PROFILE OF THE PASTOR
Profile of the Pastor
WHO, more than the Minister, touches people in their most solemn and sacred moments? Whether he or she is asked to dedicate a baby, church, or building, unite young adults in marriage, counsel a hurting father or mother or bury an aged saint, the pastor has the holy privilege of ministering the grace of Christ Jesus to those he or she lives among.
Therefore:
The pastor must see to his or her spirit. He or She must keep the fires of devotion to his/her God, burning brightly. The Word must be his/her delight and prayer his/her chief business. Only as he/she keeps in contact with the Throne can he/she be God's emissary. Always the Throne - not the phone!
He/She must avoid empty professionalism (the curse of every minister) at all cost. His/Her ministry is important to those who look to him/her for help; it must be important to him/her, too.
In his/her concern for the household of God, the pastor must not neglect his/her own household. If he/she has a wife/husband, the marriage vows he/she mediates to others are the vows he/she himself or herself took. If he/she has children, they are as sacred a trust as any other in his/her parish or community - and more so because the responsibility is uniquely his/hers.
The pastor should be careful about his personal appearance. Cleanliness may not be next to godliness, but it ranks nearby. Whatever the limitations of his/her wardrobe, his/her clothes should enhance the dignity of his/her calling. Nothing on or about him/her should clamour for attention.
The minister must also have the proper manner. Gravity need not be gloom, and seriousness is not necessarily sadness. The pastor's manner will reflect the importance of the occasion. The King's business calls for a kingly bearing. Quiet reserve is always the mark of a Christian man or woman. The pastor should act in such a way that no one will ever regret having sought his/her assistance. Manner is the sum total of manners.
Those who are called by Jesus Christ to His ministry are called to be good ministers. No man or woman could be more. Who dares to be less?