This past weekend my wife and I took a mini-vacation to visit family and friends. It was good to get away and to see people we haven't seen in quite some time.
It was also disturbing.
Among the many people we visited were two couples who had been previously in Church of God ministry. Because of some negative experiences, they are now only loosely connected to a local congregation and, in both cases, outside our movement. There is still hurt, frustration and even disillusionment.
One individual served in what once was a strong congregation. Because of some serious flaws in the church's organization structure, coupled with just plain sinful attitudes, an unhealthy political situation developed which led to his departure. At that time, several years ago, my wife and I walked alongside them in this painful journey. It is distressing to see such gifted individuals still negatively impacted by all that happened.
The other person was even more disrupted by his experience. In his view, the district of which he was part let him down, never really validating his ministry. Today he has lost his heart for ministry, and it was apparent by his body language and speech that he is need of much prayer and healing.
On the same weekend, we also heard about another ministry couple we knew very well. Apparently their marriage has dissolved.
All these experiences in a short period of time provoke a wide range of thoughts and feelings in me. I am thoroughly disgusted with the way some churches have treated their pastors, and I also am alarmed that some ministers have not done enough to safeguard their personal lives and families.
We must work to change this. Nothing less than a cultural change within the church is needed, brought about God's leading, renewed theology, and healthier relationships.
3 comments:
Unfortunately, this story sounds familiar. More and more of our leaders are growing apathetic towards ministry and the church. I just returned from our state's General Assembly (KY). In spite of great state leadership, our fellowship was in many ways disappointing. Passion is noticably absent among our pastors. We need a rebirth of passion.
I hear about this all the time. There are a number of great preachers and youth pastors that began doing this right around the same time I did, that are either now serving under a different "banner" than "Church of God", or have left vocational ministry all together. It's scary and sad.
Lloyd,
Good thoughts. You touch on an issue close to my heart - the destruction of people that God has called to ministry. The real painful situations are the ones where church polity is such that churches can simply destroy a pastor and his/her family with seeming impunity. The strong independent/congregational polity has got to be looked at closely or we will see ongoing destruction.
Keep writing...
Ken
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