Pastor Appreciation Month is Not Working!
Yes, it feels really weird to be writing this blog post.
After all, I am a pastor.
But I am convinced this post, and others like it, are critically important for churches today. Rather than try and say all I want to say, I think I will simply let well-known pastor, Thabiti Anyabwile, say it for me (Don't Make Your Pastor a Statistic).
And my conclusion is that for all the hub-bub about Pastor Appreciation Month, it isn't working. O sure, it might be raking in thousands of dollars for Christian bookstores / retailers, but it is doing nothing to actually solve the crisis (and yes, it's a crisis, read the post below please), happening among pastors and churches today.
Two of my close pastor friends, both faithful preachers of the Word who loved Christ and people, have recently been ousted (fired, in business language) by ungodly, unbiblical processes (a coup, in political language). Behind the back meetings. Behind the back gossip and false accusations. Behind the back coalition building and grumbling. It makes me sick. And if my Bible is true, it makes God sick too.
The only solution is humble submission to the inerrant Word of God by those in churches claiming to be followers of Jesus. A return of Holy Spirit-empowered obedient faith is the answer. Churches must once again have the spiritual spine to structure themselves and order themselves and relate to one another according to the New Testament. Period. By this, Christ is highly exalted, and pastors and members flourish under the Spirit-filled good reign of God the Father.
by Keith McWhorter