Coming back to the coal face of ministry after two weeks in Prague, I am faced afresh with a challenge. In engaging with God’s calling to help people develop and mature in ministry, I am reminded that the vocation of the pastor requires the qualities of a ‘leader of a household’ as well as those of a ‘servant of God’. It is no easier being a good pastor than being a good father.
For there is always a tension. When does authority become control? Where does confrontation become aggression? How does confidence in Christian identity become arrogance in our own identity? These are questions I reflect on, in this time of lent. And the answer must take me again and again to the Cross.
Kenosis. More than a theory. A painful reality that demands that the disciple seeks to follow in the via crucis, the way of Jesus Christ to the Cross.
The period towards Easter is a good season to reflect, wait and expect. For those who pass through Jesus Christ’s Cross will know the power of Jesus Christ’s resurrection.
