Hosanna

by Pastor James Bell

It was 5:30, way too early in the morning for me to come strolling into our living room. Suz, an early riser, asked me what I was doing up at this time, and the dogs on her lap twisted their heads as they seemed to question why I had invaded their daily quiet time.

I told my wife and dogs that I was up because I was mad. Mad at the devil. I had encountered his schemes all week long, losing sleep and being distracted from things that were more important than his nonsense. I wondered out loud why we pastors never mention some things that most of us know all too well. We think it’s not becoming for someone in our position to speak up about it. We think it’s not spiritual to mention it. But it eats on us, tearing us apart from the inside out.

I decided to tell you about it. It’s all about the strategies of the spiritual enemy we face, and how often we are set up for embarrassment, criticism and even failure. It is about the feeling that we are dealing with a no-win situation, and therefore we must internalize things that should be on the prayerful lips of our intercessors. Most of all, it is about a basic situation that will happen over and over in vibrant, growing congregations and in the hearts of well-intentioned, hard-working pastors until the wheels start coming off of everything and nobody really knows why. I am going to tell you why.

Three entities, when they are in sync, can destroy even the strongest church unless they are identified and stopped. Those three entities consist of two flawed personality types and one devil. Now, this destructive combination is not Satan’s only weapon against the church, but I am convinced it is by far the most often used in his arsenal.

First, it is the devil, the father of lies. Then it is a flawed personality trait in people I have dubbed “bomb-throwers”. Thirdly, it is milder, even pseudo-spiritual, version of the same flaw in folks we’ll call “poop-stirrers”. The devil plants the idea, the bomb-thrower chooses to almost innocently drop a false statement or half truth about a sensitive subject, and the poop-stirrers keep the comment alive by passing it along, often with some disclaimer about not being sure that it’s right and certainly not to, shall we say, keep the poop stirred. But by passing it along, they do precisely that very thing.

Satan chooses an event. It can be almost any event involving change. He then plants seeds of untruth or half-truths in the hearts of potential bomb-throwers who might be concerned, disappointed or fearful of the changes. All they have to do is find the right opportunity to speak those twisted comments. Note that the motivation is (1) selfish pride in one’s opinion and (2) a desire to thwart the change that is happening.

Example Scenario – Singles out for a meal after church. One of the guys wants to impress some of the ladies at the table. He says that he recently hung out with someone who had left with his family to attend another church. The guy told him the real reason he left. Didn’t like some changes the pastor was making (interestingly enough, the very changes this guy, or someone close to him, doesn’t like).

Okay, time out for facts. The alleged conversation with the person who left never happened. The guys did hang out, but didn’t discuss anything about the changes. In fact, the person leaving didn’t know about the changes and had left the right way, with the pastor’s understanding and support. The bomb-thrower “created” this comment to be interesting and appear knowledgeable to his peers. After that meal, he thought, nothing more would happen. But now the poop-stirrers see an opportunity to enliven next week’s conversations with their friends.

Other scenarios follow. A situation happened in a small group (that didn’t actually happen that way at all), the pastor preached a sermon aimed at one person in the congregation he disagreed with (not effective, I know better than to try that), the pastor’s wife (or his friend, or an elder) has a hidden agenda, and on and on we go. Bombers bomb with suspicions and twisted statements. Poop-stirrers keep the stuff moving. Pastors hear about it with disbelief and shock, thinking these were their friends and the ones they have given their lives for. Satan lifts a toast. People say to rise above it. I don’t sleep.

It’s almost impossible to restore truth when church members are, often unknowingly, spreading lies. See, even now that word seems a little strong to you when talking about Christians. But the number one sin among Christians, far more common (and damnable) than other sins, is lying. If a pastor confronts this activity, he will be accused of being judgmental, defensive or argumentative. Even poop-stirrers will step back in horror that their pastor would not just rise above the fray and stay positive.

The battle, over something which (and this is so important for you to realize) never, ever, actually happened in the first place, now spreads to a conflict between the defensive pastor and the frantically backpedaling bomb-thrower. The poop-stirrers deny any involvement and begin to act like victims, even at times leaving the church.Visitors and new members think the whole thing is childish and immature, and begin to question the pastor’s leadership and maturity. Meanwhile, demons dance in the darkness and Satan gloats over his victory against that local church, chipping away at the higher purposes of the kingdom of God.

The bottom line unless we act is this:

• A pastor will feel that confronting the wrong will cause the conflict to spread.
• Bomb-throwers will toss more bombs to cover their, often unintentional, damaging remarks.
• Poop-stirrers will stir, self-righteously stating that these are not necessarily their opinions.
• Congregants will be confused by the division among believers.
• Satan, bomb-throwers and poop-stirrers never even make it into the conversation, as the Evil One scans the church’s agenda for the next opportunity to attack.

How do we stop this cycle? Here are some suggestions:

• Bomb-throwers, quit tossing those bombs. We need you.  Talk to us, work with us.
• Poop-stirrers, just quit stirring. Help us communicate the good news!
• Pastor, pastor people better than they’ve ever been pastored!
• Leaders, lead on!

Then, let all of us humbly serve the interests of others, as Jesus teaches us to do. Dialogue, listen, get involved. When we walk in unity, following Jesus, all hell trembles. This is not my church or your church, or even our church. It’s His.

This is going to be a year of breakthroughs and victories on several levels. God is whispering to us of exciting things He has in store. Even if you have been affected by these situations, don’t ever feel like you have to walk away. Every pastor knows these experiences well. They happen everywhere unless confronted. Resolve these things right here and our bonds of love will grow even stronger.

Pastor James

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