATE PASTOR - NEEDS PRAYER

• Pastors receive 10 times as many complaints as they do encouragement, affirmations, or thank-yous.  The discouragement takes its toll.
• Pastors often feel alone, especially if they have been let down or hurt by people they trusted, people who were committed but became dissatisfied.
• Pastors feel alone when those he leads simply don't like change, especially if he feels the change is what God is speaking to him.
• In the midst of carrying the burden of people's lives, running a church, leading a staff and trying to hear from God, the Pastor has to determine what God wants to say to the congregation each week, and then bring that message----well.
• Plus - the Pastor has to have a life outside of the church, where he isn't "Pastor Bob", but just Bob, who can enjoy a beer with his friends without being judged.

THE CURSE OF UNFAIR EXPECTATIONS:

• Pastors are expected to be everything to every one.  Churches are filled with "consumers", those of us who selectively grab what we like (worship, childrens ministry, coffee, etc.), while leaving growth, commitment or support on the metaphorical "shelf." We ignore what doesn't "suit" us. We, the church consumers, create an environment where the Pastor is fighting to bring what is needed, not what is simply wanted.
• PEOPLE EXPECT THE SENIOR PASTOR TO BE THEIR FRIEND, EVEN IN A LARGE CHURCH.  But as Pastor Mark Driscoll asked, "shouldn't I have the right to decide who my friends are?  Shouldn't I be able to determine my own circle of friends without having everyone assume they are my best buddy and without them getting their feelings hurt when they are not?"
• People justify their seemingly selfish EXPECTATIONS by saying "Hey, we pay his salary!"  However, giving to the church, its ministries and ministers (cheerfully), is part of being a committed member of a church.  Giving is not like buying donuts: "I give you $$$, so you better give me donuts!"  Giving is a faithful investment in what God is doing. 

DIFFERENT TYPES OF PASTORS: 

• People don't realize there are MANY "types" of pastors, yet all can be Senior Pastors. The spiritual gifts God has placed within them determine how they lead the church.

• Teaching Pastors - (Passion -Study, interpret and teach God's truth)
• Evangelistic Pastors - (Passion - Bring a message that draws people to meet                                        God)
• Visionary Pastors - (Passion - See the potential of a church, and lead the                                      church to the see the crazy big potential plans of God)
• Missionary Pastors - (Passion - Have a burning desire to reach people in lands                                 where people need God.  They raise up and send out                                        missionaries, regularly going themselves)
• Pastoral Pastors (seems redundant, but these pastors love caring for the                                     needs of [a group of] people)
• Executive Pastor - (Passion - Loves making everything happen and run                                           smoothly.)
• Apostolic Pastor - (Passion - Gifted to be a leader of leaders)
• etc., etc, etc, 
• ALL OF THESE CAN BE A SENIOR PASTOR!  

BE THANKFUL FOR THE TYPE OF SENIOR PASTOR AND PASTORS YOU HAVE!!!  It's unfair to expect him or her to be a type of Pastor God never intended them to be. If we do,we may find ourselves opposing God Himself. 

IT SHOULD BE NOTED:

1. Churches can, if allowed, create or allow a culture where a Pastor needs to be everything except what they are specifically gifted to be.  This culture can be a fertile ground for all the issues listed above.  Church culture needs to change, from the old-school "Pastor-do-all" to "ALL MEMBERS ARE MINISTERS."  It's a culture that changes in the hearts of the church community.  It starts with us.
2. Many Pastors are workaholics.  They can be driven by perfectionism.  They may feel guilty for saying "No."  Pastors can feel immense pressure from their church's "culture" which presses them into working unrealistic hours.  Pastors can feel an innocently arrogant burden that "only I can do this."  Pastors need to be released from workaholic-ism.  Elders need to step in. And we need to pray for the Pastor to be free to be who God made him or her to be.

Your Pastor needs intercessory prayer: - praying in our daily communications with God, not in a personal moment with the pastor. (intercession - praying on behalf of another, or others.)  

IN MY NOT-SO-HUMBLE OPINION: Before we complain about our Pastor, our Church or it's Leaders, let's do this. With a pure heart, we should spend a month doing intercession on our Pastor's behalf.  Truthfully, prayer changes me, and maybe I'm the one who needs to be changed.  Perhaps MY heart is what truly needs an overhaul. 

Are you ready?  Do you see the need?

Understanding the need to pray for your Pastor, PART II will cover HOW to pray for your pastor.  In the meantime, don't walk up to your pastor, stop him inconsiderately, lay hands on him and start praying out loud for him. He may NEED to poop.  

DO NOT go up to your pastor and declare "I READ THIS BLOG ABOUT PRAYING FOR MY PASTOR AND NOW I'M GOING TO PRAY FOR YOU!"  That's less about him, and more about you. Rather than encouragement it can be just bragging, trying to ingratiate ourselves with the Pastor.  JUST PRAY!  THAT'S ENOUGH.  HE'LL KNOW!