"Thank You For Your Service" Covers More Than You Think

Buford M. Appleby, Veteran WWII

I want to begin by saying to all Veterans . . . "Thank You for your service."  I say that with sincerity of heart. My family has a long history of service of which I am proud. Members of my family have served in every generation from the being in the Continental Army during the War for Independence and then in every succeeding war to the present. Others served in peacetime . . .  but all served. But it is to those now living among us I say, "Thank you for your service."

Listening to a friend talk about Veteran's Day and his own coming home from Vietnam in 1970 I got to thinking about veterans both past and present. 

On Memorial Day we celebrate the shortened lives of our soldiers, sailors and airmen who gave their all in defense of this nation. Veteran's Day is the day that we celebrate and thank those who served in this nations defense. 

As he spoke there was line that jumped out to me about veteran's in general but I suspect Vietnam veterans in particular. As he spoke of the difference between Memorial Day and Veteran's Day he said something to the effect of, "Some served and gave their all and others served and came home with their memories . . . but all served.

It was the pathos in his voice when he said "Came home with their memories" that struck me.  My own father, a WWII veteran, would sometime get that strange far away look in his eyes when he went back to those days in his life. He would frequently say to me, "Be nice to people . . . . you don't know the load they are carrying." I sometimes wondered if he wasn't speaking from his wartime experience.

I have some thoughts that I want to share:

There is a sense in which all those men who went to war not only faced death but died. Some died from the bullets and the bombs (those we celebrate on Memorial Day).  Many others who survived the physicality of war but a part of who they were when they first put on that uniform had died somewhere between then and their honorable discharge. They did not come home the same people that they were when they left for the battlefield.

 Oh, they were still Sons and Daughters, Mom’s and Dad’s but not the ones who went marching off to war. Some say that war made them “grow-up” in a hurry; others became cynical; a few became psychotic; others rediscovered their God . . . . . but all were changed in some basic ways. To be sure they came home and tried with all their strength to step back into the life they had before the “War” but some have been able to do so. 

For those with a strong moral ethical core already in place the effect was minimal. For the rest, it really did change their lives. Those who suffer severely we identify as having PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) . . . . .PTSD is a mental health condition that's triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it.  

I am here to tell you that you never get over it . . . . PTSD like grief never goes away. To people suffering from both of these the words , “just get over it” can be infuriating. If they could, don’t you think they would. I don’t pretend to know why we can’t just “get over it” but, I know neither PTSD or grief work that way. You don’t get over it and time does not heal it . . . . you just have to push through it. 

Veterans Recognized in Church

It is always there lurking in the background for some and ever on their minds for others.  The flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event are burned into the subconscious for all but for some it is an ever present companion. Most people who go through traumatic events may have temporary difficulty adjusting and coping, but with time and good self-care, they usually get better others are not so fortunate. 

What I am trying to say is, that just because a veteran was not killed in battle doesn’t mean that he/she didn’t give their all. In point of fact all of them are still giving. Not everyone can compartmentalize their lives. They don’t have a box in which to store those horrific memories. They don’t have a little pocket that they can put their troubles in or the pocket they have is too small.

Homeless Veteran

So on Veteran’s Day thank a Veteran for his/her service. But more importantly do it every day as you cross paths with a veteran. 

Folks, I know it is trite, but, “Freedom isn’t Free!”  I will add that it cost those who defended ours far more than you can know for longer than you can imagine. As you thank them keep in mind some of them paid a high price and some are still paying for rendering that service. And remember: Along with that immaculately dressed veteran who stands up in church to be recognized on Veteran’s Day as we proudly sing the “Salute to the Armed Services Medley” is the homeless bearded guy living in a public park might well have paid a mighty high price to help preserve our freedom.

BTW - I am not offering advise regarding PTSD because I believe that every single case of PTSD has a different genesis and different expression depending on the core person of each individual experiencing it. 

It Was Never About The Game

I remember seeing on television either in a commercial or a news item a series of pictures of the same man with his wife attending a professional football game over a number of years. Actually, it was more than just a picture. It was a series of photographs the shows them aging as the years passed and they sat in the same seats the same ball game. Clearly season ticket holders.  

In the first three or four photographs both the husband and the wife were smiling and pointing and happy and even appeared have aged very little. The next-to-last the photograph showed the couples together the man clearly was ill but still they were laughing and they were smiling as they watched their favorite teams play. Then in the last frame the man was not in the picture. The wife was in her usual seat watching her favorite team but is this photo the smile was not present. She seemed disinterested in watching the game or even being there in the first place.

I was talking with a friend who like myself had recently lost their spouse about the fact that so many things that I used to do did not appeal to me as they once did. I didn't seem to have any interest in eating, going anywhere or even doing anything. Remarkably, she said to me that she was experiencing the very same thing. There’s something strange about routines and that is they are not as routine as perhaps we might think. The places we go and the things that we do have a meaning beyond the place on the thing itself. Something else gives them meaning and purpose.

I remember Susan and I always talked about the fact that we had neither one ever been to the Grand Canyon. It was something we wanted to do and something we probably should have done but we didn’t. As I spoke with the lady mentioned above I related this failure to make that trip a reality. As I told her about it I said, “I believe that if Susan and I had taken that trip to the Grand Canyon I would have stood with her on the rim of the canyon and slowly taken in the scene unfolding  before us as I could.” Then I would have turned to her and said, “What an amazing and wonderful thing God has done in this arid land.” I think she might have replied, “Indeed, it is as awe inspiring as when we stood and viewed the three sisters in the Blue Mountains of Australia”

However, if I were to go there by myself today stand on the rim of that chasm in the earth as I surveyed it from one end to the other I would probably just say to myself, “It’s just another big hole in the ground.”

I remember hearing at more weddings than I’d like to admit the minister say to a young couple somewhere during the ceremony that now that they were husband and wife the joys of life would be doubled because there are two to share the joy. He would go on and say that because they were now husband and wife the burdens and sorrows of life would be more easily carried because there was now two to carry them. 

In the opening chapters of Genesis God says it is not good that the man should be alone. So he created woman to be alongside of man to make up what is lacking in the man. I think this goes to one of the reasons God created woman and brought her to man and declared that they are to become one flesh. God knew that that life is better when it is shared. 

Most of our lives are spent focused on the things that we do, the places that we go and the recreation in which we engage. However, while we are focused on things and places and activities something else is transpiring. And because this something else is happening quietly the places and things and activities have an importance beyond themselves.

With the passing of time we are going to realize that it wasn’t the games that we played and it wasn’t the things that we did go to the places where we went but it was the people with whom we did those things. At least I hope that's the case.

The truth is the day is coming for all of us as illustrated in that first paragraph about this old man and old woman that we will realize it was not the game but the people with whom we watched the game;  It wasn’t about the house we owned. It was the people who in it;  It wasn’t about the coffee we drank, but for whom you made and shared it;  It wasn’t all the work we put in at the office, but who was laboring along side of us; And, it wasn’t the dinners prepared for us, it was who brought you your plate.

It is important that we discover sooner rather than later that the time people give us is time in their life they will never get back. It is the people with whom we shared life that gave meaning to all those things we do. It is when the people with whom we shared life are no longer present that the things that we did together lose much of their value. They become memories to never be repeated. 

This became a reality to me when Susan, my wife a 54½ years took her Heavenly flight. It was then that I came face-to-face with a reality that much of what defined and gave meaning to my life gone. We had become what scripture calls one flesh and now a part of who I am tis no longer present with me. In a mysterious way when Susan left a great deal at what I did everyday for all those years no longer had significance or meaning.

You see it was not the game that we watched it was the fact that we watched it together and that’s true of every other activity that we shared. 

Because this is true I think it’s important that we learn early on in life that the most valuable thing we give to each other is our time. Time is the most valuable asset that we have. It’s the one possession that when we spend it we will never get it back. So we need to learn to value our time and the time others give to us. We must focus on people because relationships are the real value in life.

I have spent more than 60 years as a Baptist preacher/pastor and I have stood by with many a person as they lay dying and I yet to hear the first person say, “I wish I’d spent more time at the office.” Nope . . . .its all about the people in our lives and especially that special someone who gives our lives meaning.

Speak to be Understood Not to Impress.

A few years ago I was waiting to board a cruise ship in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. For some reason they had been late getting the ship cleared to disembark the folks just returning from the cruise just preceding ours and we had to wait outside th terminal. While there I struck up a conversation with a man who was a number of years older than myself. Turns out he was there with a group composed of the members of three synagogues from New York and New Jersey. 

Turns out, as we exchanged niceties, I learned he had several terminal degrees but was now retired from a career of teaching both Theoretical and Quantum Physics at some university. We had a marvelous discussion of just plain old every day things.

Later, once we were onboard and in our cabin as Susan and I were talking she said to me, “It was nice to have someone so willing and interesting to talk with while we waited.” I responded in the affirmative. Then she added, “He talked just like regular people.”

Now to give that context you need to understand that we have spent a large portion of our lives with academics who don’t seem to know that every language has a vernacular that enables us to converse with “ordinary” people - people outside of our area of expertise. In short she was saying he was not only a man of high intellect in his field but that he was also a man who could move easily with people who had not the foggiest of idea about the realm of study in which he had invested his life.

Contrast that with the young theologue from Baylor University who stopped by my office one day just to visit. He spent the first ten minutes using just about every theological buzz word I could imagine. I had the distinct feeling he was trying to impress me with what he learned at Baylor. At some point I remember saying to him, “You know we can go on speaking in theological jargon or we can actually have a conversation.” 

Here is my point, The old man I spoke with on the dock in Fort Lauderdale knew instinctively that I knew nothing about the field of his expertise so when I asked about what he did he told me and then went on to talk about thing ordinary people talk about. He saw no need to impress me with what I did not understand. You see over time he had added wisdom to knowledge. My young friend felt the need to display his newly obtained knowledge without realizing it was “old news” to me. I already new he was bright. I am happy to say that with time he also added wisdom to his knowledge.

In my world view it is the wise man who learns to communicate great thought in the vernacular.  Speak to be understood not to impress. The Apostle Paul managed in his day. I would rather speak five words that can be understood by all than use ten thousand words only a few will understand.”   

P.S. Try to listen more than you speak (try to understand). The world will not come to an end if the air is not filled with the sound of our voice waxing eloquent.

How Is Your Hospitality?

My friend, Bill Murphey, in his morning devotion pod-cast mentioned Hebrews 13:2 where we are told that "some have entertained angels unawares." He could have just stopped there because my mind was off to te races with this idea. 

The Greek word ἀγγέλους (angels) means "messengers." In vernacular language the word angels is a reference to the rank and file of the Heavenly host. In addition Scripture mentions three archangels, Michele, Gabriele and Raphael.   

It is used here in Hebrews 13:2 in the context of the Christian showing kindness to people that they do not know. I think narrowly understood “entertaining strangers” means demonstrating brotherly love in your treatment fellow Christians whom you do not personally know as is they were beloved family members. One way believers can do this is by pitching in to care for the needs of Christian ministers and missionaries, showing hospitality and entertaining them in our homes.  In a broader sense “entertaining strangers” could well mean anyone in need that you do not personally know. 

First-century accommodations for travelers were often unavailable, especially in smaller towns. If lodgings existed, they were typically expensive, immoral, and unsanitary establishments. It was much more common for travelers to stay in the home of a friend or family member.

The incentive for doing this is the fact that in doing so you may well be showing kindness to and angel (messenger) from God. One of the reasons for showing kindness to people who are essentially strangers to us, other than kindness is to be the rule in the believers life, is because in and amongst those strangers who come in and out of our lives God may very well have placed some of His angels. 

Now since some of these strangers you entertain might be messengers from God we must at least acknowledge that messengers are about the business of delivering messages. I think given the fact that ἀγγέλους are messengers sent from God it behooves us to pay careful attention to the strangers among us because God may well be saying something to us through those strangers about our faithfulness in the business of hospitality.  A kind of testing not to confirm what He already knows but to prompt us to be diligent. 

Have you ever done a kindness, shown hospitality, or rendered some sort of aid and then later wondered if, maybe you had just unbeknown to you at the time, the person you aided (extended hospitality to) was an angel of the Lord. If so, what did you learn?

Success In Marriage Begins At The Foot of the Cross

Just some of my mental wanderings this morning . . . .  I know, it is too long . . . . Yep, it is one of those never ending stories of Jesus and His love.  Hope these ramblings make some sort of sense to you . . . . they do me.

Ever since my dear Susan passed from this life to the next I have spent a lot of my time looking at the creation of man and the becoming “one flesh” in Genesis 1-2 with an eye toward how getting a good understanding of that event illuminates the whole of Scripture. 

Understanding how and why God created man in the first place will go a long way toward helping us understand where God is going with the human story. Our lives are indeed in His hands but they are there with purpose. In my mind that purpose is to bring us back to where we started . . . . namely, man’s pre-fall condition.

God has not changed His mind about mankind. God still wants fellowship with man; He still wants man in the Garden of Paradise; and, He still wants man there in innocence. To this end he set in motion His plan for our redemption.

I seems clear to me that when God says that man and woman become one flesh He is saying that they are no longer two free agents but they are a new living unit. I will say a great deal more about that down the road.  Suffice it to say that I have come to believe that a right understanding of the creation of man as recorded in Genesis 1-2 will shed a great deal of light on the rest of Scripture and what happens when one is reconciled to God and restored to his original state. The marriage sanctified by God becomes a reflection of God’s love.

Keep in mind Scripture states emphatically that God is love (the converse of that is not the case, i.e., love is not God). Scripture abounds in expressions of God’s love for his creation. Additionally God has a particular focus on loving Man. We are, if I Corinthians 13 is correct and it is, to both experience, reflect and demonstrate God’s work in our lives as He purposes. And that is where I want to pick up on the love that Susan and I shared.

David and Susan
December 23, 1966

Loving Susan came so easy to me. As time passed I realized fairly early in our marriage that the love we shared was exceptional. Over time that love grew deeper, stronger and more abiding.  I know as Dean Martin used to sing, “Everybody loves somebody sometime.” That may well be true for everybody else . . . . truth is I don’t know that everybody loves somebody sometime. I rather think you either love or you don’t love.  Real love, like God always finds away.

What I do know is that the love Susan and I shared was “deeper than the ocean and wider than the sea.” We had reached the place where we completed one another’s thoughts. We still felt that little tingle when we held hands and I so miss the way she would say, “I love you” with an ever so gentle squeeze of my hand. 

I’ve thought a lot about the love Susan and I shared over the years and how it developed and matured . . . . how it moved from the earthy to the heavenly. I am not sure the kind of love we shared with the depth of commitment it engendered is humanly possible. It is something that God does in us.  I have come to believe that God works in a handful of human relationships to demonstrate what His love looks like. 

I remember in response to a young man who asked what the secret to a long marriage was I said to him that , “for marriage to be what God intended it to be it has to be a threesome . . . . namely a man, a woman, and Jesus Christ.” I rather suspect that what Michael W. Smith wrote in his song “Friends” is true of marriage. “Friends are friends forever if the Lord's the Lord of them . . .  And a lifetime is not to long to live as friends.” Keep in mind that there was no life in man or woman until God’s breathe was breathed into them It is the Spirit that gives life and it 

Susan & David
in 52nd. year of a 54-1/2 year marriage

Don’t misunderstand, the love of which I speak is a reflection of His love . . . . . something akin to a display of the “Love of God dwell in you richly” to the point that it is viewable. God did not allow us to develop this kind of love for our own betterment, though it certainly worked out that way. I believe His purpose for our experience went beyond our redemption to a demonstration of how love is to work between a husband and wife and to reflect how the love of God works in ones' life.

However, for us our experience with God’s love in our shared life is the kind of love we have.  I say "have" because this kind of love never ends. It is akin to eternal life. The body dies but we live on.

What I do know is that I, for one, now understand better the meaning of Ephesians 3:18-19. . . . . I believe I have a better experiential grasp of “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.” Such love opens the door to so much richer an experience with the love of God and a fuller “measure of all the fullness of God.”

I have mentioned how as Susan and I looked back over our lives we came to see everything that happened from the day we were born until this present hour was choreographed by the hand of God. That process seemed to give positive meaning to both the good times and the not so good times. Perhaps that explains in part why Jeremiah 29:11 was her favorite verse . . . . .  “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.

So here is my “take away.” No one can have the kind of love that Susan and I shared except that love be born of the love of God. That does not mean that life is all giggles and smiles. In fact it may very well be just the opposite. It is a life filled with the experiences of both pleasure and pain; of gain and of loss; of want and of plenty; and just the every day verities of life. However, in all of that is a demonstration of the truth that Love never fails. 

I am grateful that God has allowed us to walk the journey with Him that has been ours. And, here is the best part . . . the journey continues as my dear Susan walks the streets of gold with our Lord Jesus and I walk the streets here below with our Jesus and I look forward to joining them on that walk there in Paradise. Truly one in the Spirit and one in the Lord.  

Let me make clear, what Susan and I share is a pattern for what others can have it is not a replication of what we have. Your experience with the love of God and how it finds expression in  your life as a couple (really a new living unit) will be colored by the specific purpose God has for your life but also how He determines to bring that purpose to completion in you. It will be uniquely yours. Remember, He has the right, the will and the power to use us as He chooses. Be grateful he does so within the context of Jeremiah 29:11. 

But regardless of the day-to-day details we all begin at the same place . . . .the foot of the cross. That’s where the real journey begins for all of us.

You say that sounds terribly exclusive and I tell you, “Indeed it is.” It is exclusive to God’s children . . . . namely those of us who by faith have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord.  You see this is the essential experience required to have such a relationship as Susan and I shared. It was a gift of God’s love to us and not us only but “unto all them also that love his appearing.”

When did I realize what God had been doing for the last 75 years of my life . . . like just about everything else in life not until it was taken.  I specifically learned two things:

First, until Susan left for Heaven I did not fully comprehend the height, depth and width of our shared love and how significant it was to who I am and who Susan and I together are.

Second, I learned something about the height, depth and width of God’s love expressed Calvary. God the Father and God the Son experienced something that day that they had never experienced . . . the pain of separation. I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus . . . . the one who died for me.

  

“I Have Found The One My Soul Loves.”

Song of Solomon 3:4 “I have found the one my soul loves.” Unfortunately to many people try to either make the Song of Solomon a strained allegory or an almost pornographic poem. It is neither. Oh, to be sure it has allegorical (probably better metaphorical) elements and it certainly expressive in it descriptive language. I see it as an effort on the part of Solomon to share the depth of the mutual affection between him and what I can only call the “love of his life.”

The New Testament speaks of love in three dimensions. 

• There is the passionate love which speaks of the physical splendors of love making. This is expressed by the Greek word eros (Έρως).

• Then there is affectionate love. This would be the love shared by friends. It carries the idea of being “Kindly affectionate toward one another.” This aspect of love would be expressed by the Greek word pheleo (φελαιο).

• The third expression of love is generally referred to as Godly love and is generally considered the highest level of love. This would be expressed by use of the Greek word agape (αγάπη).

I have mentioned those because the phrase “My soul loves” (הנשמה שלי אוהבת) seems to me in this context to include all of the above. Solomon, rather than starting at the lowest and working upward starts at the apex and then goes on to make all of the Greek ideas about love flow from what he might call “Soul Love.” 

In the phrase, “I have found the one my soul loves” the Hebrew word translated as “soul” (אוהב)  refers to the innermost core of the person. It I that which gives a person breath and life and is the seat of all emotions and passions. 

The Greek words for love look for precision while the Hebrew word for “love” is versatile and can refer to romantic love, familial love, and love from God and can represent all three rolled into one. Hence, the soul-deep love the woman is experiencing is the deepest possible connection and yearning one can feel. 

This “soul love” is what God intended when he instituted marriage and commanded that the man and the woman become “one flesh,” i.e., one being. “Soul love” is the most Godlike like love that humanity can experience and it is rare. 

It is this “Soul Love that is at the heart of Biblical marriage.  Both parties desire each other deeply. Both find rest and peace in no other person than their beloved. They are physically and sexually attracted to each other and freely and without guilt share and enjoy every part of the other’s body. “Soul love” turns experiencing the joy of a God-honoring expression of sexual love into a spiritual experience. 

The couple that possess “Soul Love” will always feel a hole in their heart that only the other person can fill and it is only when together do they truly feel complete. When they come together, the world disappears and troubles simply fade away. 

This is why when one or the other dies the remaining spouse cries out that something has been ripped from their soul. Something has. It explains why we dream of our beloved; why we cannot wait to see them at the end of the day; and why we smile when we see them as we wake each morning. 

When Adam first laid eyes on the woman he essentially said I am now complete and when death takes one of the partners they are no longer complete but following the resurrection He who began the good work in us will bring it to completion. Oh, what a glorious day that will be.

I have a feeling that when the surviving spouse dies it is going to be as if they both awakened in the morning and at the sight of each other a smile is born. So . . . . 

I will meet you in the morning by the bright riverside
When all sorrows has drifted away

I'll be standin' at the portals when the gates open wide
At the close of life's long weary day

I'll meet you in the morning with a 'How do you do?'
And we'll sit down by the river and when rapture of the plane is renewed
You'll know me in the morning by the smile that I wear
When I meet you in the morning, in the city that is built four square

I'll meet you in the morning with a 'How do you do?'
And we'll sit down by the river and when rapture of the plane is renewed
You'll know me in the morning by the smile that I wear
When I meet you in the morning, in the city that is built four square

So Your Pastor Retired . . . Now What?

I recently learned of a church, with which I am familiar, that even before its present pastor had left, albeit he had announced his retirement, had hired a “Christian” pastor search consulting firm to work with their church elected pastor search committee in locating a replacement for the retiring pastor.

Consulting with churches about finding pastors and other senior staff members is apparently a lucrative field. I came up with a list of 11 without any effort at all.

• Y Scouts
• Halftime Talent Solutions 
• Vanderbloemen Search Group
• Faith Search Partners
• Agora
• Recruiterie
• CarterBaldwin
• The Dingman Company
• True Path
• Shepherd's Staff
• Slingshot

Learning this raised a number of questions in my mind. The first question that came to mind had nothing to do with searching for a pastor. It was the idea that a company could be a Christian firm. It always bothered me just a little that we would identify for-profit companies as being Christian. I would personally prefer to refer to them as a firm owned and operated by Christians or perhaps a firm that caters to Christian people and churches.  Okay that’s out of the way now to the subject of hands. 

I must confess at the very beginning that I am pretty much old school Baptist when it comes to calling a pastor to a church. So, let me stay at the very beginning that my underlying presupposition in regard to the calling of the pastor is as follows: 

I believe that the Bible teaches that God calls, equips, commissions and assigns pastors to His churches. I also believe that it is not the job of the pulpit committee to find a pastor for their church. Their job is to find the man that God has already selected to be the under-shepherd of His church. I also believe that, regardless of the process, a committee comprised of spiritually-minded people will discover that God will reveal His choice to them with a remarkable clarity. 

Now, having said that I need to flesh it out just a little. I have an acute awareness that Scripture does not give a process for this. There are no specific instructions for the process a church uses when filling a vacancy in the office of the under-shepherd of the church. However that does not mean that the church can just choose any process to make that selection. Whatever the process of a church chooses for selecting under-shepherd it must meet certain criteria.

Clearly, it is not efficient for the church to act as a committee-of-the-whole. Therefore, the church should elect from among its body a number, chosen by the church, of spiritually minded people to serve as a pastor search committee. I would suggest that you will not find a better model that Acts 6 and the choosing of the original Deacons.  This would be a good model for this committee and how this process should work. It is the process used in Acts to which I speak and not the specifics. 

The basic requirement for such a committee is that it consist of people who are “full of the Holy Spirit” (spiritually minded) and of “good report” (have a good reputation both in and out of the church). Pulpit Committees, Pastor search Committees and Pastor Search Teams (as we are now calling them) above everything else you can say about them MUST be composed of people who are sensitive to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Remember, the committee is not trying to find a pastor for their church. They are trying to find the person God has already selected for that position. A committee attune to the Holy Spirit will know that person when they see them. Their spirit will bear witness with the Holy Spirit with unanimity within the committee. So when making the recommendation to the church the can say with honesty and integrity, "We recommend this person to be the next pastor of our church believing them to be God's person for our church."

As a practical matter the church should decide on the number of members for such a committee.  If a list is generated from which members are chosen that list should be twice the number needed. For example: let’s say the church decides on six as the number of people on the committee. Any list presented to the church should contain at least 12 names listed alphabetically. From that list church members will select eight names. The names selected shall then be listed in order of the number of times they were selected with the top six selections forming the committee and the two below that as alternates. 

Contrary to what most might think with the first responsibility of the pastor search committee is not to obtain a list of potential pastors nor is it to begin the process of screaming a list of potential pastors. The first responsibility of such a committee is to bring themselves together spiritually. This means meeting together to share experiences and prayer. Pray for one another; to pray for the guidance of the holy spirit; and to organize themselves as a committee. I recommend that the committee at least choose a chairman and a secretary to record what they do as well as a spokesperson to speak for the committee. It is my conviction that the committee when asked by a congregant about their work could always tell the truth I’m trust the people but when telling the truth and trusting the people they do it through a single spokesperson.

Now, let us suppose that as in the church mentioned in the first paragraph the committee decides that they want to employ an outside consulting company the help them discharge their duties regarding finding the under-shepherd for the church. The question that must be addressed is, what is the role that this consulting company will play in selecting the right person for the church? 

I would suggest that the only role of the consulting firm would be to narrow down the field of candidates to a group that fits within the parameters 1st Timothy 3:1-7. This could include things such as background checks regarding criminal backgrounds, financial responsibility, domestic stability, educational accuracy and other such items. All of this in aid of narrowing the field of candidates down to the qualities the enumerated in 1st Timothy.

I also want to point out that simply because someone has had difficulty in their past does not rule them out as being God’s choice for your church. Quite frankly, not very many of the Apostles could not pass muster based on the background checks that we perform today. Such a process does not make allowance for the redemptive and reconciliation priorities placed upon the church. Besides such reports contain a lot of inaccurate and in many cases just plain wrong material.  

For example, did the negative background data predate or post date the candidate’s salvation and calling to ministry. The committee must be very careful that they do not designate what God has cleansed as unclean or unfit (See Acts 10:9-16 ). The committee must always remember it is their responsibility to recommend God’s choice not their own personal choice for under-shepherd.

In addition the committee will want to hear personally from not about each candidate on their “serious” list concerning the following:

1. Their salvation experience
2. Their call to preach (Not just to “ministry.” Ministry is too broad for the under-shepherd)
3. The nature and role of Scripture
4. Church governance
5. Their stance on Moral issues of day
6. Here them in the pulpit and not just on a recording. You want to see them in a live presentation and get the whole context. 
7. Just about anything else you want to know about.

Remember, as a representative of both the Lord and His congregation you are interested not only in their answers but in how they answer and their body language as they answer. 

So tell me, what do you think?