John Markum

Month: January 2011

Pastors: Why be a Pastor?

Posted on by johnmarkum

“If any man desires the office of an overseer, he desires a good thing.” 1 Timothy 3:1

I am blessed to lead a single’s ministry full of young adults who want to glorify God with there lives, many of them considering whether God wants to use them in full time ministry. And it is in that spirit that I want to share some thoughts on why someone might want to do that.

First of all if you’re even thinking about going into ministry, you need to know all the down sides. This is by no means a list of perdonal complaints about ministry, so don’t assume. I love my calling as you will see. On that note, this is a little depressing…

  • You will bear a stricter judgment before Christ. You will answer not only for your personal words, thoughts, and actions, but for the stewardship of your influence, creativity, and teaching.
  • Deciding to be a pastor is not a good “career” choice. It’s not lucrative. It’s not like you’ll work on commission… and chances are, as a pastor, you will live paycheck to paycheck most or all of your entire working life.
  • There’s little room for advancement… you don’t become a CEO Pastor, and if there was such a thing, it would only mean that you are responsible for serving more people.
  • The hours are terrible. You will (almost) never have a weekend off. And expect phone calls at any given hour of the night requiring you to leave the warmth of your bed in the middle of winter.
  • Marital strain. Ministry puts intense pressures on a marriage and family, that you would not experience otherwise.
  • People will hurt you. And not just “bad” people. Sometimes people you thought were “getting it” will turn on you though you’ve invested your time, heart, and energy into them.
  • Temptations are high. When you raise your hand and answer the call, Satan paints a bulls-eye on your back. Most of the pastors and church leaders who fall to immorality were good men  and women at one point. Don’t think you’re any better than they once were.

Now after all of that, why would you want to go into ministry?!? Well, for one…

  • There is no other individual effort that could be more rewarding. Seeing people far from God awakened with life in Christ is satisfaction enough.
  • You get a front row seat to the power of God in people’s lives.
  • You get to work for the most understanding, competent, encouraging, equipping Boss ever! Period.
  • There is incredibly high accountability, spiritually, as dozens (or hundreds, or thousands) of people are looking to you as a spiritual example.
  • The retirement plan is insane! (John 14:1-3)
  • There will be people who circle around you, pray for you, encourage you, lift you up, and work with you. The joy that comes from these individuals is irreplaceable.
  • Your marriage can be strengthened by the ministry.
  • Your kids can get a first-hand account of what it means to see God move.
  • God promises reward and favor to those who serve Him. (Isaiah 52:7)

Ok, so that’s like, nine. But my point is that there is no higher human calling. I heard someone once suggest to Billy Graham back in the day, that he should run for president, to which he replied, “Sir, I would not dare step down from preaching the message of the Gospel to rule over any nation.” If you are considering ministry full time, there are many avenues you could take. More on that coming. But if you could possibly find fulfillment doing anything else, pursue that. But if it seems like God just won’t leave you alone about it, then you might be one that He has anointed to preach His word.

Blessings,

John

Pastors: How to pray for a Pastor

Posted on by johnmarkum

Just a simple list of the top 10 things you should pray for your church leaders for:

  1. Integrity: That God would help them walk close to Him every moment of every day.
  2. Increased Faith: That their vision for God’s will in the church would be God-sized.
  3. Family: That God would protect his family, and that he would lead his family well. Preachers’ wives and kids have it tough.
  4. Influence: We have a message that needs to be heard.
  5. Wisdom: To understand the Word, and the people to whom they must communicate it.
  6. Creativity: Pastors are communicating a message that is thousands of years old to a people group that is one generation old. The message is not the problem, our lack of communicating creatively and compelling often is.
  7. Leadership: Whoever is greatest must be servant to all. Pastors serve by leading and lead by serving.
  8. Compassion: Help him keep a soft heart in the face of abrasive and abusive people.
  9. Passion: That your pastor’s hunger to experience God working never wains.
  10. Rest: That your pastor can stay sharp and passionate by having the appropriate sleep and down time.

Pastors: Honor and Respect

Posted on by johnmarkum

“A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and in his own house.” Matthew 13:57

There is a distinct difference between respect and honor. Respect is earned, but honor is freely given. I honor the leadership of our country, though many of those in government make choices I oppose. I respect the ones who stand for morality over popularity. Regardless, their position demands my honor. I want to show honor to every man and woman in ministry. Many of them I know well, and they’ve earned my respect. Many of them I know well and they have not earned my respect. But I still must show them honor so long as they hold that anointed position. I find that the more I freely show honor to those in authority over me, the more I find to respect them for.

Our church is lead by 8 pastoral staff members. Have you ever tried getting 8 preachers/church leaders to agree on how something should be done?!? We can’t even agree on where to go out to eat together after staff meetings some days! It’s been said, “In essentials – unity. In non-essentials – forbearance. In everything – love.” Sometimes opinions are very strong. But as we maintain a posture of honor toward the calling that God has placed on each of us, we realize that God leads each of us differently. And the more we choose to honor one another above ourselves, the more clear God seems to direct us.  The church works more effectively when the whole body of Christ is moving in the same direction.

If your church seems dysfunctional, try cultivating a culture of honor in your church. Decide that you won’t trash-talk the pastor’s decisions to others in the church. And confront those who do, to deal with the pastor honorably if they have a problem. Listen to the preaching and open yourself up to the possibility that God wants to speak to you through the message of your pastor. Act on that message as you open yourself up to what God wants to do.

If you are an associate pastor and don’t see eye-to-eye with the lead pastor, honor him anyway. This is not the same as agreeing with him when you don’t. Don’t be fake! Just remember that when you disagree with your senior pastor that God put him there – flaws and all. One day, it will come back to you. You’ll be in that position and some young, headstrong, 25 year old pastor who thinks he’s figured it all out will be working for you. How would you like him to follow your leadership even when he disagrees? Maybe that would be a good place to start seeing your pastor now.

And know that, for my part, regardless of whether you are the senior pastor of your church, youth pastor, worship pastor, associate pastor, lay pastor, full time, bi-vocational, or otherwise – I am humbled by your willingness to answer the calling of full time ministry. I know your calling has it’s high and low moments, but be faithful to the calling of God on your life. Endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Do not be weary in well doing. We stand to see many lives changed for the glory of God. Nothing worthwhile is ever easy. And the people God has called you to minister to are the most worthwhile. I honor you, and stand with you.

Blessings,

John

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