Driving the Herd or Shepherding the Sheep?

[At the end of last week's column I said we would address the matter of whether it was ever appropriate for leaders to draw a line in the sand. Please allow me to delay that post a bit. I want to spend a little time addressing comments from last week's post.]

I agonized more than usual before posting last week's blog: "Please Leave Peacefully." Frankly, I found the story on which the post was based more than a little astounding and wondered if any Church leadership could really be so blind and insensitive.

Then came the email response. Others too have had the experience, so yes, the idea that Church Elders would make decisions that would deliberately alienate their flock (and not care) is not hypothetical, but real. One writer (not a preacher) responded that such had happened in his congregation and resulted in losing half their membership -- including all potential future Elders.

There are at least three basic issues in all this:

1) Elders may have a lack of understanding regarding the NATURE OF THEIR CALLING. It is the singular purpose of Elders (Pastors, Bishops) to care for the people God has entrusted to them by virtue of their appointment. Period. Nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing is to get in the way of this duty. Everything Elders get involved in can be delegated to others EXCEPT for looking after the welfare of a congregation's members. That makes everything else less important and anything that gets in the way of that ministry is nothing but a hindrance.

2) Elders may have a lack of understanding regarding HOW THEY SHOULD CARRY OUT THEIR MINISTRY. The board room is a poor place for shepherds unless they have gathered for prayer. Every Elder is responsible for knowing where their flock lives, what's going on in their lives, what their struggles are, and where their spiritual weaknesses lie. It's a tough job, beyond the abilities of any one man -- which is why there is always a plurality of Elders mentioned in the New Testament. Shepherding is done over dinner, and in personal visits in homes and hospitals where members can talk privately and confidently about their greatest dreams and most frightening fears. It is done on the telephone and with notes of encouragement via email and snail mail. It is done by attending the baseball/basketball/football games of our children and in the company of other adults where fellowship and bonding occurs. In short shepherding is done by being with people and sharing in their lives so they know you care about them. It is NOT done by driving them in the direction you think they ought to go. Shepherds lead. They don't drive. And the sheep know the shepherd's voice, and follow him with confidence, because they know their shepherd loves them and has only their best interest at heart -- not just because he's told them that, but because he's showed them that in his association with them.

3) Elders may have a poor sense of what their VISION for their church ought to be. Elders (and preachers too) often equate vision with church size, progressiveness, and community recognition. But the vision of Church leadership should focus on two things: bringing people to Christ and getting them to heaven. Are Bill, Bob, Sally and Susan Christians? Are Jamal, Jerry, Alice and Paula walking in the light of Christ or flirting with darkness? The vision is to get them to heaven. Anything, no matter how noble or desirable, that gets in the way of this vision is but a cataract and must be peeled away.

One of my correspondents hit the nail on the head: the problem in last week's scenario is that Church leadership lost touch with the very people they were supposed to be leading. The result was a lost flock.