I’m continuing to address the question, “How does a pastor go about finding a role that works?” To provide a foundation on which I plan to build some structured, positive suggestions, I am sharing some of my own experiences at the time I began my ministry within the church as an assistant pastor.
I’ve been describing the first two churches where I served as an assistant pastor. So, please let me continue my description of the second church
No one could accuse these people of being ambiguous about what they considered important when it came to church. Their single burning desire was to get people “saved.” No matter what topic was preached, every service ended with an invitation to receive the Lord Jesus Christ.
I remember one man who had made a covenant with God to lead someone to the Lord every day of his life. Sometimes he had to walk the streets late at night to make his contact and keep his oath! Once I asked him if any of these people had, after having made such a decision, started to attend the church. He responded that even though none had, he anticipated great joy in Heaven when he discovered what had happened to each one of the converts.
This man’s sincerity was unquestionable. Yet, it seemed to me to be sadly out of balance. I, too, believe in conversion. But, I hold that it must always be carefully presented in the total context of changing one’s pattern of living. I don’t believe it is possible for a person by good deeds to accomplish his own salvation. Neither, however, do I think it feasible to ask God for forgiveness while having secret reservations in regard to being willing, with God’s help, to radically change one’s lifestyle.
Interaction would have been very profitable for the total congregation at this point. The imbalance could have been corrected had the people been more adept at talking openly about such aspects of their faith. But, the mindset was such that this was simply not possible. They interpreted someone’s saying the same thing in a new way as bordering on heresy.
I’ve been using these most recent blog posts to help construct a foundation onto which I can place some suggestions to help pastors go about finding a role that works in their particular church. To do this, I’m sharing my own experiences at the start of my ministry in the church with you. I will continue to address this issue—finding a role that works— in the next few blog posts. I invite you to come back to this blog and read more.
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