Matt Henslee's Blog, page 7

As followers of Christ, we will necessarily be strangers in a crazy world that thinks wrong is…

As followers of Christ, we will necessarily be strangers in a crazy world that thinks wrong is right, but that doesn’t change our call to live like Christ, no matter the cost…and there’s a promise when we do!

Help us advance the Kingdom: https://plymouthpark.churchcenter.com/giving

Jesus is the living stone, our chief cornerstone, our foundation, and our eternity will be secure if…

Jesus is the living stone, our chief cornerstone, our foundation, and our eternity will be secure if we come to Him in faith. We see that as we study our text with a clear call to confess Christ as your Savior, the living stone, and He’ll become the cornerstone of your life.

Help us advance the Kingdom: https://plymouthpark.churchcenter.com/giving

The Bible is the means by which we grow up as Christians, as followers of Christ, called to be set…

The Bible is the means by which we grow up as Christians, as followers of Christ, called to be set apart not only from the unholy world around us, but also our unholy pasts.

Help us advance the Kingdom: https://plymouthpark.churchcenter.com/giving

Our new birth into a living hope isn’t willy nilly, nor can it be lost, but is as planned and…

Our new birth into a living hope isn’t willy nilly, nor can it be lost, but is as planned and secured as God is on the throne, and He has given us His enduring, everlasting Word to show us.

Help us advance the Kingdom: https://plymouthpark.churchcenter.com/giving

We are redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus, why? That we might be saved and bring glory to the…

We are redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus, why? That we might be saved and bring glory to the Most High God who loves us, saves us, and keeps us. We see that through the price Jesus paid and the planning that went into it. Don’t miss this one!

Help us advance the Kingdom: https://plymouthpark.churchcenter.com/giving

Pastoring Through the Dark Night of the Soul

The Dark Night of the Soul was written in the 16th-century by a Spanish mystic as a poem and treatise about the soul’s journey to union with God.

While the poem had less to do about life’s general difficulties, the popular use of the phrase has come to refer to such trials—a seemingly insurmountable amount of toil and trial that tempts us to despair at our circumstances and feel as though we have no hope in this world. It’s the feeling that the future is bleak and that our prayers to God are bouncing off the walls.

My past dark nights of the soul

I recall two times when I faced a dark night of the soul—one nearly 10 years ago and another about three years ago. The first was when, in the course of three days, we lost our first baby to miscarriage, I was given a three-month notice at my job, and the prospect of another position vanished into thin air.

Those are three days I’ll never forget. Our hopes and dreams of a child—gone. Job security—gone. Future plans—gone. In three days.

I had long preached of the goodness, love, and providence of God only to find myself crying and trying to pray to a God that—at the time—seemed bad, hateful, and distant. I went out for a run and for four miles said things to God that probably deserved a lightning strike right there in the middle of the trail.

Something happened at mile four, however, that I’ll never forget. A sense of peace washed over me. Suddenly, memories filled my mind of the various ways God had been good and loving and had acted providentially in my life.

From being adopted out of a drug and alcohol-filled home to being revived after drowning, memory after memory flooded my mind for about 10 miles. I came back home a different man. A better man.

God brought me out of that dark night (or dark run) of the soul to see His hand more clearly on my life.

Another dark night of the soul happened three years ago when I was in the middle of an awful situation. While our church was growing by leaps and bounds and people were getting saved, Satan was on the attack. He used the ungodly actions of so-called leaders to attack my family and me viciously, week in and week out.

We were lied to, stolen from, and verbally abused from day one. It was hard. I’d ask, “Why me?! What have I done to deserve this?! Why is this happening amid all the good you’re doing?!” I suffered panic attacks almost daily, never slept through the night, and got so depressed I chose to put away my guns.

It seemed as if every prayer I prayed bounced off the ceiling only to come back and taunt me. Eventually, the fog lifted and the Lord led me to Mayhill Baptist, where I continue to serve to this day—with joy, with a better understanding of people, and with a firm grasp on the never-ending love of God.

My current dark night of the soul

But what happens when you’re in a good place emotionally, physically, and spiritually, yet those around you are in the fight of their lives? In just a few shorts weeks, we’ve had people at my church lose loved ones, confess to adultery, attempt suicide, move away, quit, and more. It seems as if wave after wave has crashed against our church.

Every pastor knows these times will come. A member may face a terminal cancer diagnosis, a member may choose to end his or her life, and a member may lose a job. If you can think of the worst thing that can happen to one of your members, something even worse may stare at you in the dark of night.

The Scriptures call us to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. And if we have any heart at all, we’ll find the empathy and sympathy we have for our members is enough to keep us up at night as we pray through tear-covered faces on behalf of our people.

So what?

Whether you’re facing your own dark night of the soul, or members of your church are facing their own dark nights of the soul, I have four things that’ve helped me. I believe these may help you, too:

1. Pray – even if you don’t want to.

There are plenty of times you’ll find you feel like your prayers are bouncing off the ceiling. Don’t stop praying. He hears, He knows, and eventually, He will answer. There’ve been times when my prayer simply becomes me repeating the phrase “help me” over and over because I know the Spirit is interceding on my behalf (Romans 8:26).

2. Rest – even when you feel you can’t.

Go to bed, my friends. God isn’t taking the day off when troubles or trials hit, He’s still in control. You can rest securely, and if you rest, you’ll be able to walk through the dark nights far more faithfully by simply waiting on Him and relenting from trying to push through (Psalm 62:5).

3. Listen – don’t try to fix everything.

In counseling, it’s easy for pastors to be thinking through what we can say to “fix it.” So much so, as someone is talking, we’re often thinking about what we can say next. Don’t do this. Listen. Let them talk.

Often, the more they talk, the more they begin to see the best way forward. Other times, the more they talk, you’ll have a much better picture and understanding to give biblical guidance and counsel (James 1:19).

4. Get help – or at least be willing.

If you’re facing a dark night of the soul, don’t go at it alone. Reach out to trusted friends and confidants. My mentor is probably one of the biggest reasons I’m here today. Why? Because he listened well and guided me biblically. There’s also absolutely nothing wrong with also seeking medical help.

If you’re facing someone else’s dark night of the soul with them, don’t go it alone either. If you’re in over your head in counsel, be willing to refer them or see if you could—together—reach out to someone who can speak into the specific situation.

Glimmers of light in the dark night

Eventually, the dark night will lift for you or those you’re serving. Look for the glimmers of light along the way, cling to Christ, and encourage your people to do the same. I’ve faced some dark nights of the soul, and I’m facing some more as I stand in the gap for my church, but it’s worth it.

Because on the other side of them—when the light is the brightest—we get an even greater picture of the goodness, love, and providence of God.

Hindsight is, after all, 20/20.

When the Weight of Pastoring Seems Too Much to Bear

The best job in the world is being a pastor. But I also know there are times when it’s the worst.

I mean, if you want a job where everyone loves you and cheers for you, you might as well buy an ice cream truck and get started.

But for real, pastoring is awesome. You get a front-row seat to see the hand of God at work. You see people released from the bondage of sin, relationships restored, and lives changed or renewed by the gospel you declare.

But it’s also terrible. Why? Because you get a front-row seat to see the enemy at work. You’ll see him prowling about, looking for unsuspecting victims, and going in for the kill.

Marriages will be ripped in two, friends will become enemies, and you may even find your church body in tatters from Satan’s assaults.

It’s Awesome, It’s Terrible, and It’s Totally Worth It

If you’re relying on the awesome to outweigh the terrible to keep you in the fight, I hate to break it to you: it’s not worth it. But if you remember your calling (Ephesians 4:1-16), remember who you’re fighting (Ephesians 6:10-20), and remember Who’s fighting with and for you (Romans 8:18-39), it’s totally worth it.

You see, we pastors tend to put on a nice façade for social media. You see the good in comments like “great crowd today” or “we had four come forward to trust Jesus,” but rarely hear about the bad and the ugly. Pastors don’t post online about the terribly heavy counseling situations they have or members who are sowing discord.

And you know what? I get it. We want to put the best face our church forward, make the most of Jesus on our platforms, and avoid projecting an image of being a Debbie Downer. Plus, there are some things we simply can’t talk about.

In the Shadows of Ministry

There are counseling sessions where you learn a spouse is addicted to porn or struggling with suicidal thoughts. There are counseling sessions where you learn a husband beat his wife or vice versa. Shoot, let’s go all-in; there are times you discover a child has been sexually molested.

You don’t post about these things on social media or talk to your fellow church members about them, well, because you can’t. Beyond the fact that personally sharing some of these issues will make you so sick to your stomach, there’s the whole issue of confidentiality (of course, this doesn’t apply to you immediately contacting and cooperating with police and proper authorities for issues that involve crimes).

But let me let you in on a little secret. Are you listening?

In the shadows of ministry, He is there.

The Shadow of the Almighty

Fellow pastors, church leaders, and whoever else is reading this: when you seem to be in the darkest shadows of ministry when the weight gets too much to bear, you have to remember this. In fact, I encourage you to grab your Bible right now and underline Psalm 91:1.

The one who lives under the protection of the Most High dwells in the shadow of the Almighty.”

I don’t want to get too mushy and gushy here, but think about this. When you step outside today and see your shadow, where is it the darkest? That’s right—in the part closest to you. That’s what I think about when I remember I dwell in the shadow of the Almighty.

Yes, God is always with us…I mean, the Spirit indwells us! But when the shadows of ministry get darker and darker, realize that—in those moments—you’re the closest you can possibly be to the Almighty until you stand before Him in heaven.

Lean in and trust

Trust that God is going to bring sense to the senseless. Trust He’s going to give hope to the hopeless. And for crying out loud, trust He’s never going to leave or forsake you because in the darkest shadows of ministry, He’s right there by your side and is for you.

You see, since we pastors can’t discuss the specifics of the shadows we’re under, no one else truly knows the weight we’re carrying at any given time. But God—He knows. He cares, and He’s closest when you’re in the darkest shadow of ministry.

Take some time to reflect on this, and then do something for me. If you’re a pastor, take a moment right now to look for the first pastor on your Twitter or Facebook feed, pray for them, and send them a message of encouragement.

Church members, stop what you’re doing right now and pray for your pastors. Even if it seems like they have everything together, still pray for them.

They need it more than you’ll ever know.

If we are God’s children, born again into a living hope through the new birth, our regeneration…we…

If we are God’s children, born again into a living hope through the new birth, our regeneration…we are totally new, brand new––a totally different creation. Therefore, we are not to walk in our old ways, but in a new way. A better way. The holy way, which is the call from Peter as he continues his letter to dispersed Christians trying to pursue Christ amid immense pressure.

Help us advance the Kingdom: https://plymouthpark.churchcenter.com/giving

Why an M.Div. Helped Me Become a Better Pastor

My journey into the ministry came at age 16 when I helped start a contemporary worship service at another church near my home church in Grand Prairie, Texas. For a variety of reasons, it was an eye-opening experience.

At 18, I moved out and began pursuing my Bachelor of Arts at Dallas Baptist University while serving as the pastor of students and worship at a church plant that met in a funeral home.

I lost count of how many times I heard, “People are just dying to come to church!”

At 20, I was midway through getting my bachelor’s degree and serving at an established church in my hometown when I met a young lady who’d soon become my wife. While I’d gone to a Christian college, I was still largely unprepared for the challenges that would follow.

By 22, I’d graduated, gotten married, and was in between churches in towns where there were far more cows than people. One church had a mostly absent pastor, and the other had a pastor whose illness required I take on a largely interim pastor role.

I Was Treading Water.

I faced counseling sessions well above my pay grade, church conflicts threatening to split the congregation, and struggled to know how to preach longer than five minutes or so. (Though, to be sure, I don’t think any members complained about the last one.)

In a sense, I had no idea what I was doing. Each day, I just kinda “winged it” and went with the flow. I had to trust God to work perhaps more in spite of me than through me.

So I enrolled in Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary’s extension campus program in the hopes it’d give me some practical help in navigating day-to-day ministry.

It did.

Each day, it seemed I could put something I learned in class immediately into practice. I ended up managing to get through two semesters before the Lord called me away from the great republic of Texas to God’s country in Arkansas to be a student pastor.

I thought I’d taken my last seminary courses and was able to convince myself that was okay.

“I had a ministry degree,” after all, and simply believed I was done and could on without further education. However, the degree I had hardly prepared me for the day-to-day grind of ministry.

That church put me through the wringer, to be sure. The pastor was rarely around, I got chewed out for not being willing to take a young lady around town without my wife or another staff member, and we faced threats for aiming to racially integrate our youth group. For real, you read that right.

It was tough, but it was about to get tougher.

I accepted an opportunity, somewhat against my will, to return to bi-vocational ministry. I taught adults with special needs at a non-profit and became the worship pastor at a church about an hour away.

It was one of the most wonderful seasons of ministry, until the following spring. A tornado swept through the town and wiped out most of our church’s education buildings and sanctuary. We were a fairly large established church that suddenly had no place to meet on Sundays.

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.

Fast-forwarding a bit, I found myself in my office as a full-time student and education pastor. A member stopped by the office with an offer I was reluctant to accept.

“You have Southwestern in your backyard,” she said. “Criswell is in your front yard. If you pick one, I’ll pay for the first two classes.”

“But, but, but,” I thought, “I have a degree and don’t have time for that. I’ve learned more in these churches than some professor could ever teach me. Plus, we’re about to be parents, and…”

All of these excuses spun through my prideful head like the tornado that swept through our previous church.

I registered.

“What harm could two free classes do,” I thought? A course in student ministry? A class in evangelism? That’s all I’d need for a while. I’d be golden. But then I made it onto campus.

There were conversations in the cafeteria with professors. I was connecting with fellow ministers from all types of contexts. I enjoyed deep-dive discussions on some of the most practical facets (in this case) of student ministry and sharing the gospel.

I was hooked.

And I did two things as that semester continued: I kicked myself several times for not doing this sooner and registered for my next semester.

And Finally

After completing the last few classes of a 90-something hour degree of a wide range of topics that were all immediately practical, adopting four daughters, and accepting the call to pastor a fantastic church in New Mexico, I walked across the stage as an M.Div. graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

I might’ve been older than most of my fellow Master’s graduates, but I sure was grateful. My only regret was quitting in the first place.

Would finishing my degree earlier have kept me from dealing with some of the ups and downs I shared previously? Of course not. But it would’ve helped me navigate them more faithfully.

Not only that, it would’ve given me far more people “in my corner” than I ever had.

“It’s the gold standard”

Sure, when someone says that about an M.Div., the defense mechanisms immediately turn on for some, but please know what I’m not saying.

I’m not saying you have to have an M.Div. to be a faithful or qualified pastor. Maybe you’ve been mentored by a seasoned pastor and been given the chances to hone your skills in the pulpit and the hospital room. Maybe you have a solid Bible degree and masters that have been immensely helpful in your ministry.

But, I’m willing to assert there are good reasons to pursue an advanced degree like the M.Div. for practical pastoral training and future ministry opportunities.

Is money tight? Many seminaries offer payment plans and financial aid. Are you too far from a seminary? No worries, many offer excellent online programs.

Full-time at your church and a ton of young kids in the home? Been there, done that—just take your time. Commit to a class or two a semester and chip away at the degree, bit by bit.

Tools for your toolboxI’m a better follower of Christ from classes like Spiritual Formation.I’m a better husband and father from classes like The Christian Home.I’m a better evangelist from classes like, well, Evangelism.I’m a better disciple-maker from classes on mentoring and disciple-making.I’m a better preacher from classes in biblical languages and expository preaching.I’m a better pastor from classes like Pastoral Ministry and Foundations for Christian Ministry.I’m a better theologian from Systematic Theology and several levels of classes on the Old and New Testament.I can navigate tricky topics in the pulpit and counseling from classes like the Bible and Moral Issues.

What’s more, I have the privilege of having a few professors that are still teaching me two years later as friends and mentors. I’ve also maintained close friendships with fellow pastors who I met in the trenches in class who continue to help me navigate difficult waters in ministry.

And all of the above are reasons I want more of the same—to continue sharpening those tools by pursuing my doctorate in May.

Totally worth it

Getting my M.Div was one of the most difficult things I’ve done. I was a full-time pastor, a father of four young daughters, and eight hours away from my school at times. However, it was worth it.

I can’t stress how helpful my degree has been in the day-to-day shepherding of the church to which God has called me and in “as you go” evangelism Jesus commands in the Great Commission.

You can be a qualified pastor without an M.Div., as I said before. In fact, I know many faithful Christians who barely finished high school and tons of ministers whose bachelor’s and master’s degrees in ministry gave them the same tools I received at SWBTS.

But in my context and for my ministry, the value in pursuing more refining and sharpening for ministry has been priceless.

10 Most Encouraging Things Said to Pastors

We previously ran an article on Lifeway Pastors on 10 of the most ridiculous things said to pastors. Today, we decided to flip it a bit. We asked a group of ministers what were some of the most encouraging things people ever said to them in their role as pastor.

One of our aims at Lifeway Pastors is to encourage church leaders who are in the trenches of gospel ministry. What a blessing it is to be encouraged by those who know you best.

Here are ten encouraging things that have been said to pastors:

“I learn more about the Bible in five minutes of this study with you than I would in five hours of reading on my own.” Words like these make long hours in the study worth it.“I like the way you handle Scripture. It’s clear God has His hand on you.” What an affirmation of 2 Timothy 2:15 in this pastor’s life.“Preacher, just let me know if someone acts ugly to you and I’ll lay hands on them.” This was from a man who, before he got saved, was known as “the toughest, cussingest, drinkingest man in the county.”“I expect you to do great things through your preaching. You’ll be the next Spurgeon.” No pressure there.“You don’t make me feel stupid…you help me understand.” To me, this screams 1 Corinthians 2:1-8—preaching that’s simple, faithful, and that points to Jesus.“I thought you were too young to be my pastor but now I know I was wrong…you are my pastor, and I’m grateful for you.” This came from a church member who used to be a naysayer early on in the young pastor’s tenure. However, the pastor shepherded this family well, and it paid off.“I can count on you to preach the Bible.” It’s easy to bow to the whims and ever-changing winds of society, but it’s oh, so worth it to simply preach the Word.“I’m 80-years-old and I’ve never studied the Bible because I didn’t understand it…now I do and I know how it points to Jesus.” Having heard something similar once, this brought tears of joy to my eyes. Heralding the gloriously good news of the gospel is worth it.“You’ve helped deepen my love of Scripture.” We’re not in the pulpit to pontificate on our ideas, but to proclaim Christ and Him crucified.“I love you.” Three simple words that make everything we do worth it.

Oh, and here’s a bonus story:

When I was hired as the youth pastor at my first church, the vote was 147 to 1. I was there for six years. Around year five, one of my biggest supporters came to me and said, “There’s something I need to get off my chest. I was the lone no vote. But I want you to know I’ve never been more happy to have been proven wrong.”

While we don’t preach for the applause or acclaim of others, what a blessing it is to be affirmed in our calling to preach the Word by those we’ve been entrusted to shepherd. As you labor in your study this week, know that whether or not you hear words like these this Sunday, what you’re doing is worth it!