"We are shepherds"

[nschatz]

“When I inquired among the Bedouin about the herder hierarchy, they always answered simply, ‘We are shepherds.’� (232)

It never occurred to me that herds have a hierarchy. But that must be true. I always envisioned shepherds being small-town people who manage herds of 50-150 sheep. That’s the equivalent to assuming that everyone who goes by the title “pastor� is a small-town pastor of a 50-150 person parish. This is far from the truth, as a “pastor� could be a denominational leader, have a role specifically with youth or groups ministry, or a hundred other focuses.

But what I appreciated the most was reading that everyone Taniak interviewed preferred to be called a shepherd, and that they spent time every day with the animals no matter how high up the org chart they went. The lesson is that a shepherd has to be around sheep, otherwise he isn’t a shepherd; he is something else.

Reflecting on my own pastoral experience, I started out as a solo pastor of a very small church. Then after moving to attend seminary a church of 250 hired me as a Family Pastor. Now I work as an Executive Pastor in a church of over 1,000 weekly attenders. Although my daily responsibilities and large roles have drastically changed with each move, my favorite part of pastoring is being with people. I hope that never changed. It’s the bread and butter of doing ministry and building a healthy church.