Your Pastor Needs Help

Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound! Could it be the Man of Steel whizzing by your house on his way to rescue Lois Lane and foil the forces of evil?

No, not this time. Today it is your pastor, God’s appointed servant. Strange as it may seem, many view the pastor as the one and only Superman. When I was a pastor, a smiling lady said to me after a Sunday morning service, “It surely must be nice to be a pastor. You don’t ever have any problems!”

Even Superman had problems. And so does your pastor. He has hard days. He struggles with family conflicts and personal trials. Sometimes he wants to quit. Though he loves you and tries hard to help you, he faces unique challenges that you may not understand.

As a pastor for 18 years and a church-planting evangelist for 32 years, I am convinced that the average church member does not understand a pastor’s life. Unless you live under his roof or “walk a mile in his moccasins,” it will be tough for you to understand his unique challenges.

Here are some facts you may overlook. Your pastor:

• Has a high and holy calling to serve God.
• Will be given grace to do what God says.
• Is under public scrutiny, like a politician.
• Is “on call” 24 hours a day.
• Must write several sermons a week to meet the needs of children and adults, new believers and mature saints.
• Is the chief executive officer responsible for thousands of dollars of contributions.
• Faces direct attacks from Satan’s demons.
• May be the object of gossip to discredit his character and authority.
• Spends hours counseling family problems.
• Works to help different types of personalities serve God in harmony.
• Has the pressure of special programs and events that limit his family time during holidays.
• Is as subject to discouragement, temptations and trials as anyone else in the church.
• Cannot share everything with his wife, lest he prejudice her attitude toward others.
• Is tempted to compare his ministry with others’ and feel like a failure.
• May have a great day at church but still have a heavy heart over someone who failed to respond.

Though these facts sound hard, they should not discourage anyone from the call to pastor. Any God-called pastor will tell you he is happy to have the preceding list as his job description. The rewards of full-time ministry far outweigh the hardships, and God provides strength and wisdom (I Thessalonians 5:24).

Still, God can use you to help your pastor. Rather than complaining and criticizing, seek a personal ministry of encouragement toward him. Become his God-sent helper.

Protect Your Pastor

Biblical love, described in I Corinthians 13, “thinks no evil.” If you love your pastor, be slow to condemn and quick to defend him. When a loose-tongued gossip starts to dump dirt in your mind about your pastor—get angry! Proverbs 25:23 says, “The north wind drives away rain; so does an angry countenance a backbiting tongue.”

Even if your pastor is wrong, encourage the accuser to go to the pastor first, following Biblical guidelines (Matthew 18:15–17).

Refuse to take up a bad report. Common sense and the Holy Spirit will tell you if the accuser is sincerely concerned or just a Satanic tool to bring division to your church. Your pastor is working to protect you from the consequences of sin. Protect him from mean-spirited attacks.

Praise Your Pastor

“Withhold not praise from them to whom it is due, when it is the power of thine hand to do it” (Proverbs 3:27). There is power in sincere praise.

Most Christians, including pastors, receive few compliments. You may say to the pastor after he preaches, “Thank you for the message.” Think about also using one of the following encouraging statements:

• “Thank you, Pastor. I really needed that.”
• “God spoke to me today. I should have been at the altar.”
• “I wouldn’t mind hearing that message again.” (Be prepared to pick up your pastor when he faints).
• “We are thankful for the time you put into your messages.” (He will study even harder next week.)
• “Thank you for preaching just what we need to hear.”
  “Thanks, Pastor. That message met a specific need in my life.” (Tell him the need that God met.

When I was a pastor, I loved to receive notes of love and appreciation from folks. They would often arrive at just the right time. I have kept many of them for years.

Pamper Your Pastor

• Mail him a birthday card every year. Include a check and a thank-you note for his ministry.
• Surprise your pastor and wife with a dinner gift certificate on their anniversary. Offer to baby-sit so they can use it!
• Bake his favorite goodies for no other reason than to say, “We appreciate you.”
• Encourage him to take enough vacation time that he will not have to prepare sermons for a few weeks. Request some rerun sermons.
• Provide an annual salary increase. Most pastors are underpaid. Establish a college fund for his children while they are young.
• Take up a secret offering to send your pastor and wife on a 2-night escape to a local motel. Take care of their children. Don’t begrudge one minute of their getaway.
• Don’t let him spend hours repairing his car or house if the church has qualified helpers.
• Don’t call him at home unless it is a valid emergency.
• House missionaries and special speakers at your home, not his.
• Encourage him to take a full day off each week. Don’t telephone him on that day.
• Don’t approach him with a problem on Sunday.

These suggestions are reasonable. Carry them out in Biblical love, which expects nothing in return, and you will find your pastor working even harder at being a quality shepherd.

Pray for Your Pastor

Pastoring a church is a supernatural calling that demands supernatural power. When you pray for someone regularly, several things happen:

• You summon God’s power to produce specific results–souls saved, needs met, or better sermons (James 4:2).
• You tend to do something to help your prayers be answered.
• You become sensitive to the needs of the one for whom you pray.
• If you are praying for an enemy, your heart will be tenderized toward that person. (Matthew 5:44).

Pray daily, during personal and family prayer, for power, love and wisdom for your pastor. Your pastor is not Superman; he is human, just like you. Sometimes he gets tired and discouraged.

He needs you, a part of the body of Christ, to help him do the will of God. Protect him, praise him, pamper him and pray for him. God will bless you and your church for your efforts of love.