Pray for the pastor. pic.twitter.com/cRHQokm4vu
— hbcharlesjr (@hbcharlesjr) May 23, 2020
Let’s give pastors and church decision-makers a break. I have often said pastors have the most difficult job in the world. For proof, read An Open Letter To Pastors. You Are Loved And Respected. But because of COVID-19, these are especially challenging times for those entrusted with the health and well-being of the local church. In short, pastors are in a no-win situation when it comes to re-opening.
As shown in the graphic above, no matter what decision is made, there is great passion within each congregation for doing the exact opposite of whatever the leaders choose to do. Conversations about urgency vs. passivity, facts vs. feelings, and safety vs. trust are dramatically impacting many church’s spirit of unity and thus, its ability to thrive moving forward.
Regardless of the reopening date, those decisions will likely be both celebrated and questioned. Therefore, it is important we support and pray for our pastors so they can focus on hearing from an audience of One, the Holy Spirit himself, and being obedient to do what pleases Him, not everyone else.
The answer will likely be different from church to church, state to state, and region to region. I live in Georgia. Our context for reopening is certainly different than New York, New Jersey, Michigan, and Illinois for example. But even in our state with a highly-aggressive and pro-church governor, many churches are not opening until July or after. Others opened on May 3rd, the first day of eligibility.
Because of the disparity of viewpoints and as illustrated above, extremely vocal thoughts and questions haven arisen. The following are just some of what I hear locally as well as nationally:
- “I can get a tattoo, go bowling, and go into a store and buy cannabus but I can’t go to church?”
- “Who cares what other churches are doing? What is God telling you to do?”
- “Are my children going to be safe? What about my elderly parents? When are they going to be safe?”
- “Do you honestly believe digital is better than being live?”
- “What about a 2nd wave?”
- “Isn’t this the 2nd wave?”
- “Why didn’t you start planning for the day you could immediately reopen the day you closed?”
- “If we open now, what if only 20-30% of the people come back? Shouldn’t we wait until everyone can come?”
- “If only 20-30% of the people come back, the others still have a digital option. Right?”
- “Whose heart at our church breaks because its doors are not open and what are they doing about it?”
- And on and on and on….
You have probably heard all of these and more. I’ll say it again, pastors have probably never had it so difficult. These individuals are shepherds who deeply love their congregations and care about people. They value unity and would never do anything to hurt those God has called them to lead.
All Christians need to be supporting and praying for their pastors because there are going to be no popular decisions. And I don’t know if there are any right decisions either. Only time will tell.
The only right answer for pastors from my perspective is after much prayer, time with God, and discussions with their elders, to reopen when God tells them to. Not a Sunday earlier and not a Sunday later. We can live with those results whatever they may be.
If you need help with reopening plans or ideas, click HERE or on the image to the left for The Senior Pastor’s Guide To Reopening. This free eBook from ChurchFuel is a guide to asking the right questions and making a wise, strategic decision about reopening for in-person services. It includes examples from real churches and important safety, sanitation, and communication topics to consider.