I think honesty matters. So I thought I'd blog about some of the frustrations of ministry which I've been experiencing over the last few months. I'm hoping it doesn't come across as venting, that's not the aim, I'm hoping rather that it will encourage others that they are not alone. I'm also not after sympathy, it has driven me back to old truths which I hold precious, I'm hoping rather to share what I have found helpful in the hope that it may provide some encouragement to others.
How do you deal with discouragement? It's a question every pastor has to answer because we all experience it. It is a question every church should have an answer too as well because it will come, probably again and again and again. There are lots of discouragements in ministry: The couple who leave church because they want their kids in a better school and so are relocating. The person who quietly points you to a better Tim Keller, or John Piper, or John MacArthur sermon than the one you just preached at the door after the service. The person who regularly emails the whole church with any issue rather than coming to speak to the leaders. Being told you can no longer use a venue because of what you teach. The other pastor who discourages people from moving to serve in your church because you just can't offer what they can or because there is no one like them. Being told that the church does not have a class problem in Britain. Abusive and aggressive responses to either sermons or blogs that accuse you of being too liberal, too conservative, of being in danger of losing the gospel to social action, or of being a preaching church/pastor not a caring one. Being stymied in your every attempt to buy a building or land. Seeing little fruit in terms of the lost won for Christ.
Most of those are discouragements I've experienced, many of them repeatedly, others I anticipate facing. How should we deal with them? There is a danger that we go into hedgehog mode, we ball up at the slightest sign of discouragement and become prickly towards any and everyone - rejecting both help and harm. Or at the opposite extreme we wall ourselves off, develop a Teflon coat, and resolve not to care/listen so that we don't get hurt and redouble our efforts in an 'I'll show them' recipe for burn out. Neither of those are helpful, neither are godly.
I love and repeatedly come back to the story of Elijah post Carmel in 1 Kings 19 when I'm feeling discouraged. I love the tenderness with which God treats him, I love the care you see lavished on him. I also love Elijah's passion for God's glory that we see restored. I think too there is much for us to learn from this.
We are meant to care about our ministry. For those who charge Elijah with an unhealthy focus on himself. Be honest with yourself, if we care passionately and invest in the ministry God calls us to, if we care for people and see them want to follow Jesus and grow as disciples then we are emotionally involved. When someone we've been sharing the gospel with, or our children, reject Christ, or someone in leadership or in the church falls away, as Israel have, we do feel our ministry has been a waste of time. It is Elijah's passion for God's glory that leads to his discouragement.
But God knows and God does something interesting. What does Elijah need in this situation? Notice God's wisdom he provides him with food and rest. So often part of our discouragement is exhaustion, tiredness and that in busy seasons of ministry, intense pastoral situations, we don't look after ourselves very well. God knows that spiritual warfare is exhausting and so he recharges Elijah's batteries with sleep and food (also a remind of past provision in difficulty).
Then God calls him to come into his presence and God's question "What are you doing here, Elijah?" It isn't a rebuke, it cannot be he has just led him there. It is an invitation to speak his discouragement to God. Elijah tell me what has led you here? Too often we stew on our discouragements rather than pray to God about them. God invites Elijah to speak and he listens. And then God reminds him he is part of something bigger(v15-18) and gently corrects him, he is not alone, his passion is not misplaced, and God will be glorified and he will save.
Discouragement is real. How will we deal with it?
No comments:
Post a Comment