Pastor Mark, is a dynamic communicator and preacher. He has made a significant impact in my life and has encouraged me to be fully devoted to the Word of God and to the local church. I should also say, that I have had the opportunity to meet and speak to pastor Mark on multiple occasions. Each time he has been incredibly gracious to me. With that said, the most painful things that I have seen are the blog posts that attack and seem to take joy in the circumstances surrounding pastor Mark and Mars Hill. Possibly even sadder, is the fact that in the midst of so much media exposure and personal thoughts through blog posts, podcasts, websites, and other media outlets, it seems that the most important aspect of this situation seems to be missing completely.

I believe it is the responsibility of the church (universal, the body of Christ) to pursue this. In fact, this really is not my opinion but a mandate from Scripture.

There are numerous scriptures that point us to pray for our leaders. Let me start by saying that it is not by accident that any leader comes into leadership. Romans 13:1 clearly identifies that there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Hebrews 13:7 continues by stating that we should remember our leaders, the ones who spoke to us the Word of God. Our remembrance of our leaders should cause us to spend time in prayer for them. Finally, in verse 18 the author of Hebrews asks the church to pray for leaders, so that they would have a clear conscience, acting honorably in all things. I don’t know many church members that wouldn’t want their pastor to have a clear conscience and act honorably.

It’s easy for us to look at someone and begin to develop our own beliefs about that person. Essentially, we put them on trial in the court of our minds, or in todays case, the court of social media and opinion. The reality is, each of us holds a darkness that unaffected by the grace of God and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit would not only bring destruction to ourselves but also to those that we love around us. Why bring this up? Because anyone is capable of falling, sinning, and making mistakes. Please don’t get me wrong, there are and should be consequences for our actions. However, the pursuit of restoration, reconciliation, and unity amongst the church should be of utmost importance when possible. As we take into consideration our own sin and need for grace, it seems right that we should extend that grace to others in need.

Sadly, this is not just an isolated situation. It just happens to be a situation that had the spotlight of media. I can’t begin to imagine how many more issues there are in the local church. How many more pastors are in need of prayer from their congregations.

Pause: When was the last time you prayed for your pastor and his family? Go ahead and stop reading now and do that.

Pause: For those of you that thought I was kidding, I wasn’t. Seriously, pray for them.

What’s at stake is the local church. The health of the church really does go hand in hand with how the pastor is doing spiritually and emotionally. So it shouldn’t be a surprise when we read through Hebrews that there is an emphasis of considering and praying for our leaders.

I love what EM Bounds says: