THE AUDACITY OF THE PASTOR

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

“To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed. Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” I Peter 5:1-4 

Fear can and will keep many good leaders from becoming great leaders. Many mountain climbers have stood at the base camp of Mt. Everest, yet only a small percentage of them have had the courage it takes to actually climb to the top of that mountain. Fear of the unknown. Fear of what people will say if we fail. Fear of the criticism along the way. Fear of being the only one saying “It can be done.” Fear of our vision being rejected by others. Fear can kill our God given directive. It can suffocate our dream.

A position or a title does not make a person a leader overnight. Though a person is chosen to Pastor a church, they are not truly a leader until they face their fears and actually lead the congregation that God has placed in his hands to where God wants it to go. Being chosen to lead is easy. Actually leading is hard.

What defines a true visionary? Is it someone who has a lot of great ideas? Someone who sees the need for change, but never causes that change to take place? If you are unable or unwilling to cause change, don’t say anything. Although you may see a need for change, don’t say anything, unless it is to spark a vision in another person who is capable of creating the needed change.

When you see another minister or ministry that is successful, go to them and find out how and why they are having success. Strive to learn from them. You will usually find that the reason they are having success due to something you felt the Holy Spirit speaking to you about in the past. You might realize that God told you to do this same thing in the past, only you lacked the courage to launch into it. You must admit that some of the more successful people around you are doing things that you yourself have considered, only they did it and you didn’t.

Our temptation is all too often to accept the status quo. We measure ourselves by ourselves. We determine that since we have increased by some percentage point, we are being successful. However we really need to begin measuring ourselves by God’s standards. Does He view a church of 75 as a success when it sits in the middle of a 10,000 soul populace? Now if that church is less than 3 years old, it is truly a success but, if that church is 20 years or older, that’s another story.

The status quo is safe. It’s comfortable. Accepting the status quo however will kill a church. Oh, it will still be there, but the vision and drive that it takes to win a community, will be forever lost unless you decide to face the enemies of change and even your own fears.

Watch and study churches around you that are having success. Follow the steps they are taking to create and maintain the success they are having in their city. One thing you will discover is that no two of them are doing the same thing. What’s causing their success is that they are doing things that appear radical to those who question their motives, intents, and directives. In the face of great criticism from within and without, every one of these churches and their Pastor’s have decided it is better to fight and lose than sit on the sidelines and do nothing.

For a pastor to accept mediocrity or the status quo is to die. You may be living on the outside, but on the inside you are dead. You vision casting days are over. You ability to walk into the darkness and know that people are willing to follow you is gone. You are no longer a leader. You may have a position. You may be the boss, but you are no longer a leader of people. When a pastor finds that his ability to lead is over, it is time for him to prayerfully ask God for the courage to face his fears.

Moses, there is a Red sea waiting for you to split. Elijah, there is a Jordan River in front of you. Peter, go ahead and step out of the boat. David gather up your stones, your giant is going to fall. John, though they’ve boiled you in oil and sent you to die on Patmos, God now has a book he wants you to write.

Pastor, your congregation will follow you if you boldly step out in faith and do all that God is telling you to do. They are inwardly waiting for you to lead them. That church bully is really saying to you, “Pastor lead me!