Lee Eclov - Pastoral Graces: Reflections on the Care of Souls

Oh, my, a book on the pastorate that is about, well, pastoring, shepherding! Its a rare breed in our ambitious and managerial age. But its a biblical breed who know that the minister is, from first to last, a minister of Gods grace. I have said this about few books in my long life, but it clearly applies to this one: required reading for every pastor, a book destined to become a classic.

M ARK G ALLI
Senior managing editor
Christianity Today

Wisdom doesnt have the blurts writes Lee Eclov, but rather listens with questions and then frames an answer with the grace of Christ. Eclov follows his advice in Pastoral Graces, a poignant and engaging book that composes a beautiful vision of pastoral ministry. Having grown in wisdom for over three decades in pastoral ministry, Eclov weaves warm stories together with biblical truth for the benefit of his readers. And if we as pastors are to survive the long marathon of pastoral ministry, we need the careful wisdom of books like Pastoral Graces, a cool and refreshing cup of grace for thirsty pastors.

C HRIS B RAUNS
Pastor of The Red Brick Church,
Stillman Valley, Illinois

Lee Eclov has a heart, a pastors heart, and he can put into inspiring and cashmere-sweater words its movements. Reading this book is like talking to Lee at his best. If you are a pastor, this book will most likely leave you with renewed feelings about the joy and privilege of being not the executive of a corporation but rather the shepherd of the flock.

C RAIG B RIAN L ARSON
Editor of PreachingToday.com

Lee Eclov is the kind of pastor I want to have as my pastor. He is the sort of pastor I would like to be. This book draws back the veil to reveal the remarkable and mysterious way that God works through ordinary shepherds. If you are a pastor, read it. It will make you grateful for the privilege. If you have a pastor, it will make you thankful that God has given your church such a gift.

J OHN K OESSLER
Chairman of Pastoral Studies Department,
Moody Bible Institute

Plenty of books teach ministers how to be CEOs. Some texts teach them how to be good preachers. Only a few inculcate valid principles for pastoring, and rarer still are those that do it well. Pastoral Graces is a gem of a book that does it superbly.

C RAIG B LOMBERG
Distinguished Professor of New Testament,
Denver Seminary

At its core, pastoral leadership connects the divine to the lives of all those around us through the demonstration of Gods abundant grace. From Lees life as a pastor, he explains how God uses pastors to be dispensers of Gods grace. Pastors will appreciate Lees practical suggestions on how to make grace the center of our leadership.

C RAIG W ILLIFORD
President, Trinity International University

M OODY P UBLISHERS
CHICAGO

2012 by L EE E CLOV

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV 1984. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. NIV . Copyright 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are tken from the King James Version.

Edited by Brandon OBrien
Interior design: Ragont Design
Cover design: Left Coast Design
Cover image: Getty Images / Photographer Emmanuelle Purdon
Collection: Photodisc / Credit Emmanuelle Purdon
Author photo: Magen Davis

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Eclov, Lee.
Pastoral graces: reflections on the care of souls / Lee Eclov.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-8024-0567-8
1. Pastoral care. 2. Pastoral theology. 3. Pastoral counseling. 4. Church work. 5. Grace (Theology) I. Title.
BV4011.3.E28 2012
253.2dc23

2012003881

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For Susan,
who loves me and loves being a pastors wife;
and for Anders, my son,
with whom I am well pleased.

DOCTORS ENTER the practice of medicine. Lawyers, the practice of law. Pastors enter the practice of grace. Grace is our stock-in-trade. But practicing grace is not much like the professions of medicine or law.

First off, Gods gracebeing gracestarts giving before we even know how badly we need it. God starts saving us before we know were drowning. Then, when we realize we must cry for help, our salvation through Christ comes loaded with far more benefits than we fathom. You do not lack any grace-gift, says Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:7. We spend the rest of our days discovering how rich we are, none of our blessings deserved or earned.

This life of grace comes with responsibilities for grace. Like Christ, our pioneer in grace, we are born again not to be served, but to serve, and to serve redemptively through Christ. Gods grace not only washes us, it outfits us with Jesus basin and towel.

Pastors, like all believers, are agents of grace. But we dispense the grace of Christ as no other believers do. We are shepherds. Search as we might for a word more suited to our contemporary culture, shepherd is the only word that will do. If we hope to understand what weve been called by God to do, we have to step into a foreign world of sheep and pastures, folds and staffs, night watches and wilderness searches. Look hard at the timeless figures keeping watch over their flocks by night. Patient, long-suffering, committed to the often lonely routines of care. Thats how God wants us to see ourselves. In fact, that is one way God sees Himself.

No one is born with the aptitude for being one of the Lords shepherds. No one starts planning a career thinking, I guess Ill go into the practice of grace. But when we are called, God gives us a miraculous instinct for the work. We commonly call it a shepherds heart. While I suppose that some pastors have personalities that give them a leg up, no one has the makings of a shepherd apart from Gods grace. You think youre headed for a career in business or education, a trade or an art, and the next thing you know, youre standing in some pasture with a shepherds crook in your hand, surrounded by sheep. Its a career comedown, unless you know about grace.