Some of you may already know this, but I don’t try to personally take care of every issue or problem related to Good News Church (the organization) or Good News Church (the people).
For instance, if you have an issue related to KidZone, I’m probably going to refer you to Charis Bickhart. If you have a concern about our Youth Bible Study, I may encourage you to speak with Dawn Randle. If you have a question about our new building project, it’s likely I’ll be sending you to Gary Haverdink. And if you have a complaint about the preaching, I’ll suggest you try Meadowbrook Church. (Just kidding about that last one. Sorta.)
Additionally, there may be times when someone in our church wants to talk to me about a theological issue, or a spiritual issue, or even a practical issue like how to handle anxiety, or a broken marriage, etc. And even in those cases, I sometimes will lead you to have a conversation (or a set of conversations) with someone else, who I believe is equipped to help you. In some cases, the person is even more skilled than I am at handling that particular problem. They might be more compassionate than I am, or they might have more free time to give. In some cases, they may be more gifted at counseling than I am, or they may have more experience in a particular arena than I do.
I can imagine that this might be offensive to some people: “But I just want to talk to my pastor about my problems! I don’t want to help from some other person!” In fact, one time I had someone say to me (in response to my suggestion to speak to a particular person within our church about a personal issue), “I just feel like you are a higher authority than they are.”
So, let me burst your bubble. I’m not. I don’t have any special access to God that is unavailable to other Christians. I don’t. God listens to me on the same basis that he listens to you: because of the shed blood of Jesus Christ as our sacrifice for sin.
Sure, there are some ways in which I exercise authority that is not exactly the same as some other Christians… but that may not even be what that person was referring to. Yes, I’m more responsible for certain things at Good News than other people. I assume that’s why the Bible says, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account…” Yes, there is leadership, and authority, and submission in the Bible. But even that authority doesn’t simply rest all on one person. The passage even says “leaders” (plural) because there’s often not just one person in charge of “watching over” the people in a local church.
As far as specifically needing me to pray with or for you… I don’t have an inside track to God different from other Christians. Or needing my counsel on a particular issue… I’m not the only person gifted to do that. In fact, I’m not even the best person gifted to do that in many, many cases! There are people in this church who’ve experienced more than I have, who possess more wisdom than I do, and who are more available than I am. Some of you would actually be short-changed by settling for me to help you with a problem when someone else is better-suited.
You may wonder why I am bringing this up now. Well, the truth is because our church is growing, and I literally can’t deal with every issue even if I wanted to (which I don’t) and even if it were a good idea (which it isn’t.) So, for practical reasons (ie: I can’t do it all) and for theological reasons (ie: God has equipped a whole body of people to serve him and not just one person… see Ephesians 4:11-12) I will not be personally dealing with every issue that arises within Good News Church.
This isn’t a big deal. But I thought it might be healthy to get it in writing. Just in case, one day in the future, someone thinks I’m saying this just to avoid dealing with their issue personally. It’s nothing personal. It’s practical and theological. It’s good for me to be able to have time to spend with my family and other personal things. And it’s good for other people to use their gifts to serve God.
By the way, if you want even more explanation for why this is a great idea, feel free to read Exodus 18. It’s a remarkable story regarding this kind of thing. I doubt you’ll even need a Bible teacher to explain it to you. That chapter is just so straightforward and makes its point so well. And if you are pressed for time, just read verses 13-23.
Thank you for letting me be one of the people God uses in your life as He grows you up in Him.
