This past Sunday night our elders at Phillips Street did something that blessed the heart of this congregation. You see, on Sunday afternoons through the month of April we have been having a special, extra-curricular leadership training class for our young men. We have boys ranging in age from seven to eighteen in there each week and during this time we have spent and will spend some time discussing song leading and developing and delivering short lessons. However, this past Sunday we did something special. I had the elders come in and do a panel discussion with us regarding the responsibilities and work of the eldership. So often our perception of our elders comes from seeing very little of what they actually do. I wanted these boys (and their fathers) to see what I see – these men working tirelessly behind the scenes to care for the souls of this great church.
I had been looking forward to this for some time but honestly this experience far exceeded my expectations. These men did not just come in and give canned answers to the questions I had planned to ask. They spoke from the heart, citing life experiences and painful memories that show the agony with which elders sometimes must approach their work. However, they likewise spoke joyfully of the opportunity to make a difference in the life of the congregation and in the lives of its members. But in the process they likewise encouraged these boys to begin preparing now, even at a young age, to develop the qualities necessary to one day grow up and be appointed to such a work themselves.
Somebody might ask: “Why worry with introducing boys who are so young to the burden of the eldership?” I could give no better answer than that given by J.J. Turner in his excellent book, Shepherds, Wake Up!
“It takes planning, patience, and time for a man to be trained so he can transition from sheep to elder-shepherd. However, it is not unusual to find a man who has never thought about being an elder-shepherd until his name appears on a selection ballot. Within the space of three or four weeks, he goes from having no desire to shepherd to being an elder-shepherd over God’s flock. This doesn’t seem right, especially if we let the Bible guide us” (pg. 78-79).
Not only does it not seem right, it is not right. The work of an elder cannot be undertaken as nothing more than an after-thought. That is why we want to at least plant the seed of thought into our young boys’ minds that they can begin preparing now, developing qualities and characteristics that one day will aid them in their work. I could think of no better way to do that than to give them just a brief glimpse into our elders’ hearts.
“This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work” (1 Timothy 3:1).
Halleluah(sp) I have been saying for a long time that something like this should be done. How can a man desire something that he knows little about. God bless all of you for doing something like this. Please don’t stop at this one time.