Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible. 

Karl Vaters and I share the same passionate belief that pastors—shepherd leaders—need to be in the pastures where God has placed them, faithfully caring for the sheep under their care. 

Check out this clip from my interview on The Church Lobby—

In my book Shepherd Leadership, I wrote this—

     Jesus said not only that He knew His sheep, but that His sheep knew Him, too. Shepherd leaders get right into the messiness of shepherding. Let’s be honest: pastures are not very neat, tidy places to hang out. But pastures are where the sheep are, so that is where the shepherds need to be. If the only time you interact with others is when you want to make an announcement or someone needs to be corrected, your sheep will begin to either resent you or fear your arrival. 

The best way to know the voice of each one of the sheep in your pasture (and the best way for those sheep to know your voice as well) is to be in the pasture as often as you can. This is what Jesus did at the Good Shepherd, and His under-shepherds honor Him when we follow His example. 

You can check out more clips from this Church Lobby interview here. 

Check out my book Shepherd Leadership for yourself or for a pastor that you love. And also check out my latest book When Sheep Bite, which I think of as the prequel to Shepherd Leadership.

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