Shepherd After My Own Heart: YHWH as Shepherd

[preacheral]

In the midst of trendy church leadership models it seems to me that recapturing the image of the shepherd is critical to the health and integrity of the North American church. I'm not sure which cultural critic said it but I wholeheartedly agree with the critique that christianity in America is 3000 miles wide and only one inch deep. I'm afraid that much of the shallowness of the American church stems back to the shallowness of its' pastors. I'm not just casting blame but am indicting myself as much as anyone else. We focus so much on the worldly aspects of ministry that many of us are not willing to do the more foundational job of shepherding. And yet what did Jesus instruct Peter to do? He said, "Feed my sheep". How clearer could Jesus have been?

There is a lot of pressure in today's society to conform to the model of pastor as chief executive officier or manager. I have some elders in my church who have literally told me that they like to "see me behind my desk" and "in my office" because it gives them a peace of mind that the "captain" is at the helm of the ship. I've tried to communicate that much of my most powerful ministry happens not behind a desk but out among the people but that message seems to go unheard by some. My challenge is to not simply live into the mold of others' expectations but to be true to what I know God has called me to do.

Professor Laniak's book is so densely packed with research and biblical information that I wish he would "unpack" these concepts a little more. I guess that's what I'm supposed to be doing as I apply these concepts to my ministry. The basic conception of "YHWH" or Yahweh as Shepherd is the foundational truth which undergirds every other conception of human leadership. Without God as the ulimate shepherd the analogy breaks down very quickly.

There is great comfort for me personally in the fact that it's Yahweh's church and not mine. One of the montras of my Doctor of Ministry intensive on the "Pastor As Person" and "Pastor As Leader" was "God is God and I am not". There is a lot of pressure both internally and externally to take ownership of things in ministry that in reality I have no control over. I feel like I am constantly reminding folks about my limitations as a pastor. I think many parishoners have ceded too much of the responsibility for their own and their families spiritual development over to the church and its leadership. I think an important aspect of being a faithful "under-shepherd" is pointing them again and again back to Yahweh as the true Chief Shepherd of their souls. They must be willing to wrestle with that primary relationship before any real spiritual growth will begin to take place.