Elevated

What do you see when you see the pastor elevated on the platform? Do you wonder if he is up there for his own self-glorification? Do you wonder if he’s gotten there through self-promotion? Do you wonder if he’s only there to feed the insatiable needs of his own ego?

Perhaps.

What I wish you could see is all the things you can’t see. It only looks like he is elevated on a platform. He’s actually standing on the shoulders of his grandmothers who spent countless hours on their aching knees praying for their grandson. He’s standing on the prayers and praises of his parents who hold him up still. He’s standing on the pastors who have gone before him, mentored him, poured into him, and shared their wisdom with him. He’s standing on the prophetic words given to him by a few saints so many years ago that are just now starting to blossom. His elevation is more about all of their faithfulness than it is about his own.

But that’s not all. Can you see what’s behind him?

If it seems like there is a kind of confidence about him, don’t mistake that for self-confidence. What you are seeing is the wind at his back created by friends who would take a bullet for him. That wind at his back is his sister and brother-in-law’s unwavering support, encouragement, and prayer. That wind is the many members of his last church who still cheer him on today. That wind is his wife, willing to sacrifice so much, so often.

But don’t blink or you’ll miss what’s right beside him.

Can you see them? The ones to his right and left. He has angels assigned to him, without which he couldn’t do half of what he does. He also has incredible co-ministers of the gospel who have partnered with him. They watch his flank so that he can take the lead. Their friendship and partnership in ministry are what allows him to focus on his own assignment.

And those in front of him? Can you see them?

They are why he was elevated in the first place. The Lord didn’t elevate him to that platform for his own ego. The Lord has people who need healed, people who need freedom, people who need salvation, all laid out before this pastor. Jesus needed someone to partner with. The pastor’s elevation is more about them than it is about him. He’s simply someone God could trust to do what it takes to serve them. Up is down in the Kingdom of God.

And the One you really want to see, the One that really counts, is the One that stands above the pastor, the One who resides within him.

Can you see Him? He is the source of this pastor’s everything — his strength, his wisdom, his hope, his gifts, his love, his ministry. They all come from the One who stands above him, the One who will never leave him nor forsake him, the One who lives within him. His name is Jesus, the Name that is above all names. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end of why the pastor is up there in the first place.

So, what do you see when you see the pastor elevated on the platform? I wish you could see all of those who stand under him, behind him, beside him, and in front of him. If you could see all of them (and maybe one day you will) it would be hard to see him. He would rightly disappear into the cloud of witnesses, and all that would be left to see is the only One worthy to be seen.

Pastor Dave Hess

Way back in 2015, I felt prompted by the Lord to launch a prayer ministry at my church. As I was thinking through who did prayer ministry like this and did it well, I was reminded of the church I attended for a few years in college–Christ Community Church in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. It was a long shot but I wondered if I could meet with the pastor, Dave Hess, and pick his brain a little.

To my surprise, when I called his secretary and explained my situation, he was willing to fit me in. So a few weeks later I drove up to Camp Hill to meet with Pastor Hess. I can’t remember the date, I just remember that it was cold and snow was on the ground.

As soon as I walked into his office, Pastor Dave greeted me with warmth and kindness. I explained my desire to launch a prayer ministry and to express the supernatural gifts of the Spirit but in a way that was responsible and accountable. My memory of him that day was that he mostly just listened and asked questions. He didn’t give me any great advice or wisdom except this: He said that I had to experience the Lord and profoundly encounter Him first before I could expect others to do the same.

Then he gave me three books for free. He gave me one training manual on prayer ministry, one book on prophetic gifting, and finally he gave me his own book. He talked briefly about his incredible encounters with God through his battle with cancer. It began to dawn on me just how important and influential Pastor Hess had become. The only way I can describe it is this: Imagine going across the street to your neighbors house to ask advice on how they get their rose garden to be so beautiful and in the process of talking about gardening you become aware that your neighbor is the former President of the United States. Here you are with the President and you’re asking him about roses. That was the feeling.

On my way out of his office, Pastor Dave Hess did something that left a mark on me. It was the most powerful moment of the whole meeting and it was totally unexpected. We both got up from our chairs and he thanked me for coming in. Then he did something that to this day I can’t shake from my consciousness. He took my coat off of the hook before I could get to it, he opened it up and waited for me to slip my arms in it. Picture what a butler would do for the head of the house. Or, if you were into watching Downton Abby, it’s what His Lordship’s Valet would do to help him get dressed. It’s what a father does for his children when they’re trying to put on a heavy winter coat.

As it was happening, I was too stunned to put it all together. It was the perfect picture of servant leadership. Here was this great man of faith, this man that I should be serving, and he was holding my coat. He took the posture of a servant with such ease it was clear that this was a regular part of his life. This is just who he is. I can’t even help my kids put their coats on without thinking about this moment. It is seared into my mind and heart. It was the winter version of washing feet.

I know it seems small, but you have to understand that Pastor Dave gets invited to speak at large conferences, he has written multiple books, and he has been the senior pastor of Christ Community for decades. I didn’t really know any of that when I asked to meet with him that day.

The books he gave me, by the way, ended up profoundly shaping the prayer ministry at my church. But the simple act of helping me put on my coat did something more. Can you imagine? One grown man helping another grown man put on his coat? There’s no logical reason for it. It was simply an act of servanthood. It was simply an act of love to a guy he just met. He has probably done that a million times. Serving and loving people are so natural for him that he probably thought nothing of it. But I’ll never forget it. It must have been how the prodigal son felt when his father brought the robe and put it on him.

Leadership Anointings

But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it…
So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Ephesians 4:7, 11-13

As the church shifts into this new post-pandemic culture, I believe we must move from teaching to training. We must shift to become equipping centers. Each believer must be equipped to take the power of the gospel back into their own neighborhoods, workplaces, and spheres of influence.

In the above passage of scripture, Paul describes the leadership anointings that were given to the church in order to accomplish this kind of equipping and training. Each leadership anointing is a gift from Christ to empower the church.

Apostolic: this leadership anointing breaks new ground. It allows a person to push into enemy territory and take new ground for the Kingdom of God. It often leans into miracles, signs and wonders to do so. This anointing often receives God’s blueprints for the way things should be and God’s designs and strategies for moving things forward.

Prophetic: this leadership anointing sees what’s coming and is able to say it. It allows a person to have an intensified ability to hear from the Lord. It often leans into dreams, visions, and impressions from the Lord. This anointing can often expose the plan of the enemy before it happens and call people to repentance.

Evangelistic: this leadership anointing has a heart that burns for those who don’t yet know Christ. It allows a person to know how to articulate the gospel in a way that reaches through to people. It often leans into an emphasis on outreach, hospitality, and connection to the wider world. This anointing often comes with a boldness to proclaim the gospel and a focus on the person who is not yet a part of the church.

Pastoral: this leadership anointing cares for the hurting. It allows a person to sense other people’s wounds and have insight into how to bind up the brokenhearted. It often leans into counseling, listening, and care for the marginalized. This anointing often receives words of knowledge and words of wisdom about what is happening inside a person, their motivations and broken spots.

Teaching: this leadership anointing identifies truth from error. It allows a person to have insight into ideas and concepts and apply those truths to people in a practical way. It often leans into study, instruction, and training. This anointing often comes with the ability to break down difficult concepts into more easily understood truths. It also comes with a keen discernment for what is true and what is not.

I have found, in my own life and in the life of others, that leaders in business and in the church may operate out of one or more of these leadership anointings. I often find that people blend at least two of these together as they lead an organization. What Paul was telling the Ephesians is that the church needs all five leadership anointings in operation in order to fully equip the Body of Christ. A church becomes mature when all five are in full operation and are bringing their leadership anointings to bear in the equipping of the community.

These anointings are gifts from Christ to the church. They are His way of empowering leaders to build up the church so that we all can attain to the whole measure of fullness of Christ.

Do you see one or more of these anointings operating in your own life?