In Robert Banks’s groundbreaking book, Redeeming the Routines, he identifies the enormous gap between belief and everyday life. He points out that this gap shows up in ten worrying ways:

1. Few of us apply or know how to apply our belief to our work, or lack of work.
2. We only make minimal connections between our faith and our spare time activities.
3. We have little sense of a Christian approach to regular activities like domestic chores.
4. Our everyday attitudes are partly shaped by the dominant values of our society.
5. Many of our spiritual difficulties stem from the daily pressure we experience (lack of time, exhaustion, family pressures, etc.).
6. Our everyday concerns receive little attention in the church.
7. Only occasionally do professional theologians address routine activities.
8. When addressed, everyday issues tend to be approached too theoretically.
9. Only a minority of Christians read religious books or attend theological courses.
10. Most churchgoers reject the idea of a gap between their beliefs and their ways of life.

“At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!'” (Luke 1:39-45)

When I grew up in church, I was taught that God was the starting point of the worship. Our gatherings began with God’s invitation (call to worship) to which we responded with silent prayer. God announced His blessing to which we responded with an AMEN and a praise song. The rest of the service went on like that: God speaks, we respond.

This pattern is, I believe, rooted in both creation and in our own DNA. This world, and humans, were designed to respond to God’s gracious self-disclosure. As we experience God’s greatness or goodness, that experience provokes a response within us: wow, thank You, awesome, yikes, oh my, etc. Continue reading ‘Worship starts with God’ »

“For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ (Matthew 25:42-45)

“For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ (Matthew 25:42-45)

ARTICLES IN THIS SERIES
1) The Meaning of Pastoral Care
2) The Methods of Pastoral Care
3) The Purpose of of ‘Home Visiting’
4) Developing Effective Pastoral Care

BUILDING SOMETHING GOOD WILL TAKE TIME
Developing effective pastoral care in the church is somewhat like the challenge Jesus faced when He came to earth and needed to raise up missional leaders for His kingdom movement. His approach was to prayerfully select a few potential leaders and fully invest Himself in them, training them to become the leaders they needed to be. This model of equipping disciples to be leaders is the basis for leadership in the church in general. I would also use this model for raising up pastoral care leaders in the church.

This will take time. We cannot just design a complete model and implement it. In the beginning we may not have enough people willing to serve in pastoral care. Some may not realize their gifts. Some may have been burned in previous pastoral roles. Some may lack confidence. Most will need training. We cannot rush this. Better to start with a few and do the job well, rather than push people before they are ready. Continue reading ‘Pastoral Care in the Church (4)’ »

ARTICLES IN THIS SERIES
1) The Meaning of Pastoral Care
2) The Methods of Pastoral Care
3) The Purpose of of ‘Home Visiting’
4) Developing Effective Pastoral Care

INTRODUCING THE HOME VISIT
Our church tradition has long encouraged the ‘home visit’ as a model of pastoral care. According to the original church order (it is changed today): ‘Pastoral Care shall be exercised over all the members of the congregation. The minister of the Word and the elders shall conduct annual home visitation.’ Family or house visitation was when teams of two elders would personally visit the home of a church member or family to discuss the spiritual vitality of their Christian life and the life of the church. A home visit was intended to strengthen the spiritual lives of the congregation, to challenge their worship and witness or service, and to promote and encourage the fellowship or communion of the saints in the church.

BENEFITS OF THE HOME VISIT
The home visit could be very positive and encouraging to both the family and the church — when it was led by gifted Elders, when it was well-received by the members, and when the relationship between church and family was positive. Under these conditions, the home visit had some benefits, such as: Continue reading ‘Pastoral Care in the Church (3)’ »

ARTICLES IN THIS SERIES
1) The Meaning of Pastoral Care
2) The Methods of Pastoral Care
3) The Purpose of of ‘Home Visiting’
4) Developing Effective Pastoral Care

EARLY CHURCH METHODS OF PASTORAL CARE
We do not know all of the ways that the early church cared for God’s sheep (Acts 20:28). But we do catch a glimpse of some of their methods. In the first decades after Pentecost, pastoral care had to evolve with the expansion of the church. With the explosion of growth on Pentecost, a pattern of care and sharing emerged. Along with their mutual worship, learning and fellowship, they also shared resources so that everyone’s needs were met (Acts 2:42-47, Acts 4:32-37). When a concern was raised about the Greek widows being overlooked, the apostles put in place a “care team” of qualified disciples to look after the food distribution (Acts 6:1-6). The church leaders were urged to teach and equip disciples in the Jesus Way, and also to discipline those who were straying away from Jesus (1 Corinthians 5). The churches took up benevolence offerings to help other churches (2 Corinthians 8:1-7,18-20). Continue reading ‘Pastoral Care in the Church (2)’ »

ARTICLES IN THIS SERIES
1) The Meaning of Pastoral Care
2) The Methods of Pastoral Care
3) The Purpose of of ‘Home Visiting’
4) Developing Effective Pastoral Care

RETHINKING PASTORAL CARE
If you’ve been raised in the church, you’ve heard of ‘pastoral care’. Most often the term is associated with the work of the ‘pastor’, the ordained leader in the church. Sometimes it is also connected to the work of the elders, also ordained leaders in the church. My conviction is that we have narrowed the meaning and impact of pastoral care by limiting it to the pastor(s) or to the annual visit of the elders in the church.  I want to expand how we think about pastoral care in the church, to make it more comprehensive and more effective.

THE MEANING OF PASTORAL CARE
The root meaning of the word pastor goes back to the Greek word ‘poimen’ meaning shepherd. This word was one of three words used by the early church to describe the church leaders: elders (prebyteros), overseers (episkopos) and shepherds (poimen). These three words were interchangeable, different ways of describing the person and their position/task in the church. Continue reading ‘Pastoral Care in the Church (1)’ »