In Exodus 17 and 18 Moses is starting to feel the burden of ministry that he will carry for the rest of his life. That burden is the constant complaining of the people of Israel. After God’s people left Egypt they spent a lot of their time complaining and a little bit of their time thanking God which led to their entire generation dying before they ever saw the land that God had promised the people of Israel.

These days a lot of people complain about a wide variety of things. Church seems to be a magnet for such complaints. People complain about the church universal, the church in America, certain churches or church networks and even the local church. Pastors, like Moses, field these complaints. While some complaints are valid, some complaints are mean hearted. Pastors should take all complaints seriously and at least think about the things people say, but that takes effort.

We should support the pastors of our local church. If they preach the bible and love Jesus then they should have our support. That doesn’t mean that we should agree with everything they say, but that we should serve those who are in leadership positions at church with honor. Serving a pastor could look like making him a meal, posting a nice note on his facebook page, or buy him a gift card to a nice local restaurant so he can take his wife on a proper date.

Pastoral appreciation and care really shouldn’t be the job of the church. It should be the natural reaction of the congregation. We all need to appreciate our pastors because they field the complaints that we never hear or see. Back up your pastor, show him honor as an elder over you, and learn from him as you would from Christ.