THE SPIRTUAL DISCIPLINE OF READING

Through Scot McKnight's blog Jesus Creed, I have discovered Karen Spears Zacharias.  I thought you find this posting from today to be a thoughtful challenge.

I couldn’t tell if he was making a confession or if he was bragging.

The man looked up from the computer screen from where he was surfing the net and announced very matter-of-factly, “I manage this bookstore but I don’t read.”

Why would you tell that to an author?

I try my best to be gracious to people. I didn’t cuss out loud.

“Have you never been a reader?” I asked.

“Nope. Never,” he said.

“How is it you came to manage a bookstore if you don’t read?”

“I’m a pastor,” he said as if that explained everything. 

I’d like to tell you he’s the first bookstore manager I’ve met this year who doesn’t read. In fact, he’s the third one. All were men. All had backgrounds in retail. And all three of them are running bookstores that cater to the Christian marketplace. I think there’s a message embedded in there somewhere but I haven’t decoded it yet.

This gnawing in my gut is more than indigestion — it’s the disturbing recognition that far too many pastors have abandoned the spiritual discipline of reading. And I’m not just talking about Bible reading, although I’ve heard my share of sermons this year that I suspect were pre-packaged and downloaded online.
I’m talking about reading a book besides the Bible.

I can count on one hand the number of pastors I’ve sat under in my lifetime that I know were avid readers. I remember them because their preaching had a depth and a substance that all others lacked. One of my favorites, Dr. Herb Anderson, would quote poetry from the pulpit. That was always a magical moment. It helped that Dr. Anderson lived in a university town. He had a lot of professors in his audience. They expected their pastor to be well-read. But out here in rural America where hardy people live and vote, pastors are more likely to quote a bumper sticker than they are to recite a poem they’ve memorized. 

A friend made the comment the other day that he thought the reason people liked the assistant pastor at his church better than the senior pastor is because they had no idea what the assistant pastor was saying  but they liked his style of delivery. It’s more flashy than the old guy’s.

That makes me laugh and wince at the same time. The way I did when the bookstore manager who claims he is really a pastor said to me that he doesn’t read.

One of the best writers of our times, Stephen King says: “People are just too damn lazy to read.”

I don’t know if King is right about that. Maybe people are just too busy to read. Used to be that we had time for stories in our lives. Now if the story takes longer than 140 characters, we don’t have time for it. Pastors, it seems, are particularly prone to the tyranny of the urgent. (That was an obscure reference to a pithy little booklet from another era).

John Wesley was an old preacher guy who lived a long time ago, back when online meant a person’s clothes were drying in the sun.  Wesley thought reading was an important spiritual discipline: “It cannot be that the people should grow in grace unless they give themselves to reading. A reading people will always be a knowing people. ”

Can a pastor who doesn’t read really lead a people? Or is he more like a blind friend with a map? Pretty ineffective at giving clear direction.

You can read more of Karen's thoughts at KAREN

BRING THE HEAT

This post appeared on The Gospel-Driven Church and is written by Jared Wilson. - Steve

We must not equate passion with style. But we must have hearts aflame with passion. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones famously defined preaching as, "Logic on fire! Eloquent reason! . . . Preaching is theology coming through a man who is on fire."

The story is told that when W.E. Sangster was interviewing a candidate for the ministry, the nervous young man explained that he was quite shy and not the sort of person ever to set the River Thames on fire. "My dear young brother," responded Sangster, "I'm not interested to know if you could set the Thames on fire. What I want to know is this: if I picked you up by the scruff of your neck and dropped you into the Thames, would it sizzle?"

Never mind his eloquence; was he himself on fire?

-- from Christopher Ash, The Priority of Preaching (p.67)

When on Sunday morning, then, when you go out before their faces, we must walk up not worn out with misery but full of Christ, hot with Christ, on fire: burn them with the force of our belief.

-- John Updike, Rabbit, Run

10 THINGS CHURCH HOPPERS SAY

My friend Dan Masshardt posted this from Will Mancini's blog THE CLARITY EVANGELIST.

Pastors, read it and keep your perspective.


From the archives of Will Mancini’s blog:

1. “But my old church…” This usually means they want your church to be like their old church.

2. “I just need time to be fed.” This means, “I don’t want to do anything. I’m here just to sit and see what I can get out of this church, so don’t expect me to serve in any way, shape, or form.

3. “I’m looking for a church that teaches the Word.” This means, “I’m looking for a church that dispenses lots of information without challenging me to do anything.”

4. “We came here because we are looking for deep teaching.” This usually means their last church focused too much on actually obeying the Word. They want a church that just talks about the Rapture, the Second Coming, who the Hittites were and the identity of Theophilus.

5. “I should know my pastor.” This means, “In my last church, I got to know the pastor, but when the church grew, and the pastor couldn’t have dinner with us every Tuesday night, I left and came here.”

6. “We want a church that’s focused on discipling people.” This means, “I want a church that’s focused on me, not people who are lost.”

7. “I wish you wouldn’t focus so much on what people need to do.” This means they don’t like commitment, they don’t like to be told the Bible actually tells them how to live and follow Jesus. They want to come to church, live in their sin and have no one tell them this is wrong.

8. “I wish you wouldn’t talk about money.” This is the best way to tell a pastor “I don’t give.”

9. “My old church/pastor was…” The way people come to your church is how they will leave. If your first conversation with them is all about their last church and pastor, that is how they will leave your church and how they will go to their next church.

10. “Pastor, I’ve been talking to a lot of people and they all say…” Translation: “Me, my spouse and my mother think…” If they start this way, 99.9% of the time they have no one else who thinks this way, it is just the best way to complain. If someone has a complaint and uses this line with me, they need to list all of the names or my best assumption is they talked to the same person 10 times.

GRACE LIKE RAIN

POWER IN THE PULPIT

Thom Rainer posted this excellent article on his blog recently. For more Thom's excellent insights into the church and its leadership, go to THOM

In my last post I spoke to church members about things they should and should not do or say to their pastors.  Today, I would like to speak to the pastors about what people in the congregation need from the person behind the pulpit.  After all, ninety percent of formerly unchurched individuals cited the pastor and his preaching as the key factor in their entering the ranks of the churched.  So, what was it about the pastor that kept them coming back for more?

Truth and Application

What may surprise some is that folks are not looking for a “feel good” message.  A superficial reading of Scripture is not enough.  People are drawn to in-depth teaching.  They are not afraid to learn.  In fact, many long for a deeper understanding of the Bible and Christian doctrine.

On the other hand, they also want to know how the truths of the Bible apply to their daily lives.  It is possible to have deep expository preaching coupled with life application.  The ability to combine the two is the sign of a gifted preacher.

Authenticity and Conviction

I have mentioned it before but it is worth repeating.  Genuineness is essential.  Whether it is a long time church member or a first time guest, people desire authenticity.  Though described in a variety of ways, the authenticity of the pastor was noted over and over again by the formerly unchurched.

In addition to being “real,” it is vital that the pastor be a man of conviction.  Those hearing a message must know with certainty that the preacher really believes the truth of his message.  People are hungry for truth and are drawn to those unafraid to address the tough issues of Scripture.

Communication and Leadership

In an effort to be the next big thing in the church world the importance of communication skills is often overlooked.  An effective pastor must be able to communicate well, not only from the pulpit, but on a one-on-one basis as well.  It is also important that he be able to connect with people from different generations and backgrounds.

Coupled with a desire for good communication skills in a pastor is a need to see strong leadership skills.  Those in the church need to know that their pastor has the ability to lead them with purpose and determination.  People need to hear their pastor clearly communicate his vision for the church and then trust in his ability to lead them in that direction.

A lot of pressure is placed on pastors.  They are expected to be “on” all the time.  People often look to them to instinctively know and be able to meet every need.  These characteristics are simply those mentioned by others as being instrumental in their desire to return to a specific church or learn more about the truths of the Bible.  It is not meant to serve as a checklist for the perfect pastor.  People do not need perfect pastors, which is good because there aren’t any.

It is important, however, that preachers preach the hard issues of Scripture and that they do so with authority.  It is vital that they be people of authenticity and conviction.  They must also have communication and leadership skills.  And they must use all of these skills to point others to the cross.