On “Finishing Well” and a “Shockingly Supernatural Ending”: Guest Posts at The Gospel Coalition and Gospel-Centered Discipleship

Today I have a guest post on two different websites. I didn’t coordinate it to be that way, but I’m thankful.

The first guest post is a book review for The Gospel Coalition. A scholar and pastor named D. A. Carson wrote a book about his father called Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor: The Life and Reflections of Tom Carson. The publisher, Crossway, recently published a new edition, and TGC asked me to review it. (It’s a great book, by the way.)

The second guest post is for Gospel-Centered Discipleship and is about the surprise ending of Paul’s letter in 1 Corinthians. Having preached through the letter for almost a year, when I got to the end of the letter, I would have expected Paul to be cold, perhaps angry, with the church. I was very wrong.

As appetizers, I’ll put the opening paragraphs from each article below. I’d love for you to click over and read them in full, even perhaps sharing them online.

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Why Finishing Well Matters More Than Visible Success: Review: ‘Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor’ by D. A. Carson

I already felt overbooked with weddings and studying for my ordination exams and a scheduled shoulder surgery when, unexpectedly, a key pastor left our church. Then the congregation put me in charge.

As often happens during pastoral transitions, some of our church members left. Yet I was shocked when many more people showed up, asking to take our membership classes and join our small groups. Our staff stretched and scrambled. The rapid growth made the season tough but invigorating.

I’ve often wondered how I would have reacted had the opposite happened. As an ordinary pastor, what would I have done if attendance had plummeted and finances had dwindled? I don’t know.

In Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor: The Life and Reflections of Tom Carson, Don Carson, cofounder of The Gospel Coalition and renowned New Testament scholar, tells his father’s story of faithfully serving for decades in a spiritual desert as a pastor, missionary, and caregiver. In the foreword to this republished edition, Mark Dever calls the book “a modern classic” (10). He’s right. It’s exactly the sort of book that needs to be widely read when every news cycle seems to include headlines about pastors leaving the ministry due to discouragement or disgrace.

This book encourages pastors who serve in normal-sized churches with uncertain and seemingly limited results, which tend to be most pastors. These are ordinary pastors, and Tom Carson was one of them. His story celebrates God’s blessings on an ordinary pastor, a happy father who loved his family, and a faithful leader who finished well. (To continue reading, click here.)

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The Shockingly Supernatural Ending of 1 Corinthians

Our church recently celebrated more child dedications than anyone on staff can remember. Commotion and joy and reverence and tears from parents and children filled the stage. But if I listed the names of the parents and children, the list would mean nothing to you. None are famous. You could search the internet and learn a few tidbits, but the list of people would still probably seem ordinary. Just names.

That’s often how people receive the list of names at the end of Paul’s letters. Most of them aren’t famous across the New Testament. Their names are just names.

But since I’ve been pastoring for the last dozen years in the same church, that list of names from our child dedications means more to me than just names. I can tell you which parents struggled with infertility and brutal miscarriages. I know that when some parents stood on stage praying that the church would become their family, they did so because their own family wouldn’t talk to them. I know which parents adopted out of the foster care system. I know the meanings of middle names. Staying in one church for twelve years creates this sort of knowledge.

Sometimes, however, this knowledge can make the relationships between shepherds and sheep more difficult, not easier. It’s easy to love people and pastors when we don’t really know each other. Casual attendance might let us think of a church as friendly and the pastors as nice. But meaningful, extended time together can reveal sin patterns. Such time often shows us blind spots others cannot, or will not, see in themselves. Familiarity can breed contempt more often than love.

When I came to the end of 1 Corinthians, after preaching through the book slowly for a year, I never expected the letter to end the way it does. Long ago, the list of names had seemed blah. When I read their names this time, however, having spent so much time staring at their blind spots and sin patterns, I expected the apostle Paul probably couldn’t stand them.

I was very wrong. (To continue reading, click here.)

* Photo by Chad Madden on Unsplash 

Guests Posts Galore: Part 3 of 3

Have a wonderful Christmas Eve tonight! I can’t wait to celebrate with our local church.

If you get some downtime over the break, I’d love for you to read a few of the posts I wrote for other websites. Below are the final links to all the guest posts I wrote this fall.

Merry Christmas,
Benjamin

“Men, the Women in Porn Bear God’s Image,” Gospel-Centered Discipleship, August 2, 2019

The man who told me the story said that when he first found out about the stripper, he was going to leave before she got there; he didn’t want to be a part of it. When she arrived, however, he didn’t leave. He stuck around—not because she was gorgeous but because, in his words, “she was so ugly.” The man told me he stayed to watch the other men make fun of her. When I heard this story, I didn’t know whether to shake my fists and scream, No! That’s not right! or to plant my palms on my cheeks and crumble to the floor and cry. Perhaps I should have done both.

“Run Like the Wind from Sexual Sin,” For The Church, September 3, 2019

My goal isn’t to tear down a biblical hero; my goal is to read the Bible well, and reading this passage well means acknowledging what Joseph himself would want us to learn from his life: all men are sinners and in need of God’s grace. It’s common for books on sexual sin to praise Joseph for running, but I think it’s clear he didn’t run soon enough!

“Don’t Let Sexual Shame Move You from Christ’s Mission,” ABWE International Blog, September 12, 2019

We often associate penance with Roman Catholicism, but as Protestants we have our own forms of penance. Do you ever find yourself in a flurry of good deeds to show God how sorry you are? I know a man who would randomly do hours and hours of hard labor on church construction projects. In hindsight, we learned the tornado of saw dust was his attempt to deal with his sexual sin. Or perhaps you find yourself pouting to show God how much you want to be forgiven. We can mope about our house or church, but by itself, presenting our sadness to God atones for zero sins (Hebrews 9:22).

“Corre como el viento del pecado sexual,” Coalición por el Evangelio (The Gospel Coalition Spanish Website), September 13, 2019

Don’t ask me how this happened.

Mi objetivo no es derribar un héroe bíblico. Mi objetivo es leer bien la Biblia, y leer bien este pasaje significa reconocer lo que José mismo quiere que aprendamos de su vida: todos los hombres son pecadores y necesitan la gracia de Dios. Es común que los libros sobre pecado sexual elogien a José por correr, pero creo que está claro que no corrió lo suficientemente pronto.

“Struggling Against Pornography, Not With It,” Evangelical Free Church of America Blog, EFCA NOW, October 15

Dr. Switzer, Newhart’s character, then asks if Katherine is ready to hear what she should do. She takes out a pen and paper, and Dr. Switzer leans forward with an impassioned voice and says, “Stop it!” After a quizzical look from Katherine, he repeats himself: “S-T-O-P, new word, I-T...I mean, you don’t want to go through life scared of being buried alive in a box, do you? I mean, that sounds frightening.”

“Pride Goes Before Porn,” The Gospel Coalition, October 17, 2019

Some might say there’s a sense in which men and women involved in producing pornography consent to voyeurism, but from a Christian worldview, discussions of consent often miss the point. Consent can’t be reduced to human-to-human permission. Ultimately, permission comes from God. He locked the garden, regardless of whether the woman on the screen seems to welcome your lust. As Jesus said, “Everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt. 5:28).

“An Amillennial Ordination in the EFCA,” EDA MOVE, Evangelical Free Church of America, Eastern District Blog, October 30, 2019. (An audio reading of this post by Benjamin appeared on the EDA Move Podcast, here.)

The week I completed my ordination was a week like no other I’ve had in ministry. On Saturday I officiated a wedding. On Sunday I launched our church sermon series in the book of Acts. On Monday I crammed for my oral ordination exam by reading over my paper and most of the book Evangelical Convictions. On Tuesday I underwent my four-hour oral exam, being asked and attempting to answer 154 questions (per the transcript) about theology and pastoral ministry. The rest of Tuesday and Wednesday, like many of you, I enjoyed the EDA Move’s annual conference. On Thursday I was subpoenaed to testify in court related to an appeal of a former church member currently in prison. On Friday I had major reconstructive surgery on my shoulder. I’m not making this up. I wrote this post with my right arm still in a sling, where it will be for the next six weeks. When I started to put my children to bed on Tuesday night, the evening after my ordination, I collapsed on my own bed at 8 pm. I thought I’d just rest for five minutes to steel myself for the job of putting our six children to bed. My wife had to finish the job, as I woke up from my five-minute nap ten hours later. Again, it was a week like no other.

“Pastor, Don’t Interview like Michael Scott,” For The Church, November 22, 2019

In one episode of The Office, branch manager Michael Scott interviewed for a role at the corporate offices in New York. David Wallace, president of Dunder Mifflin, asked Michael, “What do you think are your greatest strengths as a manager?” To this, Michael answered, “Why don’t I tell you what my greatest weaknesses are? I work too hard. I care too much. And sometimes I can be too invested in my job.” In job interviews, it’s become cliché to ask about a person’s greatest strengths and weaknesses. The fact that The Office would spoof the questions tells you that. Still, if you’re a pastor considering a potential transition from one church to another, you’ll likely be asked. And when you are, please don’t interview like Michael Scott; do not answer the question about weaknesses with positive sounding “flaws.”

* Photo by Chad Madden on Unsplash

Guests Posts Galore: Part 2 of 3

I’ve been blogging for five and a half years, and this post is the 250th blog post written for my website. That’s a lot of posts. Thanks for letting me invade your inbox.

In 2019, I wrote more guest posts for other websites than I ever have before. If you count the podcast interviews, I hit twenty-two in all. But I stopped telling you about them because I feared wearing you out with updates. Inbox fatigue is a blogger’s constant fear.

As we close the year, I’ll risk sharing recaps of my guest posts, because if you haven’t read it, it’s new to you.

Thanks,
Benjamin

“When Self-Preservation Becomes Our God,” For The Church, June 5, 2019

Safety is a good thing. Antilock brakes and side-impact airbags are good things. Hand sanitizer is a good thing. Tying one’s shoelaces is a good thing. Walking, not running, with scissors and getting flu shots are good things. They all arise from our desire for safety. And behind the desire for safety lies the desire for self-preservation, which is also a good thing. We are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26–27; James 3:9). Therefore, our lives matter. In Ephesians 5, Paul assumes that “no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it,” a truism Paul then uses to help build his argument about caring for one’s spouse. Self-preservation is not a bad thing. In fact, when men and women act heroically, despite a certain danger to themselves, we are not saying that they didn’t care about their own lives. Of course they care about their lives. What we celebrate is that they valued something more than self-preservation; we celebrate that they put something ahead of their own safety.

“Book Review: Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy by Mark Vroegop,” 9Marks, June 6, 2019

When tragedy strikes, we often don’t know what to do next. Yet, when the Lord’s hand of judgment fell on Israel; when the temple was leveled by pagans; and when the most tender and refined of women resorted to cannibalism (cf. Deut. 28:56–57), Jeremiah knew what to do. He sat in ash and wrote an acrostic poem. Let that sink in. When all around his soul gave way, Jeremiah penned the book we call Lamentations, a series of highly structured and theologically dense poems. That response to tragedy might strike us as odd. But Jeremiah’s response is a gift to posterity. His laments illuminate the way out of the dark jungle of despair. He gives us a path to walk toward life, healing, and toward God himself.

“Was I Betraying My Church by Interviewing Elsewhere?” CTpastors.com, June 13, 2019

This below paragraph is probably my favorite paragraph I wrote all year.

The Qoheleth tells us in Ecclesiastes that there is a season for everything, a time for every matter under heaven. That doesn’t mean transitions won’t be lonely and full of conflicting desires. Seasons of pastoral transition feel antithetical to pastoral ministry in the same way engagements are antithetical to marriages. Engagements are meant to end; marriages are not. Pastoral transition is about yanking up roots; pastoring involves putting roots down. Engagements are filled with frenetic activity and wedding-day planning; marriages thrive on the slow burn of love anchored in vows. Pastoral transition implies movement; pastoring requires standing with both feet in one neighborhood among one flock.

“Summertime and the Lust Comes Easy,” EDA MOVE, Evangelical Free Church of America, Eastern District Blog, June 19, 2019. (An audio reading of this post by me appeared on the EDA Move Podcast, here.)

In other words, as pastors and ministry leaders — for all the relaxing changes during summertime — we must remember to encourage each other and the people we shepherd to not take a break from fighting against lust.

“Three Big Surprises When Interviewing for Missions,” ABWE International Blog, June 25, 2019

It seems like blog posts with catchy titles and practical tips make the best viral posts. You know what I mean, articles with titles like, 7 Interview Hacks to *Crush* Your Next Ministry Interview. But I don’t want to write that kind of post. And I’m not even sure we should aspire to crush a ministry interview anyway.

“Don’t Just Send a Resume to a Church—Or a Missions Agency,” The Missions Podcast Interview, June 30, 2019

Too often in pursuit of full-time ministry abroad or at home, ministry applicants simply email a church or missions agency their resume and leave the rest of the hiring process to chance. Whether you’re fresh out of seminary or transitioning to ministry after a full career in the outside workforce, such a haphazard approach is bound to fail. Maybe we need to learn more about how to conduct ourselves professionally during the onboarding processes into pastoral or cross-cultural ministry.

“Two Ways Every Christian Can Be Pastoral,” Unlocking the Bible, July 15, 2019

Almost no one read this article, but I loved writing it and was happy with how it turned out.

The last time I saw my grandfather alive he made fun of me for being a pastor. You’ve probably heard the jokes or even made them yourself. “What does a pastor do all week anyway? You only work like one hour.” I wanted to tell my grandpa we have two worship services on Sunday morning, and they go for three hours by themselves. But I didn’t think arguing would help. That’s one extreme view, the view of a pastor who works little. The other extreme is a pastor who works all the time, like 80 hours a week, and no one else in the congregation does anything because “real ministry” only counts as such when done by professionals. Yet there is no way most churches, my own church included, could exist if only a handful of pastors did all the pastoring.

* Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash