By Steve Higginbotham
Have you ever considered that possibly the most common reason causing a preacher to move may be the very reason he ought to stay?
Is it not because of persecution, false doctrine, and ungodliness within the church that many preachers decide to move and preach elsewhere? I’ve been a preacher for 34 years, have many friends who are preachers, and I’ve heard some “horror stories” about how some preachers have been treated. However, may I suggest to all my preacher friends that before you move, stop and consider the words in Acts 14:2-3? Luke wrote that “the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren. Therefore, they [Paul and Barnabas] stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord…”
Did you catch what Luke wrote? It was because the minds of the people were poisoned that Paul and Barnabas decided to stay there for a long time. Poisoned minds against the truth and brethren weren’t Paul’s cues to leave, but rather they were his motivation to stay!
I certainly understand and acknowledge that many good preachers have exhausted all their means in an attempt to help a congregation and legitimately needed to move on. This article does not at all suggest there’s never a time to leave. But, having said that, I also suspect that some preachers have forgotten that they have been called to a life of service, sacrifice, and self-denial (Matthew 16:24) that doesn’t permit us to retreat or abandon our post at the first signs of trouble. Maybe our perspective needs to be tweaked. Instead of allowing the hurt and opposition we sometimes suffer be our excuse for moving, maybe we should recognize these hurts and opposition are the very reason we need to stay, dig in our heels, and preach the truth with love and longsuffering (2 Timothy 4:1-2).
I have sometimes opined that the most common form of conflict resolution among church members is “church hopping.” However, I must wonder if this might be true of preachers as well. Could it be true that some preachers, instead of patiently working through attitudinal, doctrinal, and moral problems, have packed their belongings and “hopped” to another congregation rather than staying and fighting the good fight of faith (1 Timothy 6:12)?