Last week was one of “those weeks” where every day and every evening was jam-packed. I had several extra church meetings, graduation events, and a mission trip fundraiser added to my already over loaded weekly schedule. It was so bad that one day when I ran home to eat and freshen up before running out again, I overheard my daughter Chloe as she played with her dolls, ask the mommy doll, “when daddy would be home?” Sadly, I’ve discovered that “those weeks” happen way too often (I know this shocks a lot of people who believe “real” pastors only work one day a week and youth pastors just hangout and eat pizzaJ).
Early on in ministry I used to try to convince myself (and my wife) that things would eventually slow down. I would tell myself, “Once we make it past this event… when the school year is finished…after this sermon series is over…” But things never did slow down! There always seemed to be a never ending stream of important things that came up that had to be dealt with, and it has become clear to me that there always will be something that “must be done” or “dealt with immediately” unless there is a radical change within the church itself. You may ask what would this radical change involve or what would it look like? And the answer is shockingly simple it would involve the church actually implementing the Biblical model of leadership.
Most churches today believe they are following the Bible’s teaching on leadership, when in fact the church culture they have created is actually abrogating it. The Bible makes it clear that men are to be the spiritual leaders of their homes (Joshua 24:15; Ephesians 5:25), in fact this is a prerequisite for serving as a leader in the church (1 Timothy 3:4; 12), however, the church expects so much out of their leaders (especially pastors) that they are hardly ever home. But how can they love their wives and children if they are never with them? How can they manage their homes when they are never there? If the church truly desires to honor God and follow the Biblical model of leadership they must make the things that “must be done” and “dealt with immediately” the things God mandates and not what we think they should be. The church must make it clear they would rather have a leader who leads the way God desires him to lead rather than a leader who leads like a CEO of a fortune 500 company! God’s way is always the best way and the church would do well to follow it, especially in the area of Biblical leadership!