Let Down

Has something happened to you in the ministry by a peer that's caused you to feel helpless? That's not a good place to be in. No matter how you got there, you learn you have to deal with the situation. Many pastors have gotten a sharp reality check when it comes to dealing with their peers. We've all had friends we thought we could trust and then when we least expect it, they stab us in the back. As much as I hate to admit it, some in our profession have very little integrity. If they get in trouble, they will say and do anything to get a reassignment. Sadly, that's why most pastors feel alone and don't trust their peers. I'm sure there is more than one of us who has been led astray by a false report and has entered into a den of lions expecting a fold of sheep.

Pastors become victims more times than we realize. When we get in that place we feel life is unfair, our peers are untrustworthy, and we're constantly getting the short end of the stick. Then we feel we have to defend ourselves because of how terrible things were when we got there. We put our trust in our peers because they were supposed to be like us, but we forget that even in ministry it's often "every man for himself." We become apologetic for things we never did and get accused and ridiculed because of stuff that went on before our time. As I said earlier we feel we have to constantly explain why some of the things we inherited just won't go away and we hope someone will listen, but they usually don't. In reality we become victims because we can't change or explain why some things happened in our lives or what we inherited in ministry.

The truth is life sometimes is unfair and we can be victimized, but we can decide whether we stay victims or become victors. We can feel helpless and miserable or we can try to be strong and look up to the Lord. We learn that we cannot always control our circumstances or what went on before us, but we can control how we respond to them. American author and humorist of two centuries ago, Lewis Dunning, said: "Your living is determined not so much by what life brings you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens."

Every pastor at one time or another will be let down by someone they trusted in ministry. It's at that point you either let the Demas spirit get ahold of you or you realign yourself with your calling and purpose. Trust me, it's hard to serve the Lord when you lose faith in your fellow ministers. Position and placement mean very little to a person who has lost confidence in those he has shared moments with throughout the years. I have lost many good friends over the years who have fallen and never been restored. Some of them became victims of their own success and lost sight of the real goals set before them by the Lord. I've also seen others who never had the opportunity to advance or even start because another preacher misused his position of authority. They felt victimized from the beginning and that feeling never went away. Let us all realize we need each other not as critics, but as brothers and sisters of the faith, who will be truthful with one another, and not use a false report for self-gain.