Christians rightly grieve every time a public scandal hits the headlines, involving the moral failure of a minister of the gospel. Such stories are heartbreaking. But I fear another, more subtle scandal may be even more common in the ministry: the scandal of a pastor devoting tireless energy to building a healthy church while remaining aloof and neglectful in the calling to build a healthy family.
Managing Your Households Well: How Family Leadership Trains You for Church Leadership
P & R Publishing
160 pages
$16.99
In writing Managing Your Households Well, Chap Bettis has done a great service to pastors, aspiring pastors, and their families. Drawing on years of pastoral experience, Bettis comforts those of us (pastors and churches alike) burdened by unrealistic expectations for the pastor’s family, while also challenging us to see the home as a vital training ground for pastoral leadership (1 Tim. 3:5).
I am grateful for the skillful, warm-hearted way in which Bettis connects leadership in the home with leadership in the church. Most importantly, I needed this book’s simple reminder: I cannot shepherd Christ’s flock with integrity if I’m not first laboring to faithfully love my wife and children for Christ’s sake. I hope Managing Your Households Well is read and applied by those serving as pastors as well as those aspiring to be. To the pastors who hear Bettis’ words, I trust your family and church will be blessed.
Larry Lazarus is the lead pastor at Cheverly Baptist Church.
