11 Dec Helping People Move Forward by Michael Graff
This is the time of year that we as pastors have a lot of emotion in our hearts. We really want to help people move forward in life, but sometimes it feels like we’re the ones moving them but not in substantial ways. Today, I want to share with you some ways to be more effective as a leader without expending more effort.
As pastors, it’s not uncommon to experience personal stagnation, fatigue, lack of clarity, and impeded progress as we’re ending one year and beginning the next. Learning how to take steps to move forward regardless of those feelings is crucial for leaders.
In Matthew 9, we read how Jesus had compassion on the crowds because they were harassed and helpless, “like sheep without a shepherd.” He wasn’t disappointed or frustrated with them. He had compassion. The etymology of the words “harassed” and “helpless” means that the people were fainting and desperately doing what they can because they don’t know what else to do.
We’re like sheep, and God knows it. That doesn’t mean we’re dumb. But we do need a shepherd. We need Jesus, and we need each other. Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us not to lean on our own understanding but acknowledge Him in all we do. We need to be shepherded, and we need to be the shepherds that encourage the flock and show them how to be effective in their unique callings.
Stir Up Faith
Lives can change where faith is involved. Faith is like fuel in your tank. It’s a catalyst. When we lose faith, we lose motivation. When we lose motivation, we become stagnant, discouraged. We digress. That’s why it’s so important to share stories of God’s faithfulness, to stir up faith in ourselves and those around us. We need to personally find and then create for others environments that stir faith, feed motivation, and cultivate inspiration. Like Proverbs 29:18 says, without vision we’ll perish. We’ll slowly starve and wither away.
Vince Lombardi, the famous football coach had a great saying: “Obstacles are what you see when you take your eyes off the goal.” Sharing stories of God’s faithfulness and having discussions that stir faith need to become a regular occurrence so we keep our focus on what matters, and that’s God’s plans and purposes.
Shoot Straight
Culture can be a trap. If we’re not careful, we’ll start to believe everything should be quick and easy – like losing 40 pounds in a month with just one supplement. Everything in our culture is fast, and we can fall for the lie that progress should come fast as well. Then, when things take time, we can feel like we must be doing something wrong or maybe the ministry really isn’t for us! We need someone to tell us – and we need to tell others – that, “Hey, it’s going to be a fight, but it’s worth the fight. There will be tough seasons, but that’s why we have God’s Word and each other.” Then, when the struggle comes, you’re ready for it and you have a support system and the right mindset to get through it.
Don’t get so fixated on the destination, Pastor. My dad taught us that 95% of our time in life is the process, the journey of becoming. We have to learn to love every day of our process, and as pastors, we have to teach others to fall in love with their process of becoming who God has created them to be. They need this more than a mindset geared toward instant results. We will need to communicate well, to preach God’s promises but not give listeners the idea that there’s not going to be a fight.
Connect People
Connecting people and helping them find healthy relationships that inspire growth and maturity is one of the greatest gifts you’ll ever give people. It’s how we as pastors will keep the church going strong. If the people in our church are going to really move forward, we’re going to have to teach them to fellowship with spiritually healthy, growing people and not carnal people.
One way to get people thinking about who they’re in relationship with is by getting them to define core areas of their lives they want to excel in. For me, that might be husband and father. Maybe it’s specific goals I want to accomplish in my career and calling, or maybe in my physical health, finances, etc. You don’t just teach your members to set goals; you show them how to put together a support team to help in those areas. And since we’re not one-sided, you teach them how to be there for others in their church community as well.
Whenever we try to do things by ourselves, we get struck where we are. We just don’t have what it takes to do much more than tweak our current way of operating. But an outside perspective can totally change the way you think or encourage you to think in a new and healthy way that can change everything.
Pastor, you and I know we can’t be there for everybody. That’s why it’s so important to teach others how to build the right friendships and develop a supportive community. Because those kinds of relationships pay huge dividends. God’s calling on our lives is always dependent and intertwined with others. We’re part of a larger body, and He wants to use us, but we can’t and shouldn’t ever do it on our own. That’s not God’s design. He’s placed us all here together. That was our heart’s desire from the conception of the Significant Church Network, to build relationships with pastors and support the local church. We believe something truly special can happen and is happening when there’s strong pastors and strong churches in every community. This is just one of the reasons I love SCN so much. I love that it exists to provide a place where pastors can find not just the resources but also the relationships they need to fulfill their calling.
Move Them Forward
This world is filled with people who don’t want honest feedback that will help them become all God wants them to be. They only want encouragement. If we as pastors want to give our members the best, we’ve got to teach them to pray, to live with thankfulness for God, to seek out answers, to take honest feedback, to listen to things that can make them better. This is easiest to do when they’ve developed relationship with people who are healthy and growing because feedback becomes something that group craves and looks forward to because it leads to even greater growth.
This is key to helping people grow – to love and crave feedback, to see us (as we’re leading them) always learning, always improving. Most successful people value feedback.
A few things that keep us from receiving feedback are busyness, not making time to slow down and listen and address things; pride, thinking we don’t need the feedback; not knowing who to trust, to go to, to listen to. I know even in my own life I’ve seen all three of these hindering me from receiving the feedback I need.
Create Partnerships
Pastor, you (and I) need a personal growth plan to develop into the unique person God has made you to be. How else will you learn how to build organizational structures, build teams, vision cast, motivate your members, schedule effectively, stay in touch with others, and more? You need to scale your system so you can start moving forward. Here at Significant Church, we want to help you with that. We feel there’s nothing better we could be investing in than pastors like you. We know that when we grow as pastors the kingdom grows, and many people are impacted by it in positive ways.
You can’t be everything everybody needs. You can’t be the singular answer this holiday season. But you can be a part of shepherding people well by helping them believe and develop the faith for something better. It might be a fight, but it’s well worth the fight if they’ll embrace it, if they’ll allow you to connect them with good people who will enter the fight with them and walk their journey with them. It can’t be you for everybody. That’s why so many pastors have burned out and left the ministry. We’re not called to be there for everybody, but we are called to shepherd people and connect and equip the body to be the body.
As we wrap up 2024, I pray that you can navigate, prioritize and enjoy your family during the holidays. There’s a lot pulling on us as pastors through Christmas, but it’s really important to have that time to rest, celebrate, and mentally decide how we’re going to enter the new year and move toward our God-given goals. Merry Christmas, Pastor! We at SCN are praying for you!
This blog was created using content from the webinar Helping People Move Forward.