Friday, May 2, 2008

Please, Please, Pray for Pastors!

Jeremiah 2:8 The priests said not, Where [is] the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after [things that] do not profit.

More than ever, pastors, priests, spiritual leaders today need the prayers of believers! You may have noticed that today's headlines and television news stories are full of priests, pastors, and spiritual leaders that have been deceived by the enemy in commiting every kind of vile, wicked act that one can and cannot imagine. The spiritual leaders of Jeremiah's day very much ressembled the spiritual leadership of our day. The prophet Jeremiah points out in the above chapter that when a nation is defiled and turns its back on Almighty God it is simply following the wayward paths of those in spiritual leadership.

What happened? How did many of America's pastors, priests, and spiritual leaders harden their hearts toward the things of God? Take a look at these frightening statistics about today's Pastors' Relationship With the Lord:

· Seventy percent of pastors do not have a close friend, confidant, or mentor.
· Ninety-five percent of pastors do not regularly pray with their spouses.
· Eighty percent of pastors surveyed spend less than fifteen minutes a day in prayer.
· Seventy percent said the only time they spend studying the Word is when they are preparing their sermons.

· Almost forty percent polled said they have had an extra-marital affair since beginning their ministry.

As you can see, many spiritual leaders today fail to daily build up their inner, spiritual man. Thousands may not have fallen to immorality but are leaving the ministry in droves defeated, depressed, and dejected. What can you do? What can I do? It's simple...pray!

As a pastor, I ask that if you are in my flock to please keep me and my family in your prayers. Like other pastors, I sincerely need them. If you are reading this blog and you have a pastor or know friends or family that are in spiritual leadership, please pray for them daily. Listed below are ways you can pray. Your prayers will make a difference...not just for that pastor and his family, but for our nation. Any nation always goes the way of its spiritual leadership. Pray, pray, pray!
  • Pray that your pastor find other pastors who he can enter into covenant with. This should be a mutual, trusting relationship; where he can openly talk and pray for each other, without fear that the other pastors will gossip about you. Ministers often live lives that are very lonely. Finding others whom you can build relationships with will help alleviate the stress and loneliness of being a pastor.
  • Pray that your pastor will get into relationship with a mentor. We all need help from time to time, maybe even more so when we're in the ministry. Pastors need someone who has the wisdom, experience, and hopefully the anointing to minister to him or her as a pastor.
  • Pray that your pastor falls in love with studying the Word of God. Pray that he or she will take time to study, go to conferences and seminars as well, where he or she can receive ministry and encouragement.
  • Last, and most important, pray that they spend time in the presence of the Lord. I have noticed very clearly in my own life that the more time I spend in the presence of the Lord, the easier it is to deal with the difficult people in my life. When we pray and worship, we receive from God. We are strengthened, we are lifted up, we are emotionally healed, and the burden is taken off of our shoulders.

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