(This blog will be offline for a couple of weeks while I travel. Please enjoy these posts from the archives. Feel free to comment or ask questions. I will be able to respond when I return.)
I wrote this to a pastor who was struggling. Maybe your pastor would be encouraged by it as well…
If you can keep in your mind and heart that the Lord has already accepted you in His beloved (Ephesians 1:6), then you don’t have to worry about your performance as a pastor. Just trust that the Lord loves you and He loves your people more than you do. If you seek Him, He will lead you to do just what He wants. It isn’t often that a pastor hears a message about resting in the ministry, but that’s what I would like you to hear. The labor is His. The resources are His. The people and the work are His. You are just along for the ride. From time to time you will be with Him as He touches lives and you will share in both the joy and the glory.
Ministry becomes discouraging when a pastor believes the expectations placed on him by the people, the denomination, his family, or even his own heart. You are not what your people need. You will never live up to their expectations. But He does. All you can do is lead them to Him.
Grace for my Heart 