People will not remember how you began in ministry, but they will remember how you ended.
If there is one lesson we should never forget it is this: a person can be gifted, called and even anointed, but lack the character to support that calling. Consider the many pastors and Christian leaders who had to leave the ministry because of moral, spiritual or ethical lapses. Or, they might have abused their authority and mistreated those around them. How they ended will be remembered.
Yes, there are also illustrations of those who failed at some point but recovered their reputations and died well. Their numbers might be few but there is one story I must tell.
Recently, I returned from England where we visited the most important sites of the Protestant Reformation. In Oxford, I gave a brief lecture on Archbishop Cranmer, who under the threat of death denied his Protestant faith. Mary Tudor (“bloody Mary”) forced him to watch as two of his friends were burned to death. Thus, out of fear he signed a series of documents saying he was returning to Catholicism and acknowledged the authority of the Pope. But—and there were reasons for this---Queen Mary wanted him dead anyway as payback for negotiating the annulment of her mother’s marriage to King Henry the VIII. But on the day of his final trial, Cranmer recanted his recantation, affirming that he was dying as a Protestant, with his faith in Christ alone and he deemed the Pope to be antichrist.
Cranmer was dragged to the place of burning while shouting that his right hand that had written his recantation of Protestantism should be the first to burn. He kept shouting, “This hand! This hand!” He held it in the fire until it became like a cinder. And then prayed, “Father into thy hands I commit my spirit.” We remember how he failed, but thank God we also remember how he ended!
At this pastor’s conference we will speak about the frightening possibility of failure, but we will also speak about recovery. There is life after failure, but sadly you may or may not get your ministry or reputation back. The bird with the broken wing, sometimes never flies as high again.
I for one, am spending time praying for this pastor’s conference. Two requests come to mind: first that we might examine our lives carefully; public failure is usually the result of a process of smaller spiritual and moral compromises. In other words, like a tire, the slow leak leads to the blowout.
A second request: that we might give hope to those who have failed; those who believe they have been sidelined, those who are discouraged. Let us encourage those who want to lead but find that there are few who want to follow them.
Join us as we consider how we can finish strong; we all need a mid-course correction so we can be assured of a safe landing. And our legacy will extend well beyond our years.
I look forward to seeing you in October!