Category: All Articles

Pastor – Remember “Your” Sabbath Day!

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Ministry

–October of 2008

Pastor – Remember “Your” Sabbath Day!

A large number of America’s pastors live on the edge of emotional and physical collapse.  Many of the pastors I talk with are battling a frustrating fatigue that vacations and off days won’t cure.  Few seem to be able to diagnose the problem much less prescribe a cure.

Are the clergy just a special class of workers whose occupation demands so much of them that burnout is inevitable?  I don’t think so.  Many accountants, nurses and farmers regularly put in 70 hour weeks.  What about the single mom who works two jobs to meet the needs of her struggling family, surviving on just a few hours of sleep each night?  To isolate the clergy as special class of “over-worked” professionals would neither be fair nor accurate.

However, the ministry does carry with it certain occupational hazards. The local church is often a place of imbedded opinions, unique doctrinal views, carnal ownership and wounded feelings.  Not to mention dysfunctionalisms of varying degrees in many if not all of the families that makes up the local congregation. These problems demand long counseling sessions, special prayer times and well crafted sermons.  In addition, the pastor or his wife may function as the janitor, groundskeeper and secretarial staff.  Couple this work load with unfair comparisons to the church across town or the speaking  talent of a nationally known radio preacher  and it comes as no surprise that most pastors suffer with feelings of inadequacy and failure from the outset!  Nevertheless, these factors are rarely at the core of burnout.

The key to understanding the fatigue factor among pastors lies in understanding that there is a clear distinction between the ministry and all other professions.  Spiritual work is vastly different from selling cars, building houses or planting crops.  The builder or farmer may work a twelve hour day, retire exhausted, but awake refreshed both mentally and physically.  If more rest is needed then a relaxing weekend, a round of golf, a good book or a game of checkers might be the answer.  The minister’s work is also taxing both mentally and physically but it is more.  His work happens in the spiritual realm and it draws on his inner spiritual resources.  These resources are not renewed simply by a night of rest, a trip to the lake, or family time at the zoo.  Replenishing them requires a time of solitude where one can engage the means of grace in an unhurried way with God.  A life without such a time easily becomes destructive. When one is left to do spiritual work with just human resources, doing becomes more important than being and results become more important than the people we serve.  The pastor who possesses a dynamic personality or who has a great deal of natural giftedness may hide this deficit for sometime, but in the end it will shrivel his soul, fray his emotions and exhaust him physically.  The least that can happen is burnout – the worst is ministerial failure.

Is there an answer? Yes!  First, Ministers need to commit to a time of vigorous exercise to support both physical and emotional health. Second, they need to commit to creative time that stimulates the mind and lifts the spirit.  If all a pastor ever does is what he or she has to do, then stagnation sets in and meaninglessness is the result. Third, every pastor needs to commit to keeping a personal Sabbath for the renewing of spiritual energy.

Most pastors neglect God’s Sabbath provision.  The one day of Sabbath rest out of every seven is God’s way of saving us from self-destruction and keeping us spiritually renewed.  I’m not talking about making sure you take one day off each week.  The pastor needs that day just to catch up on the normal chores that life can bring as well as a time to unplug from the normal routine.  I’m talking about a time each week that is spent in solitude with God as a means of grace. Do not confuse this with a daily quiet time.  I mean an extended time each week that is set aside as a personal Sabbath.  Some would have the ability to take a whole day, but every pastor should take at least the time from early morning till noon on a set day each week. There should be extended versions of this at least two to three times a year.  This time should include: solitude, scriptural meditation, worship, reading, prayer, singing and occasionally soul-cleansing discussion with a trusted spiritual advisor. If it is a longer time it should include periods of family worship and fellowship. If habitually practiced the benefits are two-fold.  First, the spiritual blessing and insight that follows will be so self-evident that a skeptical congregation will be convinced of its value.  Second, it will lengthen the ministry and effectiveness of every pastor.

If you’re the self-absorbed CEO type or the workaholic pastor who needs to stay busy to feel valued, then this idea will sound foolish.  If your just too undisciplined to control your time or too full of excuses why this won’t work, then you will just have to live with the fatalism of fatigue.  But to the pastor who isn’t tripping over his ego and has emptied himself of the foolish pride of always having to appear busy, it can be the salvation of both his body and soul.  Not to mention the secret to a long and fruitful ministry.  Give God’s plan a try – take a Sabbath!

Is Your Church Really a Church?

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Church, Ministry

–September of 2008

Is Your Church Really a Church?

America is blessed with a lot of churches.  Some sit astride prominent street corners proudly displaying their architectural glory while others are tucked away indiscreetly between a used shoe store and a day old bakery in a weary strip mall on the side of town where plight and crime prevail.   Some have one word names like “Grace.”  Others have names so long and so full of biblical and ecclesiastical jargon that you can’t say the full name with stopping to breathe. Some look like a church while others look like a warehouse.  However, it is not the architect they display or the appellation they wear that concerns me.  I often wonder how many of these places of worship are legitimate New Testament churches?

Is there a way to know if a church is really a New Testament church?  Can one gauge when a church has gone too far on one hand or not far enough on the other to be considered an authentic Christian church? Can a church cease to be a church even though it opens every Sunday and is filled to capacity?

The New Testament doesn’t provide a definition of the local Church.  The Greek word for church simply means the “called out ones.” So how can one determine what actually qualifies an organization or an assembly of believers as a New Testament church?  The simple answer is that one has to go to the New Testament and look for the biblical characteristics of a local church and arrive at a definition based on them. This process, of course, has been done many times.  The protestant reformers did so in the early 1500’s and said that a local church has two essential characteristics.  First, it is where the Word of God is proclaimed, and second, it is where the sacraments are correctly taught and administered.  This definition is a start but it is seriously incomplete.  Its focus is totally inward and ignores the most central mission of the church – making disciples. Any definition of the church must include not only what the church is but also what the church does.  The New Testament gives seven critical elements that should make up any definition of a local church.

The local church is essential (Matthew 16:18). The local church is God’s only divinely sanctioned institution to reach the world for Christ.  Thus it is an indispensible, vital institution that cannot be replaced by anything else.  To ignore or drop out of church, for whatever reason, is to oppose God’s ordained means of making disciples and maturing the saints so that His Church might be built.

The Church is an assembly or gathering of disciples (I Thess. 1:1, Acts 14:27, Heb. 10:25).  The church is people.  One person does not qualify as a church. It is a gathering of people who are professing believers in Jesus Christ.

The Church is under leadership.  Spiritual leadership is vital to spiritual health. The references are simply too numerous to list that insist upon properly structured and ordained leadership within the church.  Large portions of what the Apostle Paul wrote are instructions as to how to establish the leadership roles of Elder and Deacon in the local churches.  No local church was to ever be a democracy or a consensus meeting.  It was to be led by a group of men who met the spiritual, moral and social qualifications outlined in the New Testament. The problem in most struggling churches today can be traced to a lack of leadership.

The Church is an organization (I Cor. 14:40).  The church is an organism but it is also an organization.  Organization is necessary for the church to function effectively.  Too much organization can stifle, but too little can breed confusion and result in a failure to have unanimity of direction and purpose.

The Church has a mission (Matt. 28:19-20).  Christ’s Great Commission is the mission of the church.  The success of any church must be measured by their obedience to this Great Commission. John Wesley understood this and told his preachers, “We have nothing to do but save souls.” I believe it is both fair and necessary to ask the question, “Can a church be a church if it fails to obey the central command to make and mature disciples?”

The Church has clearly defined functions (Acts 2:42-47).  There are five general functions of the church.  They are listed in Acts chapter two as: teaching, fellowship, worship, evangelism, and service.  Much can be said by way of defining these functions but what is most important for the moment is that these functions are understood to be the timeless, unchanging, nonnegotiable work of the church.  Just as the first century church couldn’t pick and choose the functions they would observe or ignore; neither can the church in the twenty-first century if it wants to be a New Testament church. Yet far too many churches become what are called “niche churches.” They claim to be all about “worship”, or they boast of being a “preaching church.”  Some are known for their children’s ministries or for a strong counseling program.  Some tout the fact that they are a “family oriented church” while others loudly affirm that they are there to “defend and preserve their heritage.”  Even though churches will by the nature of their staffing have certain strengths, they are called to all the functions of the church and are commanded to “make disciples” not to “make niches.”

A church that narrows its ministry to one area is a church that invites the question, “Are you a true church?”  No matter what the reason might be, no church can afford to compromise the God given absolutes that are to be a part of every church’s ministry. No church can afford to negotiate away the fulfilling of the Great Commission through its biblical functions no matter how noble or needed their other work may be.

The Church exists to glorify God (Rom. 15:6, I Cor. 6:20; 10:31).  We glorify God as a church in the same way that Jesus glorified Him while on earth.  He glorified the Father by living his life in submissive, loving obedience to the Fathers will (John 17:1-8).  The church glorifies God as it fulfills its God given mission through its God ordained functions.  To do less is to be less than a New Testament church!

Many will read this article and wave it off with a simple, “Ho Hum!”  They believe they have the right to “do church” any way they want to! They have breathed the air of radical individualism that permeates Western culture for so long until they are convinced that their view is as good or even trumps all other views – even the Bible’s.  They are right on at least one thing.  They can do church anyway they choose.  But they are wrong in thinking that they can be a church in anyway they choose.

The New Testament tells us what a Christian church is and does. Admittedly, it is a rather broad definition that allows for considerable variation in form and method, but it also a very plain definition that uncompromisingly embraces certain functions.  If those functions are absent, then your church is not a church in the New Testament sense even if it has the tallest steeple in town!

Discernment

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living

–May of 2008

Discernment

  “Give your servant an understanding heart … that I may discern between good and evil.” I Kings 3:9

When Solomon ascended the throne, he was keenly aware that he was not another David.  He was a scholar, not a soldier. He knew nothing of cold lonely nights in the Judean wilderness protecting sheep from preying lions and bears.  He had never faced a Goliath, fled from a Saul or put down an insurrection led by his own son. As the new Commander in Chief, he had never worn armor, wielded a sword or killed a Philistine.  In a word, he seriously lacked the life experience that qualified him to be King.  It’s no wonder that when asked by God in a dream, “What shall I give you?” the answer was already on his lips, “Give your servant and understanding heart…that I may discern between good and evil.”   Solomon wanted and needed the kind of discernment necessary to lead a great nation of people.

Solomon’s prayer needs to be pulled out of the archives and prayed again.  Discernment seems glaringly absent from Washington to Wall Street in both saint and sinner alike.  The Church desperately needs saints that possess a healthy dose of discernment.  Yet, from all appearances, discernment has not become one of the more coveted gifts.

Discernment is crucially important because the purpose and goal of spiritual discernment is to know and do God’s will.  To desire a discerning heart is to tell God that His will is valued above all else. To gain discernment is to gain the ability to bring God’s point of view to any issue or decision that confronts us.  Not all of the issues we face have a simple “book-chapter-verse” answer.  Many if not most require the application of a biblical principle that sometime lacks specificity.  We need a discerning heart in such cases so that we may please God by making a consistent and proper application of His Word in our lives.

Discernment can come as a special gift from the Holy Spirit, but most discernment comes from exercising and developing our spiritual senses (Hebrews 5:14).  This happens in a number of ways but actually begins in parental training.  Parents play a crucial role in developing discernment.  They build a foundation of honesty, respect for authority, self-control, sensitivity to God, moral judgment, wisdom, etc…from the toddler days to the teen years.  The spiritual and moral training given in these formative years is indispensable to discernment. If neglected, it is almost impossible to construct them at a later time.  During the teen years, godly counsel and life experience help further the development of discernment.

For the Adult, the most important means of developing discernment is through a thorough knowledge of God’s Word.  Paul said, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness…”  The Word serves as both a guide and a gauge for all our actions, activity and attitudes.  As we saturate our minds with Scripture we develop Biblically oriented discernment and propriety.  This enables us to both live and walk in the Spirit as mature Christians should.

The Church and individual Christians are facing an onslaught of issues in today’s world that seem to demand Solomonic wisdom.  We needn’t waste our time longing for Solomon’s wisdom, but we can pray the prayer of Israel’s young King and find that the same God who was pleased with such a request will again be pleased to grant us insight into His will.  After all, desiring discernment is just another way of telling God we highly value His will and are willing to do what pleases Him most.  And that, my dear friends, not only opens the door to His storehouse of wisdom, but to a host of other blessings as well!

Deuteronomy – “Remember”

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living

–April of 2008

Deuteronomy – “Remember”

The first five books of the Bible are often referred to as the “Books of Moses.”  Deuteronomy stands at the end of this Pentateuch as the “grand summation”—the final words of Moses to the children of Israel. His words carry a remarkable recounting of yesterday’s journeys, tomorrow’s conquests and the promises of God to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that tie it all together. As in any good speech, there will be a key word or thought that encapsulates the whole.  This oration can be summarized in one word: Remember!

Moses took them down the path of historical memory so that by remembering they might not repeat.  How could they ever forget God’s love as long as they could remember the plagues of Egypt, the miracle of the Red Sea, the supernatural provision of manna, quail, water and raiment?  How could they ever forget God’s justice as long as they could remember the ground opening up and swallowing Korah and his rebels?  How could they ever doubt God’s promise to give them the land and His power to fulfill that promise if they would only remember Jericho!  But as soon as the Israelites crossed Jordan, conquered Canaan, built cities, grew strong and prosperous, they promptly did just that – they forgot God!

Nothing, apparently, bothers God more than the simple act of being forgotten.  And nothing, apparently, aids the forgetting process more than personal success and material prosperity. As soon as the Israelites became comfortable in houses of their own and grew plump from crops they had grown, they ceased to care for the alien and the poor.  As soon as they had won enough battles for the surrounding nations to fear them, they placed their trust in their own armies and chariots instead of the God who drowned Pharaoh’s army in the sea.  And by the time that Solomon had made Israel a global standard bearer of wisdom and excellence; had made silver as common as stones in the streets of Jerusalem,  Israelites from Dan to Beersheba were bowing before images of wood and gold saying, “these be thy gods oh Israel.”

How does one keep from forgetting God?  Moses speaks to that in the most famous words of the whole book. “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might”.  It is God’s love for Israel that delivered them from Egypt, but it is only a heart of love for God that will keep Egypt out of their hearts.  It is only a heart of love for God that can understand that His commands have been given to us for our good!  It is only a heart of love for God that will refuse to allow any thing, legitimate or otherwise, to compete for our devotion to God and God alone.

In the final analyses, it is only a heart of love for God that keeps us from forgetting Him and what He has done for us.  It is impossible to forget the one that you love with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.  Obviously, we all know that loving and forgetting are mutually exclusive!  Unless, of course, we have already forgotten!

Connected

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Church

–March of 2008

 Connected

Radical independence is a highly admired characteristic in American culture.  From the earliest pioneer to the twenty-first century entrepreneur, Americans take pride in the man who can “go it alone” and “make it happen.”  These rugged individualists possess a homespun philosophy of life that says, “if you need a helping hand, look at the end of your arm.”  We applaud their independence, quote them in leadership seminars and teach our children to emulate their self-reliance.

This independent spirit is to some degree helpful and healthy, but when taken too far it can have devastating consequences.  A part of what it means to be created in the image of God is that we are created to relate to and interact with other people.    Just as the Divine Persons live in intimate Trinitarian relationship, humans cannot fulfill their created role without intimate relationships.  The very nature of true relationships requires inter-dependence.  We were not created to be “stand alone” people, but members of a family and a community that is interconnected and dependent.  We draw emotional and spiritual strength from one another that we need to be a whole and healthy person.

This is never truer than in our own spiritual lives.  “There are two things we cannot do alone,” said Paul Tournier, “one is to be married and the other is be a Christian.”  We are part of a living body that depends upon “connectedness” to God and to one another to function properly and develop normally.  It is true that we draw our spiritual life from the source and fountainhead of all spiritual life – God himself.  But it is also true that we draw precious and necessary resources from one another that enable us to function as a healthy part of the body of Christ.

This line of truth is so important that Jesus included it in His final discourse he had with His disciples the night before His crucifixion.  It’s found in John chapter fifteen and is explained with the analogy of the vine and the branches.  It teaches us a least three important lessons about being connected to Him and to one another.

First, we are not self-originating.  “I am the Vine you are the branches.”  In counseling sessions I have often reminded people that we are only stewards of the life God has given us and we are not free to do with it as we please.  But occasionally I hear these words in response, “No! It’s my life! I’ll do . . .” It is a fundamental error to think that our life is our own.  Only God is self-originating. The source of all life both physical and spiritual is always in another – someone outside ourselves. The branch does not exist without the vine.  Our life is not our own!  It is a gift from God!

Second, we are not self-sustaining.  None of us have life within ourselves. Only as we “abide in the vine” do we have life.  Just as physical life is maintained by the air we breathe, the food we eat and the relationships in which we engage, even so is spiritual life maintained by connection with Christ and with the members of His body. It is, “in Him we live, and move, and have our being.”  And living in Him also means living within His body the Church.  Saint John of the Cross wrote, “The virtuous soul that is alone . . . is like the burning coal that is alone.  It will grow colder rather than hotter.”   The Christian faith is not merely an intellectual, internal faith.  It can only be lived in community.  Abandon the Body and your faith will fade.

Third, we are not self-fulfilling.  Joy, happiness, meaning and value come only in and through a relationship to God and service to one another.  Real life comes to us through the Vine.  We have no ability within ourselves to bear the fruit of a meaningful and satisfying life.   It can only be found as we relate to and draw from the Vine and the other branches.

Too many branches of the visible church believe and practice isolation. They isolate themselves from the Church at large, but worse yet, they isolated themselves from those within their own religious tradition and in some cases from those within the same four walls of their own local church.  They have developed an approach to discipleship where people are exhorted to do what is right and then placed under rigid structures of accountability or fear of rejection to see that they do it.  This has yielded poor results because it ignores the deepest need of the human soul – true connectedness to another Christian.  I have seen my share of people in spiritual trouble and in so many of their cases there was more than a stubborn will that needed firm admonishment involved.  There was a desperate hurting soul that needed the nourishment that only a loving community and a meaningful relationship could provide. (I believe isolation and the resulting loneliness may be the devils most successful tool in luring people in to sin.) One poor soul expressed it like this, “they preached to me and prayed with me, but no one ever asked me over for lunch.”   It is often true that those churches that stress accountability and the “you need to stand on your own two feet” approach often do so because they simply don’t know how to relate to other people.  They either don’t know how or are too afraid to lock arms with those who are struggling.  Building meaningful relationships with needy people is time consuming, uncomfortable and costly.  But the successful results are indisputable.   If you are still unconvinced, take special note of the words spoken at the next communion service you participate in.  The Minister will hand you a piece of bread or a wafer and say, “The Body of Christ, broken for you. . .”  The Church was founded by One whose body was broken to give us life.  Shouldn’t we then go forth and pour out our lives for one another?

There really are no “self-made” men in our world, but men and women who have been fortunate enough to have other people invest so much in them that they in turn were able to make a huge difference on the visible stage of life.  If you are reading this article and truly want to make a difference, then find someone to connect with and pour your resources into them.  When we truly “connect” we can change a thousand lives – one at a time!