Demand
Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 2:08 pm
The need to feed is always there. As a leader, there is a constant demand from others on my life. Sometimes this is expressed overtly, sometimes implied. Someone is always needing / expecting a word, a prayer, a listening ear, kindness, appreciation, gratitude, intervention. High output and low input brings a dryness of soul and a resentment towards demand and the people who bring them. I don't expect the demands to ever stop, nor do I want to stop being one through whom God can deliver some fresh bread.
I know I won't make it through the leadership journey unless I have some serious feeding going on for my own life. Nibbles and snacks won't do. I confess the lack of the in depth wrestling with the text and the intentional meditating on the words of life. My diet is not rich in His truth and if there is a slight famine in my soul, it's not for lack of Bibles or resources. The famine betrays my pride. My actions say that I believe I can survive on a diet only slightly rich in truth. If it's not going on inside of me, it won't be long until I am giving out of an empty well and, well, that won't feed the sheep.
Beyond being a healthy shepherd, yes we need to feed the sheep, Jesus tells us too, but we also need the sheep to feed themselve and each other. Pastoral shepherding is not just a one way street called give. Being a sheep is not just a one way street called take. Our lives need to model deep feeding, vulnerability in community, and sharing our abundance with the needs of others. Give a man a fish, he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish.....
I know I won't make it through the leadership journey unless I have some serious feeding going on for my own life. Nibbles and snacks won't do. I confess the lack of the in depth wrestling with the text and the intentional meditating on the words of life. My diet is not rich in His truth and if there is a slight famine in my soul, it's not for lack of Bibles or resources. The famine betrays my pride. My actions say that I believe I can survive on a diet only slightly rich in truth. If it's not going on inside of me, it won't be long until I am giving out of an empty well and, well, that won't feed the sheep.
Beyond being a healthy shepherd, yes we need to feed the sheep, Jesus tells us too, but we also need the sheep to feed themselve and each other. Pastoral shepherding is not just a one way street called give. Being a sheep is not just a one way street called take. Our lives need to model deep feeding, vulnerability in community, and sharing our abundance with the needs of others. Give a man a fish, he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish.....