Unity News

December, 2007

Reclaiming Your Lost Sheep

by Blake Coffee

If there are any people at all in your church, then feelings have been hurt and wounds have occurred. That is just the way human relationships work. Moreover, if your church is not perfect (I am still looking for the one that is) then some—perhaps many—of those wounds have never been healed, leaving perfectly good church members feeling estranged and betrayed by people they thought were their friends. Finally, if your church has somehow managed to avoid any of these kinds of problems, then your pews are likely filled with people who have run from other (less perfect) churches where they were wounded, and they still carry those wounds.

Under either scenario, whether you are dealing with people hurt by your own church or those now in your church but hurt by other churches, you have a responsibility to them. You must find a way to lead them through a healing journey in order to make them productive ministers again, fulfilling their assignments from God. We as the Body of Christ seem to be struggling trying to figure out how to accomplish this task. Nevertheless, as difficult as it may seem to us, reclaiming the sheep who have wandered off is exactly the vision Jesus had for His church as described in Matthew 18.

If you have never been exposed to the writing of Dave Burchett, I strongly recommend them to you. His book When Bad Christians Happen to Good People rightly chronicles the pain we as Christians often cause to our very own. But his next book, Bring “Em Back Alive is a clarion call to those of us still in the church to fulfill our responsibility of reclaiming our lost sheep. Here are Dave's words:

I would love to see churches establish regular classes and/or healing seminars for those wounded by the church. I think that many injured lambs feel alone, and having a forum where they can express their hurt and share their concerns with others would be therapeutic…Getting wounded lambs to tell their stories sooner rather than later will make it easier to address the real reason for the pain, which will greatly increase the lambs' chances of healing and returning to the flock.

If this rings true to you and if you believe there is a need for a ministry in your own church for helping wandering sheep return to the flock, then don't stop reading yet! Trusting God's People…Again may be just the tool you need for that ministry.

It was a little more than three years ago when First Baptist Church , San Antonio began offering Tuesday night support groups for people wounded by the church. The groups run twice a year and follow a 13-week format using Trusting God's People…Again as the curriculum. The results have been amazing.

Here are some comments from one participant: I have been absent from my ministry and from the church for 30 plus years. This really helped me. It was as if I was reading about my own life. Each class began with prayer and ended with prayer. It was truly a Spirit-filled time. The Lord worked magnificently through this class and helped each of us who attended. I would highly recommend it to anyone who has been hurt by church folks.

And this from another participant: This group gave me a place to open up with my pain and struggles. The group members have a special place in my heart as they walked through endless details with me. They were unbelievably patient with me. I sensed a solidness grow in me as the broken places took on new meaning for moving on to reengage in the journey God has for me. I was amazed at how God worked within me each week bringing me to new thoughts which brought hope (I KNEW I was being prayed for). I also saw my own weakness and needs for repentance. I know God gave me this group as a special gift from Him.

Finally, can you imagine how much it helps a pastor to have a ministry like this in your church? Here are the comments from Don Guthrie, pastor of FBC, San Antonio : The ideas that fill this book have been taught in our congregation with powerful, positive results. As a pastor, I've seen the benefits for people who encounter the wisdom of God through this ministry. I think you will, too.

When you pray about this kind of ministry in your own church, I believe you are praying the very heart of God. I believe you will be surprised at how quickly He responds and how straight He makes your path for putting it in place. I also hope you will feel free to contact me if there is anything at all I can do to help you put it together in your church.

Reclaiming our lost sheep may be a critical next step for us, an important new skill as we work toward becoming the church Jesus envisioned.

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