encouragement

Train Yourself to Be Godly #7: The Encouragement of Fellowship

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*Training yourself to be godly may include fellowship and community.

It is a joy to be part of a church family that truly loves each other and cares for each other. There are some churches where people are truly experiencing fellowship as they encourage each other to become more like Jesus.

Hebrews 10: 19-25 gives a great description of what this fellowship can and should look like. It begins with a reminder that all believers are together in their relationship with Jesus. “We” can boldly enter the Most Holy Place – we – not just you, or just me, but the idea is that “we” can. And not just the people of the Old or New Testament. Not just Jews.

He is using inclusive language – as in “we are in this incredible journey of relationship with God together.” We are all on the same road to heaven, not on a bunch of unrelated individual roads or journeys, but we are on this journey of relationship with God through faith in Jesus together.

And then, in verses 23 -25, the author describes how we should be encouraging each other in our life with Jesus.

Verse 23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm…

Let “us” hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm. “Us”. We are not clinging to that hope – that life raft – by our self. Our hope in Jesus is not something we have to hold onto alone. We are invited to hold onto our hope in Him together!

Verse 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.

Let “us” think of ways to motivate one another. This may require a little creativity, we need to find ways of encouraging each other. The NIV says it like this: let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

The Greek word for “spur” actually means: provocation, stirring up, sharp disagreement. We are to provoke one another to good deeds.

So the NIV is right. A spur in the side of a horse gets it moving. A spur in your side from a Christian brother or sister may get you moving in the right direction as a follower of Jesus – provoking you to consider getting involved in acting out your faith. We are to stimulate our brothers and sisters in their journey with Jesus.

Our journey with Jesus was never meant to be a solitary voyage. I have a friend who loves canoeing. This summer, he went on a 10-day canoe trip, all by himself. While that is fun for him, that is not the right picture of the Christian life. The Christian life might be best pictured by a voyageur canoe, or those Chinese Dragon boats. It is many people working together and pulling in the same direction.

Verse 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another…

There are some who think they can have a personal faith in Jesus and a relationship with God, and they don’t need anyone else. That is not the picture of the Bible. We need to be intentional about meeting together. This is about more than joining others in a worship service but to meet together to encourage each other in our Christian life.

We need each other. We need to meet so we can spur each other on. We need to live life in connection with each other.

To encourage one another is to give one another courage. There are times one person has more courage than another. One person’s faith is stronger at one point than another. One person is discouraged or un-couraged and needs to be en-couraged!

Let’s finish with something practical. Here are some “Fellowship Questions” you can ask of each other when you meet with another believer. Move beyond the weather and sports and the latest hobby you are learning to finding ways of encouraging each other in our walk with Jesus.

1.         What have you been reading in the Bible lately?

2.         What have you been learning about your walk with Jesus?

3.         Do you have sense of how God is using you or wants to use you to love and do good deeds?

4.         Where are you discouraged or feeling down in your life?

5.         How can I encourage you or pray for you today?

Keep looking up,

Andy Wiebe

The Joy of Connecting with Teammates.

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I had the privilege this past week of spending a day with others who have a similar role as I do. We don’t actually work together on the same projects or in the same church, but we are all part of the same denomination functioning in the role of transition pastors. There is a special joy in connecting with people who know your role and the situations you face because they face those situations, too. In the past, I was able to connect with fellow rural pastors and pastors in the same region. We may not all serve the same church, but we can connect and relate to shared experiences because of our similar roles.

It may feel like getting to know and spend time with these teammates takes too much time or effort that could be used for other priorities, but I have personally found value in connecting with others who understand my roles.

They understand the frustrations and joys.

    When I met with rural pastors as a rural pastor, I knew that they understood what small-town life was like. They understood the realities of serving a smaller church. When I meet with transition pastors, they know what it is like to face church conflict and to try to mediate it. Transition pastors know what it is like to help churches, to fall in love with them, and then have to move on to a new assignment in a year or two.

    When you are talking with others who know your role, you can share jokes and stories that they understand. They are “in the know” because they do the same things you do. Other transition pastors know the frustration of churches that do not want to change, even though they know they need to. They understand the joy of a board catching God’s vision together as they plan vision and strategy for the church.

    They can provide ideas and advice.

    When I meet with transition pastors, I know they use similar tools and processes as I do in helping churches transition. Transition pastors know what it is like to help churches build on the past to look to the future. One of the benefits of my recent meeting with other transition pastors is to learn about how they handle particular situations. Most of them have more experience in this role than I do so I love to soak up ideas as they talk about their ministry.

    They can pray for me with understanding and clarity.

    One of the joys of meeting with others in similar roles is that we can pray for each other with an understanding of the situations we face. Often we don’t even have to finish our story and the others are already smiling or nodding or even crying as they have gone through similar situations. They can pray for me, and I pray for them, with clarity because we have seen very similar situations where we have served.

    I encourage you to find others who are in a similar situation as you. You need to find “your people” so you can have people around to encourage you and help guide you as you need input and wisdom from them.

    Keep looking up,

    Andy Wiebe

    We All Need Someone to Lean On

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    Many pastors are lonely. Many don’t have a team of staff to talk things through with. Recently I have again recognized the value of having other pastors to talk with and connect with. I have the privilege of being part of a few groups of pastors, but it has been a while since the one group has met and I realize I miss those get togethers.

    In 2023 Barna.com shared a poll that highlighted the loneliness and isolation of pastors. Their poll shows “these feelings have increased significantly since 2015 when 42 percent of pastors shared they either frequently (14%) or sometimes (28%) felt this way. Now, 65 percent of pastors report feelings of loneliness and isolation, with 18 admitting these feelings occur frequently.” (7-Year Trends: Pastors Feel More Loneliness & Less Support)

    As pastors, we need to take initiative to connect with others who understand what it its like being a pastor. Pastors can relate to us and pray for us in a way that others can’t. We all need good friends, and many of us have very supportive and encouraging families, but we do need to have other pastors in our circles too.

    Many denominations have regular gatherings for local pastors. Take advantage of those. These are people who are in your circles and understand your church dynamics. In some places, there may not be others in the same denomination nearby; instead, connect with other pastors in your community. I have benefited greatly from connections with pastors from other denominations. We have different theological stands on some issues, but we all deal with the same day-to-day struggles of working with people and trying to have the answers our congregation needs.

    One of the benefits of connecting with other pastors is that we can have people in our corner who understand us. Like any profession, it can be difficult to explain some aspects of being a pastor to others who are not. It is easier to celebrate and commiserate with people in the same field.

    Other pastors may also be able to speak into our lives, offer words of encouragement, or ideas on how to handle certain situations we face. This is valuable support that requires you to open up to others.

    Sometimes other pastors can help us develop our creativity as we hear of unique ministries or programs they run. We can help each other become better. Proverbs 27: 17 applies here:

    As iron sharpens iron,
        so one person sharpens another.

    Do not be satisfied with your loneliness. Find other pastors to connect with, and encourage them as they encourage you.

    Keep looking up,

    Andy Wiebe

    Leading Without Accolades

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    I remember a leader telling me that she was discouraged because she never heard from people if they appreciated what she was doing. We all long for approval and acknowledgement. We want validation because it feeds our desire for people to like us and like what we do. We need to keep leading even when the accolades are not freely given.

    The general population is not good at giving approval for something they expect. If we lead well in church, we will rarely get feedback because we are doing exactly what we signed up to do. We are leading in the way we agreed to when we took on the responsibility. Sometimes, when the verbal accolades are not given, we may be able to read the body language of the crowd to recognize their approval. If people laugh at a joke you shared in a speech, take that as an accolade. If they respond with clapping or raised hands during worship you lead, receive that as a sign you are leading well as they are responding physically.

    It is also important to recognize that people are more likely to give negative feedback than positive feedback. If there is absence of negative feedback, take that as a good sign. No feedback may mean that people are okay with how things are going.

    As leaders, we also need to learn to get our affirmation elsewhere. We cannot depend on the people we lead to be a gauge of how well we are leading. Instead, we need to be clear about what our role is and do it to our best ability. Yes, we love and need feedback, but we must learn to lead without it coming from the ones we lead. And then when we do receive positive feedback, accept it as a bonus rather than an expectation.

    Sometimes we can look at the success of our leadership and receive positive encouragement from that, but sometimes our leadership is not met with the success we long for. We may be doing it all right, but still have no success to point to.

    Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

    Galatians 1:10

    In Galatians 1: 10 Paul points out that our goal should be to please God rather than look for the approval of men. Yes, it feels really good and is affirming to hear the “well done” of people, but it is even more encouraging to know that God approves of us and our leadership. Some years ago, my leadership was challenged to the point that I ended up losing my position. This affected me deeply. It was incredibly encouraging when I was at a pastor’s retreat, and God used others to affirm His love for me. Three different times in those couple of days, God said to me, “You are beloved Son in whom I am pleased.” Once it was a strong impression in my mind and twice it was as different people prayed over me. The approval of God was worth much more than that of men.

    It is also valuable to recognize that anything good is done only through the work of Christ in us. 1 Corinthians 3: 7 points out, “So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow”. God equips us and invites us into leadership roles. Our first responsibility is to Him! As we serve in leadership, we ought to serve with a desire to please God first.

    When the accolades do not come, continue to lead as God has called you. Do your job well and do it for the Master who called you to that role in the first place.

    Keep looking up,

    Andy Wiebe

    Book Reviews: Andy’s 2023 Reading Experience

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    THE BIG PICTURE FOR SMALLER CHURCHES – by John Benton

    John Benton writes as the pastor of a small church, encouraging small churches that they can “thrive and survive as a small congregation”. He describes how there are certain things that can really discourage small churches while at the same time pointing out the benefits of small congregations in impacting people’s lives. He suggests there are five things that small churches can excel at, and if they do, they will have meaningful ministry:

    1. Quality Presence
    2. Quality Welcome
    3. Quality Teaching
    4. Quality Hospitality
    5. Quality Prayer

    And then he concludes with some ideas on how to fight discouragement in small churches. You will be encouraged to value your small church and make it the best small church it can be.