THE PASTOR’S SOUL
The call and care of an undershepherd
By Brian Croft & Jim Savastio
EP books, 154 pages, £6.99
ISBN 978 1 783 972 388
Church leaders need to look after themselves. Unless they do, they personally, their families and their churches will suffer.
This is a fine ‘how to’ book on this matter from two US Southern Baptist pastors of experience. There are 15 chapters, divided into four sections, and each man takes on two sections. Some books on the subject could almost be secular as they major on time management and the need for holidays (I almost wrote ‘vacations’ there – help!). What I liked about this one is that while not neglecting these necessary nuts and bolts, this book is God-centred and emphasises the minister’s walk with God.
Acts 20
The opening section is rooted in Paul’s words to the Ephesians’ elders in Acts 20. Pastors are to take care of themselves as men in union with Christ who are his ministers, in order to have a clear hold on doctrine and take care of the flock. The second section explores the call to the ministry. There must be an internal call which is a God-given desire to do the work combined with a conviction that he has been gifted and empowered by the Spirit. This must be affirmed by a local church which r e c o g n i s e s before God that the man is spiritually qualified to be Christ’s under-shepherd. The third section concerns the spiritual care of a pastor. He must receive the public means of grace by truly participating as a member of the church. He must embrace the private means of grace in his own times with God.
A pastor must also take care of himself physically. The last section addresses this. Here there is lots of advice, not least concerning the fact that many US pastors are obese! The stand-out chapter for me in this part of the book strays back into the spiritual area. It concerns the need for periods of silence in a pastor’s life. Many church leaders use people, noise and business to avoid confronting their own inner inadequacies and fears. Because of this we tend to have ministers who are ‘unreal.’
The book is practical, challenging, spiritual and is well worth reading by any church leader, no matter how experienced.
