Shepherding

Opening scriptures

,

1  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want

So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.

 And he blessed Joseph and said,

So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.

 And he blessed Joseph and said,

,

“The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked,

“feed,” “shepherd,”“pastor” “herdmen” “keep”“companion”“broken” “company” “eat”” teacher of people as flock, to associate with, be a friend of to be companions, to be a special friend

the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day,

“feed,” “shepherd,”“pastor” “herdmen” “keep”“companion”“broken” “company” “eat”” teacher of people as flock, to associate with, be a friend of to be companions, to be a special friend

“feed,” “shepherd,”“pastor” “herdmen” “keep”“companion”“broken” “company” “eat”” teacher of people as flock, to associate with, be a friend of to be companions, to be a special friend.

Yahweh Rohi-

Yahweh Rohi

the shepherd theme, traditionally interpreted communally of the “flock” (or nation), is here given its most personal interpretation in the entire biblical tradition. (Even if the use of “I/my” was intended, or later interpreted, in a communal sense, the implications of a personal association with the shepherd remain.)

Yahweh Rohi

Yahweh Rohi

the shepherd theme, traditionally interpreted communally of the “flock” (or nation), is here given its most personal interpretation in the entire biblical tradition. (Even if the use of “I/my” was intended, or later interpreted, in a communal sense, the implications of a personal association with the shepherd remain.)

Yahweh Rohi

As a consequence of the fact that the Lord is his shepherd, the psalmist can say: “I shall not want.”

Yahweh Rohi

“so long as the Lord is my shepherd, I suffer no lack.” In general terms, the words reflect simply the shepherd’s provision. But more than that, they recall God’s provision for his people during the travels after the Exodus; see , “you have not lacked a thing” (the same verb, חסר, is used as in ).

“so long as the Lord is my shepherd, I suffer no lack.” In general terms, the words reflect simply the shepherd’s provision. But more than that, they recall God’s provision for his people during the travels after the Exodus; see , “you have not lacked a thing” (the same verb, חסר, is used as in ).

Yahweh Rohi

The Moses Model / Burnout

- you can’t do it alone ; - you inherit an attack (Jethro gives Moses a system to keep his sanity)

SIGNS OF BURN OUT

weary

disillusioned that you reach a place where you can’t keep doing things the same way

find yourself irritated with others

sense of hopelessness in tough situations

you might feel jaded and cynical

your normal level of motivation to pursue your goals might start to dissipate and eventually dissolve completely

burnout can even feel like you are battling depression

Ramifications of ministry burnout

public and visible downward spiral

suffer loss / humiliation / embarrassment

expose your weaknesses

Remedy and recourse

Return to the Shepherd

Sobering question we must all ask ourselves:

IF GOD WERE TO TAKE AWAY OUR MINISTRY PLATFORM, WOULD YOU STILL LOVE AND WORSHIP ME WITH THE SAME PASSION THAT YOU HAVE RIGHT NOW?

MATHEW 15:8  “ ‘This people honors me with their lips,

MATHEW 15:8  “ ‘This people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me;

large crowd, reputation, preaching/teaching in front of groups, serving/volunteering, leading

As the leader you have to be the first example / you shepherd by what you do as well as what you say...

 Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers

you can’t become so busy communicating that you forget to be what it is that you teach

you can’t put self image over self preservation

how can i lead people into the quiet place beside the still waters if i am in perpetual motion

be careful not to call others to sit besides the still waters and be rooted in Jesus and you yourself aren’t experiencing that quiet place.

STAY SHEPHERDED

The David Model / Burden

The David Model / Burden

 And David rose early in the morning and left the sheep with a keeper...

there must be a time of impartation

there must be a time of intercession

there must be a time of inquiry

The David Model / Burden

The Jesus Model / Balance

as anointed as Jesus was

as ministry minded as Jesus was

as evangelistic

with all the passion, burden and zeal he had for the things of GOD…

Jesus knew the value of balance

Balance is going to look different for each of us individually, but we all need balance

Balance is going to look different for each of us individually, but we all need balance

we all need balance

The benefits of having balance is,…it makes ministry a delight and not drudgery

English Standard Version Chapter 7

16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?

ministry ought to be fun

  Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

2  Serve the Lord with gladness!

Come into his presence with singing!

3  Know that the Lord, he is God!

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

4  Enter his gates with thanksgiving,

and his courts with praise!

Give thanks to him; bless his name!

5  For the Lord is good;

his steadfast love endures forever,

and his faithfulness to all generations.

Ecclesiastes 7:16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?

Ecclesiastes 7:16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?

Ecclesiastes 7:16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?

Ecclesiastes 7:16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?

Ecclesiastes 7:16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?

avoid extremes

if i’m not balanced it’s quite possible that those under me won’t be

as a shepherd you have to model what balance looks like ...

Jesus fell asleep in the hinder part of the boat

Jesus fell asleep in the hinder part of the boat

Jesus fell asleep in the hinder part of the boat