Recently I read an article in which the author talked about a concept he called “The Invisible Pastor.” I am not sure if this was his original idea or someone else, but I found several similar posts online. 

The basic concept is that the pastor should not be the name and face of a Church. Far too often, the preacher in a Church is more widely known than any other person. They have websites, book deals, speaking tours, and a personal brand.

The flip side of this behavior is that the Church people fade into the background and become invisible. The people who do much of the work of ministry. The sound people, greeters, childcare providers, teachers, elders, deacons, cooks, and children’s ministry leaders become invisible.

How about instead, the Church let the people who make up the body of Christ become more visible and the pastor invisible? How about those Christians who are always in the background share in the glory of the Lord?

Let the Church have the Children’s workers take center stage. Let them spotlight the greeters who are the first contact with the Church. Let them make the people doing the inglorious work of ministry each week more visible. And let the pastor become another worker whose face blends in with every else. 

This last week our Church hosted a Vacation Bible School with well over a hundred kids every night. There were dozens of outstanding workers in every area of the Church. They are the stars of this show.

Throughout the week, we made videos of all that we were doing. I do not appear in any of them. I want to be invisible and let the people who work hard for Jesus shine their light for all the world to see. They are the real heroes. 

I hate to disappoint people, but I am not a perfect pastor.

I continue to learn, but there are some holes in my Biblical knowledge.

My marriage has some great seasons and some rough ones, usually because of me.

I once thought I was a great Christian parent, and then my kids grew up.

I attempt to be a better people person and love the family of God, but some people bring out the worst in me.

My leadership in the Church often lacks the wisdom I should have at this age.

There are sins hidden in my heart that I wrestle with every single day.

My faith is growing, but my doubts and fears are sometimes more prominent.

I am a mess. But I am God’s mess.

As a pastor, I am not able to be a leader who is out in front with all the answers. I am not a picture of flawless faith for others to imitate.

My leadership in the Church is not an example of perfection but of grace. God loves me despite my sins. He is using me even with my weaknesses. And I hope to help build a community of faith-filled people who can be messy together.

I am not a perfect pastor, and I am not leading perfect Christians. I am a sinner saved by grace, trying to lead people in the Church who need that same grace. They will have to show me patience, mercy, and forgiveness, and I will do the same for them.

My four boys are all men in their twenties. I could not stop time; they rushed into adulthood before I wanted them to. Now they are in God’s hands; I can only pray for them and give advice when asked. 

One of my continual prayers for my children is that God will allow them to connect with friends who also follow Jesus. Repeatedly I ask God to send them people who will help them walk on the straight and narrow. Each day my prayer pleads with God for them to have positive Christian influences in their lives. 

I cannot walk through this life with them as I once did, but I hope someone will come alongside them and help them lead a life of faith.

Some people appear to have it all together. Their life looks like it is near perfect. They believe in the right things, do the right things, and are blessed abundantly. These people have happy marriages, intelligent and spiritual kids, and always have time for their friends. Whenever you see them or spend time in their presence, you wish your life was more like theirs.

I am here to tell you that it is all an illusion. Smoke and mirrors. Sleight of hand.

After 30 years of being a Church leader, I have found that everyone, including myself, is struggling with something. Some people hide it better than others.

If I know anything about people, you are hiding something in your life too. There is that one topic you never mention. You avoid those places and those people with good reason. You have locked and bolted the door to that area of your life so the outside world does not see your struggles.

Admitting that other people might have issues is disappointing because we want the illusion to be real. If other people are perfect, people may assume we are too, and no one will ask questions. That way, we can ignore our problems and not take the necessary steps to solve them.

That will forever be known as the year that Covid impacted our country. It touched every individual in some way. As a Church leader, watching people’s lives change and reading their posts on social media was fascinating.

It was the year most people were confined to their houses with limited outside activity. These people began to post about how they enjoyed being less busy and not having such a frantic schedule. Others shared their love of more family time and how thankful they were feeling for the little things. Christians I know began sharing how much they missed Church gatherings and live worship. They appreciated online programs but were excited to be back together on Sunday mornings.

It has been three years since all that happened. Did it truly change your life? Are you back to the hectic pace with little time left for thankfulness, family, and Church?

I hated 2020 and all the changes it brought; still too bad that some of them didn’t last a little longer. 

No one likes to attempt something for God and have it fail. In fact, failure is a word I’m not particularly eager to use because even projects that do not achieve the desired result often still lead to someone growing through the experience. 

Let’s be honest, some events, programs, projects, and plans do not produce the results we wanted, and for lack of better terms, they are a failure.

I want you to know that this is fine. It is okay to fail, even in Church. Some things simply do not work out as we planned. 

It is only when we attempt something for God that we might fail. And I would much rather see someone crash and burn while doing ministry than to see them do nothing.

When things are not going as planned: Admit it, own it, don’t blame other people, and move on. Failure is not final.

If you aim to find the best show in town on Sunday morning, you will frequently move Churches. Somewhere there is always a worship program with better music. There will always be someone who is a better preacher. Another Church usually has better Children’s programs. 

If your goal is to grow, connect, serve, and develop deep relationships with people in a faith community, then almost any Church will work. 

The people who hop from Church to Church are looking for the right place to grow instead of the right attitude. Until that happens, they will continually move to the next best thing.

How would your conversations differ if you assumed that every person you talked to knew something more than you do? What would happen if you worked from the idea that everyone knows better than you do on some subjects?

Approaching people with an attitude that others have something they could teach you is a beautiful way to build connections. It demonstrates a level of respect for the person speaking. It shows that you value them and their life experience.

Going through life thinking you know it all and have little to learn is detrimental to your growth and keeps you from connecting to the people around you.

“Please tell me more about that?” may be the best question you can ask anyone.

I heard a preacher make this statement in a sermon. “The Israelites went to Moses with complaints about God. Moses went to God with complaints about the Israelites.” Then he explained that if you are going through a difficult season, be like Moses and not the Israelites.

While the statement is an oversimplification, it does capture the truth in a memorable way. Being unhappy is not an issue when life gets tough, and you walk through a season of pain. The concern is what you do with your unhappiness.

Do you talk to others and voice your struggles to them more than God?

Difficult times are inevitable; use them to grow closer to God and not create a division with him when you complain.

My fifth-grade Sunday school teacher asked numerous questions every week. If you didn’t know the correct answer when she called on you, the safe bet was to reply with one of the following: Jesus, the Bible, or Prayer. 

In working with adults and helping them become mature disciples of Jesus, I have found that those answers remain the “go-to” reply for most questions.

Are you growing in your faith? I am trying to read my Bible and learn more.

How is faith impacting your life? I am trying to pray more each day.

Where do you need to grow as a believer? I just need to trust Jesus more. 

The Bible, prayer, and Jesus are always safe answers when someone questions your beliefs. 

At some point, people need to move beyond those answers. While they are all true to some extent your entire life, there comes a time to get past giving easy answers. You need to go to a place where the gospel transforms you and not just informs you.  

For example, to answer this question, “Are you growing in your faith?” This would be a mature response, “Well, recently, I learned that I need to be more forgiving because Jesus forgave me. So last night, I told my brother I forgave him for hurting me twenty years ago. I have held onto that pain, and it was time to let it go.” 

The move from easy answers to complicated transformations is a move from a childlike faith to a mature one that demonstrates real spiritual growth.