Looking for Ordinary Pastors
Aaron Knapp, a student at Moody Bible Institute and a summer intern on our fields in Watersmeet and Bruce Crossing, MI first made me aware of D.A. Carson’s book about his father, titled “Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor.” He provided a link to “Thoughts, Unleashed!“ Here are some of the quotes from the book on that web page that caused me to buy it and start reading it:
Some pastors, mightily endowed by God, are a remarkable gift to the church. They love their people, they handle Scripture well, they see many conversions, their ministries span generations, they understand their culture yet refuse to be domesticated by it, they are theologically robust and personally disciplined. … Most of us, however, serve in more modest patches. Most pastors will not regularly preach to thousands, let alone tens of thousands. They will not write influential books, they will not supervise large staffs, and they will never see more than modest growth. They will plug away at their care for the aged, at their visitation, at their counseling, at their Bible studies and preaching. Some will work with so little support that they will prepare their own bulletins. They cannot possibly discern whether the constraints of their own sphere of service owe more to the specific challenges of the local situation or to their own shortcomings. Once in a while they will cast a wistful eye on “successful” ministries. Many of them will attend the conferences sponsored by the revered masters, and come away with a slightly discordant combination of, on the one hand, gratitude and encouragement, and, on the other, jealousy, feelings of inadequacy, and guilt.
Most of us-let us be frank-are ordinary pastors.
Dad was one of them. This little book is a modest attempt to let the voice and ministry of one ordinary pastor be heard, for such servants have much to teach us.
Here is another one:
Tom Carson never rose very far in denominational structures, but hundreds of people … testify how much he loved them. He never wrote a book, but he loved the Book. He was never wealthy or powerful, but he kept growing as a Christian: yesterday’s grace was never enough. He was not a far-sighted visionary, but he looked forward to eternity. He was not a gifted administrator, but there is no text that says, “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you are good administrators.”
Are there such ordinary pastors today? Faithful men and their wives who love the Book and love the flock? Who serve without desire for recognition or reward other than from the Savior they serve? Who “plug away at their care for the aged, at their visitation, at their counseling, at their Bible studies and preaching?”
Many such faithful “ordinary” pastors exist in this country. I am thoroughly blessed to serve just such a company of men and women. Dr. John Koessler, head of the pastoral department at Moody Bible Institute, called them the “Green Berets” of home missions, going to the most challenging of settings. They are Village Missionaries, serving in the country communities of the United States and Canada.
One such couple, a young couple, is Phil and Valorie Rownd, who have served in Pickstown, SD for seven years. Read what Phil and Valorie wrote on their seventh anniversary in Pickstown:
Why God Kept Us in Pickstown for Seven Years
On February 18, we completed our seventh year shepherding this little South Dakota town. I humbly admit that we don’t have a whole lot to show for our work. Most of the people we have led to Christ have gone to be with Him in Heaven, or else they’ve moved to another community. Seven years ago, there were 22 of us. Today there are 42. We haven’t even doubled. After seven years, I expected more, and I have asked God about that. But the Lord has been more faithful than we realize. He has been faithful to the small number of folks who have lived here since the dam was built fifty plus years ago. There aren’t many of them, but their heavenly Father loves them and He has given them a church and a pastor. Then there are all those other 150 people who occupy the houses around here. Pickstown really isn’t a tight-knit community like some small towns. Most people come here for a while and then they die or their work takes them down the road. Either way, most folks don’t stay here for more than 5 years or so. Pickstown is just a brief stop on the greater course of their life. But in God’s great wisdom and love for sinners, He makes sure this is a stop that counts. He gives them an opportunity to believe the gospel and be built up in the faith before they leave Pickstown, either for Heaven, or for some other community where lost people need to hear about the Savior. I am humbled by the phone calls and letters from former Pickstowners who have moved to other South Dakota villages, across our nation, and even to the other side of the world-and God is using them to lead lost people to Jesus! WHO BUT GOD can measure the impact of your prayers for this town?
Listen also to what they have to say on this video.
Please pray for Phil and Valorie that they might continue to persevere faithfully. Halfway through Carson’s book, I am learning that his dad battled with discouragement and despair. Pray that our couples would know just how much God appreciates their faithfulness and they would be encouraged. After all, Jesus went to a little place! Pray that God would call many more couples like the Rownds to go to places no one else will go.
