Big Picture Details

[mzobec]

As I opened the book to Day 35 I was at that point somewhat discouraged by the previous readings. I am a youth pastor and one of four pastors in our church. As I read through the days and reflected upon the words I felt guilty about how inadequate a pastor I am (and my colleagues are) to our flock. I don’t even know all of the youth by name any more. Im moments like these I always end up comparing 100-150 member churches to our church and see the benefits of smaller, informal, more personal, and community-driven churches.
But Day 35 encouraged me: „There was a fluid movement between intimate, individual care and strategic, ‚big picture‘ flock management. (…) Growth typically demands administrative layering. (…) Shepherds have meetings, discuss budgets, and adapt strategic planning to emerging circumstances. But they insist on contact with their flocks.“
All of this is shepherding. The art and the content of shepherding may change through size and demography. Although I have read Tim Keller’s articles about the several steps of church growth and its challenges, I always felt guilty for the particular distance a large church creates by three different worships times on Sunday, a large youth- and senior-citizen work etc. While I do need the occasional reminder to get out of my office and meet with the flock, I also need another kind of reminder: The size a a church may change ministry and the job of a pastor. It does not however say anything about the worth or valuelessness of a particular ministry.
However, it is very easy to overemphasize the management part, because there are always things to improve, strategies to draft and structures to adapt. A true shepherd does not forget for whom improvement, strategies and structure are developed: the security and the well-being of the whole flock. This is the big picture that I do not want to let go off. It was encouraging to hear that an overly romantic image of the pastor and the one-on-one time does not by itself adequately reflect all the real needs and challenges of any ministry.