Your Pastor

 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His holy people.  Ephesians 1:18

October is Pastor Appreciation Month. For the last several years I have spent this month expressing my appreciation for the many men and women of God who have influenced and impacted my life for the Lord. Their names are many, but some, like Pastor Nevin Crouse, Pastor Bob Yarbrough, and Pastor Andy Shehadi, have made especially deep impressions upon my life and ministry. I expect you have many who have done the same in your own life. May you give them the gratitude and honor they deserve. If they are true to their call, they have watched over your soul and your life, often at great personal cost. They fought off the "wolves" that meant you harm, especially those you never saw, and carried burdens for you that you never realized. The world was not worthy of them. At times, it may have seemed that the church was not as well.

I chose the above Scripture, Ephesians 1:18, because it so well reflects the heart of perhaps the greatest of all pastors, Paul the Apostle. No one travailed over the church and its people as he did. He truly possessed the heart of Jesus Christ for the churches he led and served. In truth, the true pastor has that same heart in them. One cannot carry out the calling without it. Without it, they will surely fall by the wayside.

Most sitting in the sanctuary have no real idea of the life their pastor leads. They don't know of the long, dark nights of the soul as they fought the enemy in prayer for the well-being of His people. They don't know of the many tears shed over the self-destructive actions of so many of their flock despite all their efforts to protect them from the consequences of those actions. They don't know of the wounding they have suffered at the hands of angry board members and congregants. They don't know of the heartaches suffered by their pastor's family in the carrying out of their ministry. They don't know of the great sacrifices that have been made for the good of the church and people. They don't know that their pastor counts it all as a small price to pay in exchange for the glory of walking with Jesus, loving Him, and loving the people He has given them.

The Pastor's road can be a very hard one. It is a very hard one. It involves the carrying of their own cross. It involves a dying out to self and a constant growing and living in Him. It also means for the truly called, they would not have wanted to do or be anything else but what they are; God's shepherd, given charge of one of His flocks. May you honor yours this month. Indeed, may you honor them constantly. One day you'll know just how much it mattered to you in eternity.

Blessings,
Pastor O