{"id":65310,"date":"2026-03-03T15:15:04","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T15:15:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/?p=65310"},"modified":"2026-04-14T22:33:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T22:33:19","slug":"ordinary-pastors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/","title":{"rendered":"Ordinary Pastors"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026 not very cool<\/em>. I expected them to be more impressive, more distinctive. Most were pretty ordinary. Yet I had this sense that they were not like, say, a group of salesmen or carpenters. Jesus said, \u201cThe greatest among you will be your servant.\u201d It was that, I think; they were Jesus\u2019 kind of servants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Peter and John were hauled before the authorities for \u201cproclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead,\u201d Peter boldly called them to account for Jesus\u2019 crucifixion. \u201cJesus is \u2018the stone you<\/em> builders rejected,\u201d he said, and \u201cSalvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.\u201d That made an impression!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary<\/strong> men, they were astonished\u2026<\/em> (Acts 4:13)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

There they are\u2014our forefathers, our kind of people. Ordinary, plain, common. And no matter how good our education, the secret to gospel ministry has never been something we learned in school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit<\/strong>, said to them\u2026<\/em>
\u2026and they took note that these men had been with Jesus<\/strong>. <\/em>(Acts 4:8, 13)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

What was it about having been with Jesus? To begin with, Jesus revealed the Father to them. What\u2019s more life-changing than that! Then Jesus schooled them in faith, prayer, love, mercy, and servanthood through the curriculum of his example, teaching, and presence. \u201cWe have seen his glory,\u201d John recalled later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tutored by Jesus, they learned by doing: theology, counseling, spiritual disciplines, worship, and evangelism. No matter how good the classes, internships, or mentors we\u2019ve had, the thing that really equips us for ministry is learning those things with Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Luke 10, when \u201cthe seventy-two returned with joy,\u201d Jesus, also \u201cfull of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, \u2018I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There we are again: this time as little children<\/em>, kindergartners given access to the secrets of the kingdom, authorized \u201cto overcome all the power of the enemy,\u201d and gifted to bring out Scripture\u2019s new and old treasures. All of this, because we are filled with the Holy Spirit and have been with Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve hunched over my desk, Bible and other books open before me, trying to understand a text and sculpt a sermon. Sometimes I sensed the Spirit across the desk from me, sometimes not, but he was there. And when I stood to preach, I was never alone, and never hollow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have faced bewildering counseling situations, heartbreaking hospital calls and funerals, angry conflicts, and unsettling meetings. Many times, I remembered how Jesus told his disciples that when they faced hostile authorities, \u201cthe Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.\u201d Many times, in all kinds of circumstances, when I didn\u2019t know what to say or do next, I would grip that promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve each sat across from someone drawn to the Lord and said, in one way or another, \u201cBelieve on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved!\u201d We baptize the born again, serve a holy meal, and are shepherds of saints. We traffic in the eternal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are ordinary, to be sure. Just little children. Only servants. But we have been with Jesus!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be ye glad!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026 not very cool. I expected them to be more impressive, more distinctive. Most were pretty ordinary. Yet I had this sense that they were not like, Read more…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":66459,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"tax_ctp_authors":[2277],"tax_ctp_books":[],"tax_ctp_categories":[165],"tax_ctp_field_guide_subcategory":[],"tax_ctp_field_guides":[],"tax_ctp_format":[131],"tax_ctp_multimedia":[],"tax_ctp_point_editor":[],"tax_publications":[140],"tax_ctp_tags":[],"tax_ctp_topics":[],"class_list":["post-65310","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tax_ctp_authors-lee-eclov","tax_publications-ct-pastors"],"acf":{"scripture_references":null},"yoast_head":"\nOrdinary Pastors - CT Pastors<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ordinary Pastors - CT Pastors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CT Pastors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CTPastors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-03T15:15:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-14T22:33:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png?resize=1200,628\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"628\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lee Eclov\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@CTpastors\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@CTpastors\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Todd Watermann\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/person\/975fa1bd220462c1b1a7732beb583d5f\"},\"headline\":\"Ordinary Pastors\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-03T15:15:04+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-14T22:33:19+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/\"},\"wordCount\":599,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/\",\"name\":\"Ordinary Pastors - CT Pastors\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-03T15:15:04+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-14T22:33:19+00:00\",\"description\":\"When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png\",\"width\":3000,\"height\":1688},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Ordinary Pastors\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/\",\"name\":\"CT Pastors\",\"description\":\"Timeless wisdom for pastors with forward-thinking solutions\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Christianity Today\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2025\/08\/logo_ctpastors_black.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2025\/08\/logo_ctpastors_black.svg\",\"caption\":\"Christianity Today\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CTPastors\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/CTpastors\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/person\/975fa1bd220462c1b1a7732beb583d5f\",\"name\":\"Todd Watermann\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0734749052ce5e7cbe4523fcc3a5ffc6f42e49df1a12d2f7fedf9b4f12b8cfb8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0734749052ce5e7cbe4523fcc3a5ffc6f42e49df1a12d2f7fedf9b4f12b8cfb8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Todd Watermann\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Ordinary Pastors - CT Pastors","description":"When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Ordinary Pastors - CT Pastors","og_description":"When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026","og_url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/","og_site_name":"CT Pastors","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CTPastors","article_published_time":"2026-03-03T15:15:04+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-14T22:33:19+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":628,"url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png?resize=1200,628","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Lee Eclov","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@CTpastors","twitter_site":"@CTpastors","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/"},"author":{"name":"Todd Watermann","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/person\/975fa1bd220462c1b1a7732beb583d5f"},"headline":"Ordinary Pastors","datePublished":"2026-03-03T15:15:04+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-14T22:33:19+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/"},"wordCount":599,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/","url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/","name":"Ordinary Pastors - CT Pastors","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png","datePublished":"2026-03-03T15:15:04+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-14T22:33:19+00:00","description":"When I started attending church conferences in my 20s, I was struck with the thought that these pastors were nice enough but not \u2026 how should I put this\u2026","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png","width":3000,"height":1688},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Ordinary Pastors"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/","name":"CT Pastors","description":"Timeless wisdom for pastors with forward-thinking solutions","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#organization","name":"Christianity Today","url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2025\/08\/logo_ctpastors_black.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2025\/08\/logo_ctpastors_black.svg","caption":"Christianity Today"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CTPastors","https:\/\/x.com\/CTpastors"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/person\/975fa1bd220462c1b1a7732beb583d5f","name":"Todd Watermann","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0734749052ce5e7cbe4523fcc3a5ffc6f42e49df1a12d2f7fedf9b4f12b8cfb8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0734749052ce5e7cbe4523fcc3a5ffc6f42e49df1a12d2f7fedf9b4f12b8cfb8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Todd Watermann"}}]}},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Ordinary Pastors","url":"http:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/ordinary-pastors\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png"},"articleSection":"Uncategorized","author":"Lee Eclov","creator":"Lee Eclov","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"CT Pastors","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2026-03-03T15:15:04Z","datePublished":"2026-03-03T15:15:04Z","dateModified":"2026-04-14T22:33:19Z"},"rendered":"<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"wp-parsely-metadata\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"headline\":\"Ordinary Pastors\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.christianitytoday.com\\\/pastors\\\/content\\\/ordinary-pastors\\\/\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.christianitytoday.com\\\/pastors\\\/content\\\/ordinary-pastors\\\/\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianitytoday.com\\\/pastors\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/19\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/lee-eclov-reflection.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianitytoday.com\\\/pastors\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/19\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/lee-eclov-reflection.png\"},\"articleSection\":\"Uncategorized\",\"author\":\"Lee Eclov\",\"creator\":\"Lee Eclov\",\"publisher\":{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"name\":\"CT Pastors\",\"logo\":\"\"},\"keywords\":[],\"dateCreated\":\"2026-03-03T15:15:04Z\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-03T15:15:04Z\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-14T22:33:19Z\"}<\/script>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/christianitytoday.com\/p.js"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2026\/04\/lee-eclov-reflection.png","byline":{"writer_byline":"Lee Eclov","writer_byline_override":""},"primary_category":null,"secondary_categories":[],"featured_video":null,"related_articles":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65310","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65310"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65310\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65313,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65310\/revisions\/65313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65310"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_authors","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_authors?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_books","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_books?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_categories?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_field_guide_subcategory","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_field_guide_subcategory?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_field_guides","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_field_guides?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_format?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_multimedia","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_multimedia?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_point_editor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_point_editor?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_publications","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_publications?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_tags?post=65310"},{"taxonomy":"tax_ctp_topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_ctp_topics?post=65310"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}