Pastors and church leaders will ALWAYS have to deal with distractions…
ALWAYS!
I was reading Romans 3 the other day and had to stop and really reflect on Romans 3:8…
STOP!
People were actually attacking the Apostle Paul! They were slandering him…taking bits and pieces of what he said, twisting his words and then attacking him through a lens of superiority. (I am SO thankful the world has changed so much in 2,000 years!) :-)
Here’s my question…what if Paul had simply allowed himself to get caught up in the moment rather than keeping his eyes focused on the mission?
Honestly, it’s a scary thought…
He would have dedicated a very unhealthy amount of time arguing with people who were going to hate him anyway…and in so doing may not have written Scripture and/or planted the churches that he did.
However, he was dedicated to the mission and not the moment. He went on…he didn’t allow others to distract or discourage him…and today we are still seeing and talking about his ministry NOT because of his obsession with the moment but rather his intense and focused dedication to the mission.
Church leader…let me say it again…it’s not about the moment, it’s about the mission…stay focused.
People are going to attack you, misquote you, misunderstand you…it comes with the territory. AND…if you obsesses over them you will lose sight of HIM (JESUS) and what He wants for your life and ministry!
Who has Jesus called you to be? What has Jesus commissioned you to do? Fight to keep your eyes FOCUSED on HIM and HIS mission…I can promise you that there is both greater joy AND greater reward in doing so.