12 But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction,

13 and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work…

- 1 Thessalonians 5:12, 13

It Is Not As Easy As You Think

We have seen a recent explosion of televangelist on the air waves. We are presented with ginormous attendees, mammoth edifices, fashionable preachers and teachers proclaiming the Word of God. However, this is not reality. These mega-churches that we see on TV only make up 6% of the churches in America. Did you know that the average church size in America 50 to 75 attendees per church? That’s right, 50 to 75 people on any given worship service.

Most pastors have a full-time job along with their full-time position in the church. Not only are the pastors working at least one job along with their position at the church, but they are expected to preach on Sunday morning and teach during Bible study. Not to mention being available to 24 hours a day to counsel their members, pray for their members, meet the needs of their members, and visit them if they end up in the hospital or nursing home. How often do we tend to forget that these men and women of God also have a family and issues to attend to of their own?

When someone hears the title minister, pastor, bishop, elder, etc. most people think “perfection” and “infallible”. A title does not make a person “better” or better than someone else. Holding these titles, positions, or an office does not keep a person from falling. So why do we marvel when they do?

The hardest part of being a leader in the church is not putting with people outside of the church, but the “believers” in the church. What makes a preacher different from a laymen besides a title? Case-and-point: if a pastor shouldn’t been seen in the clubs, why is it okay to spot a layman there. If it’s wrong for a preacher to curse, why is it okay for the laymen to do it?

Being a pastor myself, what gets to me more than anything is a so-called “saved, sanctified, and filled the Holy Ghost” believer saying to me, “… and you’re supposed to be preacher!” Being a preacher doesn’t stop me from making mistakes, just like being saved doesn’t keep you from falling.

Paul says to appreciate those who not only labor among you but who have charge over you. With all the faults your leader has, God still called that person in spite of their shortcomings. We expect to get attack by the devil; we do not expect to get damaged by our own brothers and sisters in the faith.

Operating in any office in the church is not as easy as it appears. It is the love of others in the congregation that keeps us going knowing that they appreciate what it takes to be a good steward of the church, individual souls in the church, and manage our own personal affairs at the same time.

Expect your leadership not to be perfect, but godly; but being godly never prevented a person from making a mistake. Appreciate your leaders.