Pray for your shepherds

One of the hardest things about being a Christian is living up to the Bible’s high standards. None of us do it perfectly and none are more keenly aware of this than those in Christian leadership. Not only are they trying to uphold these standards personally, they are also trying to model them before other Christians, while under the gaze of an often hostile culture that not only hopes they fail but is also ready to cry “hypocrite!” when they do.

Unsurprisingly, many who are called to leadership roles in Christian ministry live under stress as they navigate the pressures within and threats without. Contemporary pastors have to deal with all kinds of issues—complaining parishioners, financial challenges, inconsistent volunteers, deaths of faithful members, suspicious and mouthy onlookers, dissension and in-fighting within the church, misguided expectations, and so on. Many accept these issues as par for the course, others are consistently fighting the urge to quit, and still others have indeed quit.

Stories of Christian leaders who have stepped away from or been forced out of ministry because of some moral failure or mere burnout abound. These sad moments are not occasions for gossip, judgement, and condemnation as the world is inclined to make them. They are instead moments for Christians to extend grace and forgiveness to those who have failed and reminders to take heed for any of us can fail.

The lives of Jesus and the apostle Paul give us a glimpse of the challenges Christian leaders face. Jesus’ enemies followed him around constantly, hoping to catch him in some compromising act (Mk. 12:13, Matt. 16:1). When they couldn’t find wrongdoing, they created stories designed to diminish or destroy him (Mk. 14:57-58). Paul was persecuted relentlessly, even beaten, while he simultaneously struggled with his own flesh and personal ailments (2 Cor. 1:8, 2 Cor. 11:25, 2 Cor. 12:7-9).

Both experienced moments of frustration, anger, and distress, but they pressed on in faith to complete the work they had been assigned. The call of God remained greater than their personal feelings as is the case with many of our Christian leaders.

Take a moment today to pray for all who serve in Christian ministry – your pastor, priest, youth leader, children’s minister, elders, Bible study teacher, counseling minister, chaplain, seminary professor, and so on. Pray that they would love God and serve him wholeheartedly, that they will be empowered and strengthened by the Holy Spirit to remain faithful to the call of God, that they would have every resource they need to complete the work they have been given, that they would have faithful friends in whom they can confide, and that they would be protected from the deadly arrows that come their way.