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Ergun Caner, dean and president of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and one of the nation’s most prominent Christian apologists, called for the liberation of pastors so that they can be free to do what they are called to do. Quite simply, Caner said, “Don’t let people bug you.” He said that the Apostle Paul “was exhausted” from what was happening in the church at the time of his writing in the sermon text of Galatians 6, in which Paul encouraged Christians to glory in the cross of Christ, allowing nothing and no one to trouble them in that pursuit.
Caner sighted three ways in which pastors can be liberated in order to do what they are called to do.

1. Your scars tell your story.
In verse 11, Paul says notes the large letters he uses in writing that section of the epistle, which suggests some possible unnamed malady, or a scar. “Satan wants your soul,” Caner stated, “and if he can’t get that he wants your testimony. Or he’ll try to rob you of your joy.” He implored pastors to allow God to use their scars of ministry, noting that Paul did not hide what was wrong with him. Caner said that our scars are essentially “tattoos of grace.”

2. God’s calling kept Paul committed.
Caner stated that it is “the inevitability of ministry” that someone is going to hate you and someone is going to love you. But he advised that pastors cannot get lost in worrying about those who oppose them because we have a God-ordained mission: “It’s about souls and that’s what gets us up in the morning.” He added, “We do what we do because we are called; it’s a holy obsession.” As such, we must remain focused on the goal.

3. Your worst pain will be your greatest power.
Our pain will lead to victory. “When we have pain, God provides grace,” Caner exhorted. He closed by saying, “Find out what His call is on your life, then rise up and speak up. The only thing you can never do is quit!”

 

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Phil Cooke, Christian writer, filmmaker and media consultant, urged pastors to consider new methods of reaching the next generation for Jesus Christ. Noting that Facebook now has more than 500 million members, Cooke said, “You want to reach a new generation, a great place to start is social media,” which he described as a new mission field. To those resisting these types of outreaches, Cooke had bad news: “If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.”

Cook offered nine ways in which churches can become media savvy in order to reach emerging generations with the Gospel.

1. Visibility is just as important as ability.

2. You cannot brand a lie. “In the digital age,” he said, “we cannot hide. We need to live more transparent lives than ever before.”

3. Being different matters. “Be the best in your area of expertise,” Cooke advised, urging pastors to understand what their area of expertise may be.

4. Understand the power of a name. “If evangelism is your goal, it doesn’t matter how anointed your message is; if no one is listening, you’ve failed,” Cooke said.

5. Speak the language of design. In our postmodern culture, design is the language of this generation. It’s critically important that our media designs and images are clear, concise and welcoming.

6. Lose the lingo. Quite simply, Cooke urged pastors to explain the salvation story in terms that people will understand. Lose the religious language and terms. Speak in a language and style a non-believer will understand.

7. It’s not just who you are, it’s how you’re perceived. “Word travels fast in a digital culture,” Cooke reminded. So Christians must always be honest and transparent. In an instant message world, first impressions matter more than ever.

8. Discover what your story is. A “brand” is simply a compelling story that surrounds a person, product, or organization.

9. Understand the power of foresight. “Have a vision for your ministry,” Cooke encouraged. He told the story of Walt Disney’s widow attending the opening of Disney World, which her husband did not live to see. Someone whispered to her, “I’m sorry Walt isn’t here to see this.” But Mrs. Disney replied, “Oh no. You don’t understand. Walt saw it; that’s why it’s here.” Similarly, vision and foresight are the keys to the church remaining relevant in the digital world—the new mission field.

 

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Brian Bloye, founder and lead pastor of West Ridge Church in the metro-Atlanta area is a man with a passion to see churches planted all over the world. However, he came to InnovateChurch with a burden to touch the hearts of pastors who are discouraged. “Some of you are in a dry-brook season,” he said, referring to his text, I Kings 17:1-7. In the passage, God sent Elijah to the Brook Cherith, where he had fresh water and the ravens brought him food to eat. Then, as verse 7 says, “And it happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.

God had sent Elijah to this place of protection after he had confronted the evil King Ahab and his equally evil wife Jezebel; they had brought the idol Baal into Israel to replace Almighty God. Elijah told them that it would not rain and it did not for three-and-a-half years. Some might ask why God would allow the brook to dry up when Elijah had been following God’s commands. Bloye answered: Elijah, who was God’s man for the hour, faced this challenge “for the purpose of being totally dependent on God.” God wanted to get Elijah alone to “build him from the inside-out,” he added.

Bloye then recounted his own dry-brook season of a few years ago when he faced several challenges, including the death of his father, who served on staff with him at West Ridge Church, the moral failure of another colleague, and other related problems. “Sometimes we start questioning God and questioning ourselves,” he admitted. But then he added, “This was the season of my life that God did the most intense work in me. I wouldn’t trade those days for anything … God was deepening my faith.”

He reminded pastors of other biblical examples of men facing seeming calamities prior to God bringing them great reward, including: Joseph in prison; Moses in exile; Paul’s three lonely years in Arabia; Jesus’ 30 years of near obscurity.

“God is more concerned about growing you and developing your character,” Bloye said, “than He is in making you comfortable.” He then referred to Isaiah 49:14 in which God promises never to forget His people. “Remember that a dry brook is often a sign of God’s pleasure,” Bloye reminded, “and not a sign of God’s displeasure.” With cheering words to pastors going through their own dry-brook seasons, he added, “God is preparing to work in you … Just stay in the brook with Him until God moves the cloud away