The perfect pastor preaches exactly twenty minutes, then sits down. He condemns sin but never hurts anyone’s feelings. He works for 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. in every kind of job from preaching to custodial services.

He gets paid $3000 per month, has good clothes, a nice family, a complete library along with his own computer and all the resources he needs, drives a new car and gives $1500 a month to the church. He also generously supports all the local charities with his time and his money.

He is in his early thirties and has been preaching for 40 years. He is both tall and short, thin and heavy set, and very handsome. His hair is parted in the middle, the left side blond and straight, the right side dark and wavy.

 He had a burning desire to work with the youth and spends all his time with the older folks in the congregation. He always has a straight face because he has a sense of humor that keeps him dedicated to his work. He makes fifteen visits a day on his members, spends his time evangelizing the lost in his community, and is never out of the office.

This may or may not match your definition of a perfect pastor. Everyone has their own ideas about what a pastor should do and who he should be.

The congregation I am helping this month in Frankfurt is currently searching for their next pastor. So are the many of the congregations in the U.S. where those of you reading this attend. The number of pastors in our church body has been declining sharply for many years now. What can you do?

Pray. If you have a pastor, thank God for him, ask God to strengthen, bless, sustain and uphold him as he strives to serve you, your congregation and your community. Give your pastor support and encouragement in his work. And ask the Lord of the harvest to lead more workers to serve Him in this way.

You can also consider serving in ministry yourself. You can encourage others to ask themselves if God is calling them to this task. You can support our colleges and seminaries that train church workers.

For the record, there is no perfect pastor. What you should hope for and expect from your pastor is that He keeps pointing you to the Cross and the empty tomb, sharing the message of God’s love for the world in Christ Jesus that bought us back from sin and death so that we could have the assurance of forgiveness for sins and life eternal with Him.