Turning on the Lights! – Friday August 16, 2024. Let’s talk about what is means to be a pastor
Good Morning, Good Morning my brothers and my sisters and welcome to this week’s only edition of Turning On the Lights!
The topic was intended to be Matthew 25 and the final judgement of Jesus Christ, but we end up talking about what it is like to be a small church pastor.
When things like this happen, I believe that it is for a reason, and that it is intentional on the part of God’s Holy Spirit.
I pray that this word informs you and if you need encouragement as a leader, really helps you.
May God bless you and keep you and, as always, WE WILL SEE YOU IN CHURCH!
This is a video recorded copy of the FaceBook Live event of Turning on the Lights! – Friday, August 16, 2024. Watch here via the YouTube link!
This is an audio recorded copy of the FaceBook Live event of Turning on the Lights! – Friday, August 16, 2024. Listen here or through your favorite podcast app!
This is a transcript from the audio of this episode of Turning on the Lights! – Friday, August 16, 2024
Good morning, good morning, my brothers and my sisters. We are turning on the lights at the Church Town Church of God. One time this week, this is the only live stream that we’ve had this week. It has been a long, long week. It’s all good. I’m all good. It has just been a long, long week. Let’s go up to the choir loft, which is where the singers were last week. Look at all the chairs. Isn’t that cool? We’ve got some instruments going on here. There’s my guitar ready to rock. I’ve got to get it over to JW Music. Shout out to JW Music. They take good care of us with our instruments and our guitars and our sound system. There’s the sanctuary that you will see on Sunday. Good morning, Sandy, when you come to church. Oh, what joy we have been having this summer. It has been wild to have so many people so enthusiastic about Ecclesiastes. There’s the altar of the church in the classic Jesus at Gethsemane stained glass. If you look at the stained glass of this church, it is just amazing. I hope that if you attend. Good morning. You take the time to look at the work. This is all hand done. Single pane, stained glass covering 30 percent of the church walls. Now we have them covered on the outside with a very special plexiglass that does not get cloudy over time. These are two new windows. Over the course of time, we have replaced refurbished two windows. It is the window of Bethlehem invert in the memory of Ginger Manning. Good morning, Kim. And so we move through here. Look at this baby. Double. I mean, I have been here 12 years and I still walk around and I just look. Here’s the sisters in grace window. Twenty, twenty two completely redone by professionals in the area. That is not easy to do. It is not easy to find professionals who can do this kind of work anymore. I think it’s Cumberland Valley stained glass and they do it all by hand and they do a fantastic job. Cheap. No. Do you expect it to be cheap? No. So we’re working on the church here little by little. We’re working on some things right now to get prepared for wintertime. We want to seal up the church real well. There you go. Good morning, everybody. Seal up the church real well. Get all the water running away from the church, which is strange. I didn’t know that this was possible. You can actually put airbags or something underneath the foundation or around the foundation and around the concrete of the church and lift it and shift it and then seal it that way. So the water runs away from the foundation of the church. Really cool. So we’ve been exploring things like that because, well, because we want to keep everything safe and sound and water is, of course, as you all adults know, home owning or not. Water is the archenemy of structures. And so we’ve been fighting water here on the hill forever and we’re going to continue to fight water. But some interesting things you learn as a pastor I’ve often wanted and I try to doctor of ministry program, but they weren’t really interested. Good morning, Barb. All of the practical aspects of being a small church pastor. They wanted me to do a dissertation on the 17 congregations of a particular Greek verb or something, which I’m not interested in. What I’m interested in is why we have what is it, 12 empty pulpits in the eastern region conference. What I’m interested in is why so many pastors hang it up. I know the feelings that I have. I know the times that I cycle around and I’m like, I’m hanging it up. I know that from the inside out. But what we’re what we’re doing in seminaries too often, not all the time. I don’t want to paint everything with a broad stroke, a broad brush, as they say. But too often is what we’re doing is focusing on the 17 different conjugations of a particular Greek verb and not focusing on what it means to be a spiritual leader or a pastoral leader with boots on the ground. Like what do you do when a family calls you and says, our son has been in an accident and he’s died, please come. Okay. Where’s the training for that? Right. Where’s the training for building maintenance? Honestly, where’s the training for how to run a group dynamics, not just congregational, but you’ve got all of the ministries that are operating within the church. You’ve got church council. Do you know how to do that? I was very fortunate in that area coming up through the ranks as a teacher and a coach. I’m very familiar with that. But I wanted to do and because I because it was so nebulous, right? They didn’t even really help me. They were not interested in such a dissertation. They didn’t really even help me narrow it down. They just kept pressing all these classes that again, more classes about the seven conjugations of a particular Greek verb. And I’m like, no, you don’t get it. People are walking away from spiritual leadership in record numbers. Can we not address that people? If a pastor is does his or her research, they can get those seven conjugations, teach them how to do that. Don’t focus on that. Focus on how the Lord uses those who are called to pastor to people. Now, I’ve learned over the years this that there are really two large strains of leadership and really two large categories of shall we shall we say pastors or church leaders. And one is more focused on pastoral care. You bring the word, you preach the word and you but you are very, very people oriented. You’re very, very I’m at a moment’s notice. I will go here. I will go there. I will make that phone call. I will nurture. I will all those different things. And then there is another large category of another large category of spiritual leadership. Now, there is tons of overlap. And I think that pastors in general lean into one or the other. I lean more into spiritual leadership. And less away from pastoral care and pastoral leadership, if that makes any sense. The high on my priority list is preaching the gospel and seeing to it that people are taught correctly, know and understand correctly the fundamentals, at least of the good news of Jesus Christ. I want to make sure that I’m answering questions, leading and directing and teaching and preaching. And when the time comes, making sure that those individuals are solid in their relationship with God through Jesus Christ, as perhaps they are passing from this world into the next. I want to make sure that they are high on my priority list. I the Lord brings somebody under my preaching or teaching. I want to make sure that they are saved. And now, what is developed here is a whole network of individuals in the congregation that do an awful lot of pastoral care. I’m in a long suit. Now here’s the overlap. Of course, I check in, I pray with, I help comfort, I do all of those things. And I’m particularly interested in making sure that an individual finds the peace of God through Jesus Christ, regardless of their circumstance. If that makes sense. I’m not the, “Oh, brother, oh sister, let us do this.” I’m like, boom, here it is. This is the truth. Here we go. I don’t know if that makes any sense or not, but discerning your calling is my point and how you are gifted is essential in being able to stay in the gifting. If you’re trying to do a bunch of things that you’re not, trying to be a bunch of things that you’re not, it’s going to cost you in the long run. And the idea is you perhaps are about pastoral care, about pastoral leadership. And so within your congregation, there develops a strong eldership of spiritual leadership that makes sure that people are being led and taught and make sure that those individuals, whether their life lasts another 50 years or another five minutes, they are solid in their relationship with God. If you’re an individual pastor who is into, who is leaning more into spiritual leadership, then you develop within the congregation. And that’s what’s developing now. These networks, these ministries of people who care and check on one another and constantly are in touch with one another and all of those things and having the ego or being able to set your ego aside and say, I cannot be all things to all people is another very, very important element of leadership, whichever category you may lean into. And so I said, there’s probably 70% overlap. Lots of pastoral care and spiritual leadership, lots of spiritual leadership and pastoral care. And again, you’re in a small church. It’s you. Maybe there’s an associate pastor if you’re over the 200 mark and that sort of thing. And you that that but it’s a small it. Can you set your ego aside and say, I can’t be all things to all people. Because when those necessities arise that are out of your giftings, you feel terribly guilty for not fulfilling them. And that takes a while to grow into that. And of course, developing the ministries within the congregation takes time to grow and people to be even okay in themselves to say, Well, I love talking with people. I love checking in with people like this is what I do. This is all my whole view of what it means to be a disciple. We can use those giftings like the Lord has brought you here in the body for those giftings. And let’s put them to use. And so nobody goes without when physically, emotionally or spiritually. So that’s that’s a there’s, I don’t know how how did we get started on this, but there’s a sort of where you are in some and what I’m talking about is why people walk away so much. And I think it’s because one of the reasons is you you are not nurtured as a pastor, you do not come to terms with who you are and who and what you aren’t. You’re not taught how to even view a congregation biblically and and nurture the giftings of the Holy Spirit within them to create church. And oftentimes, you’re not encouraged or counseled or nurtured or supported enough to set your own ego aside and say, No, I understand that this is not your strength. You can allow the people that God brought to the congregation to take care of at least part of this for you. Not that you’ll shirk responsibilities. I make phone calls and text messages and check on people all the time. We’ve got surgeries and hospital visits and all of those different things, but we also have a whole cache of individuals. Again, there are so much. There’s so much communication that I don’t know about, right? With constant people checking on one another, calling and praying and visiting and seeing and making sure that nobody goes without physically, emotionally, spiritually. And that’s what it’s all about. If there’s probably 125 folks, if everybody who calls church town their home were to actually come, we see this a lot with Easter and Christmas. Okay, let’s be honest. You’ll be well up over 100 folks. You want to depend upon me to serve completely in every aspect of their emotional, spiritual and physical care. Me only. Everybody else just sit back and me only. Yeah, I’m leaving. I won’t last long. And so again, like I said, I desperately wanted to put something on paper when I went into the doctor of ministry program, but they just weren’t interested in that. They were interested in, oh, come on, just don’t the demon, you just get your degree and then you can bump up to executive pastor. No, there’s no executive pastor here at church town. I would really like to create something that helps people. Well, why don’t you just do the seven conjugations of this particular Greek verb and be done with it. Take the courses that we tell you to take it. No, it’s so disappointing. And again, so we look around and we see record numbers of spiritual leaders, church leaders, Christian leaders stepping down going to well, you know, my ministry can be in the car lot selling cars and it’s true. It’s 100% true. But. It’s a congregation that’s probably the car lot ministry as you’re selling cars probably isn’t what you’re called to do, but you have to do it because you physically, emotionally can and spiritually cannot take being a pastor. And so that’s, that’s not some sort of pat on the back. Believe you mean weeks like this. And there are times that I freak out. There are times that I snap. There’s, there are times and periods when there’s just anger and resentment right under the surface. And I’m like, it’s, I’m, I’m there. And I’m like, I can’t do this. I cannot, I cannot both preach the word and work with seven contractors at the same time. And so we disperse that work and I have great people around me that say, you really seem frustrated. You really seem overwhelmed. You really seem angry right now. Like, let us pick up this burden. Let us do this. Let us do that. And so that we work together in that aspect of understanding your own humanity and saying, and reflecting back in the mirror. I am a spiritual leader here. How is my spiritual health? How is my emotional health? How is my physical health every single day? I try to be in the word separately in the word for Sunday. I try to get some sort of intellectual stimulation outside of the word. I listen to audio books. I read a lot of books, that sort of thing. I tried to do something physical every single day. At least 20 minutes of exercise every day. It’s usually much more than that, especially since Graceland has come along. We average about four miles a day jogging, walking a dog. It has already cost me to lose seven pounds. And then, of course, family. I try to be very intentional checking in with all of my children, my grandchildren, of course, being with my wife. So I’m trying to be very intentional in every aspect so that I don’t go to bed at night. And I’m like, I didn’t do I didn’t I didn’t pay any attention to the word today. Oh, my gosh. And what really will get me and when I when I talk to counsel a lot, I’ll say I am not in the word. I am dealing with X, Y, Z. And I am not preparing for Sunday. I am not I have not reaching out to congregation who have had operations and need checked in on. I am not spending time in prayer with our prayer journal over the congregation like I should. And that’s when, you know, things kick in and and they and I’m able to do that. And I’m released from that in large measure. So I’m very grateful. It’s not easy. Dale knows. I want you to go back to the very beginning, Dale, and listen to everything that I’ve talked about. Let me know if you agree with me. I know you do. I know you do. I know you and Laurie and your family and I know how you’ve been embedded there. And I know all of the things that you’ve gone through as well. And it wouldn’t it be wonderful? Wouldn’t it be wonderful, like should there be an internship? But how would that even look? You know, when you get into a hierarchy of one of the legacy denominations, they suck you in. And because of their hierarchy and because of their wealth and so forth, they can take you. You go to their seminaries or whatever, and then they place you as an assistant or an associate to learn under. An experienced pastor. And the way churches of God General Conference are structured, that’s just not a thing unless the person can work outside of that internship and also and lives in very close proximity to the church just doesn’t work. So how can we do this? Well, one of the fundamental ways that we can do it is when an individual is called and they when they get into seminary, there should be some very, very, very practical aspects of that have. I don’t mean to be gross. I don’t mean to be shocking. I’m not saying this for shock value because but I live this. Have you ever seen a dead body? You’re going to see a lot of them. It’s shocking. Is there a way that we can prepare anybody for that? What is your view on marriage? What are you going to teach and counsel young couples or older couples about biblical marriage? Has that ever been fleshed out in seminary? What do you preach at a funeral when you know the individual is not a believer? I mean, you don’t know no because you don’t know an individual’s heart, but you believe an individual is not a follower of Christ. You’ve been called to do a Christian funeral for a non Christian. What do you do? Has anybody ever spoken to any pastors about that? Those are the things that I’m talking about. They’re very practical aspects. What does have you been counseled by hospice on what it looks like the process of dying? And so that you can be an intermediary to the family and say, this is what we can expect. And let’s walk through this together. It’s hard and it takes its toll on everybody involved. But for the family, it may be a one time deal for you. It’s part of your vocation. Are you talking to anybody about the PTSD when people die, die, die, die, die? And you’re like, OK, you’re going through it. You’re doing funerals, you’re doing counseling, you’re doing all these things for all of these people. And then six months later, there’s something wrong with you. And it’s because you’ve never processed anything that you went through. You’ve never processed, you’ve never prayed, you’ve never gotten through emotionally and spiritually that series of events. And so now you feel a certain way and that anger is below the surface and you’re ready to snap. Why? It’s because you have not allowed your own humanity to pour forth. To be settled, to come to terms with. How can we help? I know it says Matthew 25 and final judgment, we started talking about this and I’ve I’ve been thinking an awful lot about that because I think an awful lot about my own mental and physical and spiritual health. Twelve years in, I’ve never had a break. And I’m like, I need a break. Do I need a break? But we’ve created such support here. But still, you know what I mean? And we understand why we talk about sabbatical and that sort of thing. And I just don’t know if sabbatical would work here living in the parsonage. You’re supposed to take a trip or write a book or take some classes. What classes am I going to take? A tribe that I could take random classes and this, that and the other thing. Maybe I write my own book based on like today’s live stream. Maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe I don’t know. I just know that every single person I graduated with from seminary with is no longer preaching every single person but me. And that was true four or five years ago. What what can we do to help? The Lord’s servants are being cut at the knees. So those things are on my mind. Happy Friday, everybody. We’re getting ready to roll into the weekend. Praise heaven. We’re going to probably get a little bit of rain. That’s awesome. I got the so here my week started out going out to the cemetery with the weed whacker cans of fuel. I mean, it was a mass. I got 30 feet into the mowing and the drive belt exploded and the pulley exploded in the mower went dead. And so that’s how I started the week spent the week a lot with my grandchildren had to help with that not had to I wanted to that’s why there was no live stream on Tuesday, help with my grandchildren. One issue after another here at the church, all the things that we’re trying to deal with. It’s been a week it’s been a long one. Last night I got on my newly refurbished mower Atlantic tractor shout out JW music shout out Atlantic tractor. It’s the old Smith’s implements. Good work. You can’t it’s hard to find people who do good work, who actually care at anything they do. And I’ve worked with two companies, if you will, that I’ve worked with all the years that I’ve been here. They care. So that’s it. There you go. You got the behind the scenes look at big time pastoring. Mega church in mowing grass. Right, shooing the neighbors chickens out of your yard. That is mega church pastoring right there at its finest, figuring out how to keep water from seeping in the church foundation. Let’s do it. I never there’s so much I have learned about electrical engineering about climate control systems. These are other aspects, let alone the other stuff that I spoke about electrical engineering climate control systems, water, right, the the physical, like how to deal with contractors and bids and all of those things. You can deep fried chicken. Yeah. I shouldn’t say this but like, the chickens are no longer there as of this week. And I, I do remember an evening that the neighbor had all of the family around and they were having a big old cookout. Just saying, I didn’t ask, don’t ask, don’t tell. But the chickens are no longer an issue because they are no longer living there. I don’t know if they’re no longer living period. But they’re no longer living there that happened this week as well. So, we don’t have much time left. I’m going to tell you this and then we’ll get going. Thank you for listening. If you know somebody in spiritual leadership, maybe you should send this to them. Maybe they completely agree, maybe they completely disagree. I’m not talking about the big church with the executive pastor and then three teaching pastors, and then three youth pastors, and then leader of children and this and that and the other thing. I’m talking about the big church that uses pulpit supply materials like people don’t realize this, that in a lot of large churches where you have a service Saturday night maybe three services Sunday morning, or two services Sunday morning and then one Sunday often times there’s nobody there who is researching and writing anything you purchase from a company, all of the materials that you need a sermon series comes complete with graphics it comes complete with video, it comes complete with the suggested music, it comes complete with all of the youth materials. So the whole church is in line in the same teaching. You’re big like that, and you want to, you know, you step away from actual in Scripture, and you purchase these things I get them on my social media feeds and emails, all the time. And you just click a few buttons, you want a six week series and eight weeks here if you want to go all summer long with the series 12 weeks or more, you can purchase all of that and then your whole churches in line and what you really need then are good public speakers, you know, and then you assign pastoral care through life groups and such I’m not talking about that structure. I’m talking about the boots on the ground individual who is working vocationally as a spiritual congregational pastoral leader in the lives directly involved in the lives interwoven with the lives of the individuals of the congregation. It’s the hard way of doing it. But it is the best way of doing it. In praise God, I’m still moving forward and enthusiastic about doing it with all of the ups and downs. And that’s, that’s where we are and the Lord has gifted this church. So many individuals that I can look out every Sunday I can joke with people who demonstrate their love I did Kelly and I had colds a couple of weeks ago we probably got 16 cards in the mail, people sending us food. All I said was hey man we’ve got a cold. Like we got it from one of our grandkids probably we’re going to be, you know, amazing stuff. You know, like I said, I’ll check in with somebody and they’ll say oh yeah so and so called me and so and so called me, and so and so called me as well it’s wonderful. Like yes. And I have grown matured, to the point where my ego is not wounded. And so they jumped in and did it instead of me know they should be doing it. And I should also be chiming in as well so they know that I know, and that we are praying, but being able to do those things, frees me up to be able to pray. It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing but like I said, if you know of anybody, maybe they’ve, they’re out of small church ministry, maybe they were one of those who’ve walked away. Maybe you can send this to them. Say there’s hope. How can we help if you know of, you know, again, small church pastors, maybe they agree or disagree with what I’m saying send it to them. Maybe we can come up with some way that we can help one another. Maybe with my circle, Dale is included in that, when we are in need we reach out and we help one another. Barb’s in there and Dale’s in there and April’s in there and marks in there, others. Maybe you just have a few really trusted folks that whether you speak to them in two weeks or two years, it’s the conversation is always welcome. You know people like that in your life right? So listen to me now because starting next week, turning on the lights is going to be Tuesday and Thursday. School is starting up. I’ve got two grandkids that I’m helping with on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And so, Tuesday and Thursday, not Tuesday and Friday, Tuesday and Thursday, Thursday will be turning on the lights. Perhaps I will rename this small church pastoral care. I don’t know what I will rename this one, but it’s we obviously didn’t look at the final judgment of Matthew 25. We will on Tuesday. On Sunday we are looking at Christology, strong Christology in the prophecies of past, Isaiah in particular, and then the lordship, the importance, the worthiness of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Who is the Son of God? What does that even mean? What does it mean to have a triune God? And then we’re going to take it from there to continue to focus laser focus on Jesus Christ. The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of mankind. He alone is worthy to open the scroll upon which are written the names of those who will live with him in eternity. Father God, we pray that your word will be spread throughout wherever this broadcast lands. We pray that if I’ve been led to speak in a different direction today, it was for a particular reason and that it is helpful to your kingdom, not hurtful. I pray that it is. I pray that whomever needs to hear such things, maybe just hearing it would be an encouragement to a fellow leader. A fellow disciple. Lord, I’m just feeling a certain way right now, Lord, we pray that you, by the power of your Holy Spirit, would encourage all of your disciples to be salt and light into a dark, tasteless, bland, wicked world. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. God bless you guys. Well, I don’t know quite know. It seems like cheating the folks going to your church, but I’m not quite sure what you mean by that. But that’s how if you do, if you feel like because they’re not everyone’s not getting all of me all the time. That’s how you feel. But Rosie, what I’m saying is not everybody can have all of me all the time. It’s impossible for an individual to do that. And so God brings giftings to the church to take care of all of the needs of all of the people. And I am a part of that. And my giftings are in leadership and preaching and discerning the word and it’s spiritual leadership. So understanding that in this environment, you’re part of a bigger picture is what I’m talking about today. And being okay by saying, Oh, okay, well, you helped me to clarify my own points. I was talking about small churches. And I have to agree with you. It’s done for the sake of expediency, which means you, you got to get the job done. And if you’ve got four pastors preaching over two days, or two pastors preaching for services over two days, and you know it does, the sermons are going to be about the same thing. You either sit down together, are led by God’s Holy Spirit, do the research and the writing and all of that, and you basically have the same sermon from two different people, or, and then you convey that you got to go weeks out, you convey that to the youth, you convey that to the toddlers, you convey that to the middle school, you convey that to the music team, or you buy it all. And I agree with you, I, all I’ve ever known is this context. So I won’t say negative things about what it means to lead a larger church. All I’ve ever known is this context. But as hard as it is, and as a small church pastor who is ingrained and embedded in all of those things, it’s worth it. It’s worth it. There’s my encouragement to every small church pastor, you know it’s worth it. It’s a privilege to be called develop, develop, develop people. It’s a privilege to be called. Right mad Piper. You need to listen to the whole thing too. And you all can. Excuse me. Hi Paul and alert four days in a row. And you all can on the podcast, which will be coming out probably later today the podcast. The church town, Church of God podcast network. The church town podcast and Spotify. Look for turning on the lights and I. You know what we’re doing on Sunday. You know where we’re going. We’re beginning our focus on Jesus alone as the only one heaven on earth and below earth. As revelation says, worthy of worship, worthy to open the scroll in Jesus name, wherever you are. By living in congregation, go to church. It is important.
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