By Neil Breneman, Pastor at Lewistown Alliance Church
Don’t get me wrong–I love my church family.
Much of my ministry focuses on spending time with them and preparing to minister to them. However, if I am not careful, I run the risk as a vocational pastor of isolating myself from the community and spending too much time within the “fortress” of the church.
I recently spent time reflecting on my calling to my church in Lewistown. I was surprised to admit that if God is ever going to lead me away from my church ministry, my ministry to the community of Lewistown is now a big part of the discernment process.
As a pastor, I must be intentional about getting “outside the walls” of church life and insert myself into the life of the community.
I have stepped into coaching roles at our public high school that have yielded ministry opportunities. I have counseled students through anxiety, depression, and life decisions. I teach them regularly about integrity and model to them what it looks like to be a Jesus follower. Opportunities have also opened up to build relationships with their parents. Many of these parents I now consider friends. On one occasion, I was invited to be with a dying parent and was able to share the Gospel message.
I have also been able to join with 15-20 other pastors in our community for a regular time of prayer. We have chosen to be intentional in praying for our community once a month “on-site”. We have prayed in the courthouse, a police station, a homeless shelter, an agency focused on helping youth–just to name a few.
What are we communicating to our community? That we care!
As pastors, we are communicating we are not afraid to engage and are not simply focused on the people within our church. There are so many stories and opportunities that have come out of this. Our county sheriff even joins us regularly for prayer!
Through my engagement in our community, I have seen many benefits. For the sake of space, I will simply share four of them as bullet points but invite you to have a conversation if you would like to engage more.
It keeps me connected to the culture rather than isolated
My love for the lost increases–DRAMATICALLY
I have many opportunities to share the hope found in Jesus
I am able to model to my church family what it looks like to live the Great Commission
If we stay within the “fortress” of our church it can quickly become just that. We end up being defensive and protective of the culture around us and avoid engaging in it to make a difference. Not only that, but fortresses can be hard to get into. I pray anytime, anyone from our culture steps through the doors of our church we can receive them with the love of Jesus, no matter how “messy” their life has become.
