A Clay Pot Pastor and Divine Grace

As a pastor I am often encouraged and discouraged by the ministries out there like #PracticalShepherding and #9Marks when they drop their conclusions (or where they have finally arrived in their ministry) on us pastors without the encouragement and groundwork between.

You do not often consider our context in your instructions. You are not there when the church throws his family out and his kids are questioning the goodness of God and the beauty of the Bride of Christ when he took your conclusions without someone to walk him through it.

You don’t always fill holes in pastoral ministry, you make holes, too. You often talk in ways that do not acknowledge your own growth in these things and the need for your continued growth. It often sounds like you have arrived and we need to catch up.

The trolls and naysayers have hardened your hearts and silenced genuine comments and questions from those who need help understanding what to do with what you have said. Some things are better not said when you cannot explain them fully.

I listened to Brian Croft tell pastors not to begin other ministries the other day. The podcast at 9Marks talked about sermon scheduling. Both were encouraging and discouraging to me. Brian told some pastors not to start a ministry that should.

Mark described a type of sermon scheduling that is unattainable for some pastors that are drowning in the difficulties of ministry life but now feel worse because they cannot meet certain expectations. Your comments ought to be broader and/or qualified…seasoned.

Just know you have helped and damaged many pastors. Please be careful. Please have mercy on us. Please do not over expect of us. We are trying. We are grinding. We are hurting. We are lonely. We do not have the support we need. Please, please be careful with your platform.

We hear you but we may never get where you are. Some of us will lose our ministry. Some of us will lose our kids because they watched their dad get ousted for moving too fast. Some of us will lose our spouse because we are immature leaders and weight of the demands have crushed him.

God is able to do amazing things with clay pot pasotors like us. He has given us the Holy Spirit and His Word. Daily he is enabling us by His grace to do what we cannot do on our own. I am certain I will make it by His grace!