Drawn Swords/Help, Lord!

October is Pastor Appreciation Month. In honor of ministers, this month will feature true stories from the pens of pastors.

Excerpts taken from the book How to Pastor and Live to Tell About It, c. 2023, https://www.amazon.com/How-Pastor-Live-Tell-About/dp/195530940X/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=roberta+sarver&qid=1681164242&sr=8-1

One young pastor learned a valuable lesson about taking time to pray through a difficult situation. Here are his words:

I was full of zeal and enthusiasm as I entered the ministry as an associate pastor. After the initial period of cooperation and camaraderie with the senior pastor, tensions came into our relationship. Regrettably, many in the congregation chose sides.

Fortunately, I had a good friend who was a neighboring pastor. Upon learning of the tensions in our church, he recommended the book A Tale of Three Kings by Gene Edwards. I read through it and wept under the weight of conviction. I realized that I was in grave danger of having a heart like unto Saul’s rather than having a broken and contrite heart like David’s.

Many years after having to work through the strained relationship with a fellow pastor, I was in an emergency meeting with several colleagues concerning an urgent matter that had the potential for a major division in a rather large ministry. Our boss had heard some things about me that were not true. He was convinced of his position and his words were strong and harsh.

He asked me to defend my position after I simply answered “no” to his question, “Are these things true?” I did not give any further explanation, nor did I strike back in any way. After more difficult conversation in the presence of my friends, I simply asked to be excused. Time went on and I told no one, not even my wife, about the encounter in the boardroom that day.

About a year later it was revealed who had actually said the divisive thing that I had been accused of saying. My boss came to me with a broken spirit and made a humble apology. He also apologized to the rest who were in the meeting that day.

An interesting footnote to this story took place about seven years after the incident.

My boss used this story as an illustration in a sermon and once again took the humble approach. He admitted how wrong he had been and how badly he had hurt me.

A young lady who heard that message went to my wife and mentioned the incident to her. My wife had no idea what she was talking about. Why? Fortunately, I had told no one.

One of the lessons I learned was to be slow to speak, and “if someone throws a spear at you, verbal or otherwise, do not extract it from the wall behind you and throw it back.”

How about you? Have you seen a situation where church leaders handled a volatile situation wisely? Use the comment box below to tell us. Please keep comments kind.