DEAR PASTOR

Dear pastor,

I understand the magnitude of importance and necessity for your work and how overwhelming your position can be but kindly do take notice of the following;

1. Just because people disagree with you does not make them any less intelligent, less knowledgeable or even less revelatory than you are. Learn to accept points of divergence as a way of acknowledging the positions of others based on the information they are privy to. Don’t be condescending because of an information you claim to be privy to that the other party may not have access to.

2. Being behind the pulpit is a privilege and not a right. You are not there because you are better than the people who choose to sit under your delivery day in and day out. The pulpit is not a validation of your infallibility and God complex. There are probably better preachers and pulpiteers in the congregation if given the chance.

3. You can not be the source of all encompassing knowledge. You can not know everything under the sun. You must be humble and honest enough to know and be very clear on the limitations of your own knowledge. Don’t attempt to be the answer to every problem neither attempt to create the impression that you have all the answers to every pressing life issue.

4. Don’t spend your whole ministry teaching and pouring into people without giving them the chance to make objective inquiries about matters of faith and doctrine whenever they see fit. It can be a fearful experience for many pastors because the thought of exposing one’s own genuine ignorance can be daunting. Questions unfortunately in the church may be perceived as insubordination or disloyalty but they essentially help you to know the extent of the work you have done and how much personal work you need to do on yourself.

4. It’s easy to think that every other person’s ministry, calling, work and endeavor should revolve around your ministry in order for them to feel a sense of relevance and purpose. You will save yourself a lot of chaotic episodes when you realize that every single person who chooses to serve under you or with you has a distinguished purpose even if that purpose is directly or indirectly connected to you. You may often feel the sense to micro manage other people’s calls just so it could fit within your own delights. Too many church wars could have been avoided if only pastors were willing enough to become guides and catalysts rather than actors in other people’s callings and ministries.

5. There are many avenues to settle personal disputes, misunderstandings, squabbles and misgivings but I can promise you the pulpit is not one of those avenues. It’s become quite common for pastors to use the pulpit as a way of preemptively seizing the opportunity to tell narratives in their favor. That is an abuse of authority and power when you use the reverence of the pulpit to defend yourself and malign others knowing fully well that in that scenario they can not defend or prove themselves not guilty. When you understand that the church is a social community you become more aware of the things that distort the social fabric of the church community. Don’t create dissension in your bid to employ the pulpit as your court of jurisprudence.

6. Your members are not a means to an end goal. Your members are the very end of your goal. They are the reason you are in that position in the first place. They are not important because they are helping you to reach a goal. They are relevant because they are Gods cherished assignment to you. It’s become common for pastors to rudely despise members who often have genuine reasons for wanting leave a church by making comments like '' you can go if you want to no one cares''. This is a terrifying statement because it goes to show that people essentially only care to the extent to which you have personal benefit to them. Everybody is important to God both the one who has left and the one who stayed. Treat everyone under you with a sense of utmost importance.

7. There’s a culture in many churches today were pastors become the head, center and tail of the church. It’s a kind of sole proprietorship mentality where the pastor feels so entitled to the church that he tries to run the affairs of the ministry solely on his terms and will without recourse to other people’s submissions and suggestions. It’s often deceptively shrouded in the cloak of an appeal to theocracy but in essence it’s just the pastor wanting to run the whole show. It’s clear that many older ministers on their death bed would have hoped that they gave more opportunities for others to have an input into the ministry because at the end of day you will not be at the helm of affairs forever. The church you can’t take to your grave. Allow others to take part in critical portions of your ministry if you want a lasting legacy.

8. What merits an individual to be your son , daughter or mentee is not that they talk like you, preach like you or even think like you. There’s often this pressure on younger folks who submit under ministries to talk , act and behave like their leaders in order to prove their loyalty and worth which is absurd if you think about it. If your measurement as a pastor of a person’s love and loyalty is based on whether they are good at mimicking you or whether they are carbon copies of your ministry then clearly you have not understood the shepherding and guiding philosophy that Jesus sort to teach.

9. Assumption not just for pastors but for everyone can be a huge pitfall. Many pastors have lost very good people because they assumed a fact they had no evidence for . It’s easy to think that just because you are a holy ghost filled pastor operating in diverse gifts probably gives you the go ahead to believe that whatever you assume by perception maybe accurate. It’s amazing how many stories I hear often from members about how shocked they were to discover that individuals they regarded as spiritual heads will make wild assumptions over a matter without the decency of even seeking for clarification. Don’t make assumptions on any matter seek clarification.

10. No pastor is a teacher of all things. You can not be an authority on every subject matter. Allow others to be a blessing to your flock without making them feel like they are doing something wrong by imbibing wisdom from other sources. I have heard many pastors make the case that their sermons must be the topmost priority of their members and that is the only way members can show that indeed they love their pastor. I find this position a bit ironic in the sense that even in the sciences we are not thought to stick to one rule of opinion. We are thought to peruse different opinions, observe those opinions , compare them and then come to a decision. You should not coheres people to make your teachings a priority when they naturally don’t see it as such. Be their pastor and teach them to the best of your abilities. If what you teach is relevant no one will tell them to make it a priority.

Hope this helps to make your load a little more lighter and bearable. We love you and we are rooting for you to succeed.

Your kingdom friend,

Ernest Kobby Baah .