Time to Audition a New Pastor?

Typically when people learn that I am a youth pastor they have one of three reactions...

(1) they immediately begin to confess sin as if I might offer them atonement for those sins ("I haven't been to church in a while... I've just been so busy," "I've been struggling with ------- sin, but hey - no one's perfect, right?", etc.), or

(2) they have an "Oh" reaction ("oh - you are?" as they withdraw as if I'm going to investigate their spiritual lives, or "oh... ok?" as in "who cares", or "oh, ok!" as in that's great that there is one of you somewhere), or

(3) they react like a 70 year old gentleman did the other day at the mall and ask "have you heard so-and-so preach before? He is a DYNAMIC speaker! He can preach that Gospel in a way I've never heard before!"

Matter of fact, his statement was actually: "Have you ever heard pastor so-and-so preach? (I said no and that I had never heard of him) Oh, boy he is dynamic! He presents the Gospel in such an amazing way!" I asked how long the pastor had been at his church and he said "oh, he's not our pastor - he was a guest speaker one day. I tell you what - I had no problem staying awake that Sunday! I'm 70 years old, I can fall asleep anywhere, but not when that man preaches because he yells and claps and sings and really gets you excited!" I spoke to him about whether or not he ever serves or encourages the pastor of his church with such kind words and he said "awwww, no. He can't deliver the Word like [Guest] Pastor so-and-so." I tried a couple of times to encourage him to seek more than a song and dance, and to see the value of his faithful Pastor, but he wouldn't hear it and eventually walked away.

This is not an isolated incident. I'm afraid this way of thinking is a major issue in the church! Unfortunately, it plagues almost everyone in and out of the church:

• Those who don't go because they find the TV preachers all the spiritual food they need
• Those who don't go because church is "too boring"
  
• Those who only go "when Pastor so-and-so is preaching because I understand him better"
• Church leaders who still go, but secretly wish their pastor were someone else
• Those who frequently change churches until they find one that has a dynamic and exciting pastor
• Those who have a new pastor
• Those who have a pastor who has been faithfully leading their church for a while
• Anyone else I have not mentioned

We live in a world where superstars no longer exist because they have now become idols. Even the church is not immune to this and people attend regularly hoping to be entertained. If the pastor lacks the skills to keep the congregation's attention, the people either leave, zone out, fall asleep, or stagger their appearances.

NEWSFLASH: God did call on Pastor's to be entertaining or dynamic! He called them to be faithful and capable of "rightly dividing the Word" (teaching the whole of Scripture)...

"Do your best to present yourself to God as an approved worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth." (1 Timothy 2:15)

You can also read the qualifications for a pastor in 1 Timothy 3:1-7.

NEWSFLASH: God's Word is so holy, relevant, true and sharp that it cuts to the real heart of the matter. No person is capable of bringing it to life more than it already does itself!

"For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable." (Hebrews 4:12-13)

NEWSFLASH: God is not a fan of entertaining the masses! As a matter of fact, it is despicable to Him. (NOTE: Few churches actually claim to be entertainment factories; today entertainment is hidden behind the guise of being "relevant" or "engaging")

"Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching. For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths." (2 Timothy 4:2-4)

It is time we stop auditioning our pastors as if to find our next Church Idol winner. Instead of grading a pastor on "how exciting is he when he preaches?", we ought to be asking deeper questions such as:

• Is he a faithful man?
• Does he rightly teach the Word of God? (Does he challenge us to dive deeper?)
  
• Is he the same outside the walls of the church as he is inside?
• Is he beloved within the community and does he truly care about it?
• Does he lead his family well?
• Does he minister to his wife and children first and make them top priority?

PARENTS: We are often times the worst offenders! We not only want an exciting pastor to listen to, but a dynamic children's minister and ministry and a youthful, exciting and relevant Youth Pastor and youth ministry for our kids and teens. We so desperately want our kids to like being in church that we demonstrate to them our true priority is making sure they have fun versus worshipping God in a real way that transforms the whole of their lives (or ours, for that matter). Getting kids to show up in church is not the standard we ought to be shooting for! What should be our standard is showing them what a life transformed by God and commited to honoring and loving Him looks like.

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Image borrowed from sam.weiss.
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