Years ago I started a local network for youth pastors in Little
Rock, in partnership with a friend and colleague, a veteran youth pastor who
was serving at another church in our city. Each of us had over ten years of ministry experience at the
time, just long enough to know what the questions were; and beyond that, long
enough to understand the need of those who were just entering the profession to
be personally encouraged and professionally equipped. What we found, however,
was that many of those whom we were reaching out to did not recognize their own
need for such mentoring, and the group that consistently gathered was
comprised only of a handful of other veteran youth pastors, like us. After three or
so years, we abandoned the cause since (by then) we had all become friends and
found that we did not need a monthly meeting to maintain the goodwill and spirit
of cooperation (beyond competition) as we served students, together, in the city.
Now, as the lead pastor of a church I planted almost ten
years ago, I am finding that I not only have something to contribute to those
just starting out on a similar course, but that I still have a need, myself,
for personal encouragement and professional equipping. Indeed, I do not want to
make the mistake of those I observed years ago who isolate themselves, or otherwise think they have it all
figured out. Just who I am willing to entrust myself to learn from, however, is, as well,
a critical choice. For, I don’t just need someone with experience to coach me. I
need someone with experiential wisdom to do so: someone with proven capacity,
trusted voice, and a man of prayer.
And that’s just whom I have found in Daniel Henderson, who’s
book, Defying Gravity: How to Survive the Storms of Ministry, is a
personal and professional tutorial that every pastor – whether those just
starting out, or veterans like me - will find a valuable read and
resource. His flight motif guides the reader through the vaious stages of leadership includings expectations, take-off, in-flight travel and future landing, at which time
he/she might hear the Lord say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” This is clearly
Henderson’s aim, hope and prayer for every pastor.
In part two – Viewing the Instrument Panel – the author provides
an overview and discussion of nine “gauges” that he suggests must be regularly
attended to by every leader striving for a safe, significant, flight of
leadership and future landing: Applied Truth, Spiritual Intimacy, Personal Integrity, Biblical Identity, Genuine Accountability, Eternal Significance, Healthy Family Life,
Indispensable Pain,
and
A Captivating Call.
And throughout the book, he includes the practical insights of more than
20 proven, uniquely insightful, Christian leaders: from Major League Baseball’s
Hall of Fame member, Paul Molitor, to Sid Verdoorn, the former president and
chairman of the board of the fortune 500 company C.H. Robinson Co., to John
MacArthur to … well, Mark DeYmaz!
The
book is being published by Moody Press and is scheduled for release in January 2010.
With a foreword by Leith Anderson, and the further endorsements of Jim Cymbala,
Jonathan Falwell and Brian Bloye, it is well positioned for broad exposure
and significant impact. Advance purchase can be made through Amazon.com and or via other online book providers.
This is awesome but let's take it a step further. Unity, networking and joining together with other believers is not an action meant to build up the participants near as much as it is a vehicle to reach the lost. This is what by and large has been lost on the Body of Christ. We are meant to be in unity so that we can pray, have our hearts break for those youth in our communities who don't know Christ and then seek the Father about how we can most effectively reach and show the love of Jesus to them. This is when we are encouraged and grow like the Lord desires, not in the endless seeking of each others "wisdom and experience."
Posted by: His | Dec 17, 2009 at 01:52 PM