What Is Pastoral Care?
- Whitney Hopler Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer
- Published Mar 06, 2023
If you can use some guidance, encouragement, or support from a leader in your church community, you can benefit from pastoral care. Pastoral care and meaning encompasses a variety of valuable services. Your pastor and other church leaders may be able to help you with all sorts of needs through pastoral care. By learning more about your pastoral care options, you may strengthen both your well-being and your relationship with God.
What Is Pastoral Care?
Pastoral care is care that meets people’s most pressing needs, delivered by a church leader such as a pastor. It involves caring for people like a shepherd cares for his sheep – with loving attention for each individual – as Jesus calls pastors to do. The word “pastor” is a Latin word that means “shepherd” and was adopted into the English language.
The first Christian pastor, the apostle Peter, encouraged leaders in the early church to pursue pastoral care. 1 Peter 5:2-4 urges: “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them – not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” That passage references the Chief Shepherd, which is Jesus himself. Jesus speaks about that role in John chapter 10, saying in verses 14 and 15: “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father – and I lay down my life for the sheep.”
Psalm 23:1-6 describes how Jesus, our good shepherd role model, exemplifies caring leadership: “The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” Just as Jesus carefully meets people’s needs while leading them, church leaders do the same for the people in their churches through pastoral care.
Why Is Pastoral Care Important?
When church leaders provide pastoral care to their congregations, they’re showing their people what God’s love in action looks like. Experiencing that love inspires people to move closer to the source of all love: God. Through pastoral care, God’s love flows through church leaders to people, who learn that true love is an action, not just a feeling. Pastoral care can help people build closer relationships with the God who loves them completely and can meet all of their needs.
Jesus tells a parable called “The Sheep and The Goats” in Matthew 25:31-46 that describes the importance of meeting people’s needs, which is the essence of pastoral care. The parable presents a warning about taking his call to help others seriously. It shows what will happen when Jesus comes to judge humanity, both to faithful people who care for others with love (sheep) and people who neglect to care for others with love (goats). Jesus says to the sheep in verses 34-36, 40: “‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ ... ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” But Jesus tells the goats in verses 41-43, 45: “‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ … ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’’’
Pastoral care is also important because God calls all church leaders to prioritize pastoral care. Ephesians 4:11-13 reveals that Jesus has equipped pastors and other church leaders for service, to help all Christians grow more spiritually mature: “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.” In Acts 20:28, the apostle Paul urges leaders in the early church to “Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.”
Examples of Pastoral Care
As shepherds of their church flock, pastors lead their staff in delivering diverse care to their congregations. The pastoral care that church leaders provide includes:
Prayer: You can reach out to your church leaders to pray with and for you about whatever concerns you have. Many churches offer prayer teams that regularly accept prayer requests and lift those requests to God.
Counseling: Whenever you need guidance on how to deal wisely with important issues in your life, you can ask for counseling from your church. You may find direction that helps you discover a stronger sense of purpose and set goals, advice for an important decision you’re facing personally or professionally, help for marriage or family issues, or healing from trauma or addiction. Beyond counseling at your church, church leaders can also refer you to professional counselors for more help.
Encouragement: If you need encouragement during stressful and challenging circumstances, you can ask for a visit or phone call from one of your church leaders to talk. Church leaders provide encouragement during conversations at homes, hospitals, and even prisons – wherever they need to go to help discouraged people in their congregations. They can help you relieve stress, discover hope, find wonder, and experience joy in difficult times.
Provision: Church leaders can meet your needs during a crisis. For example, if you’re recovering from surgery and can’t cook or do yard work for a while, your church may find volunteers to deliver meals and take care of your yard until you’re well. Church leaders can also connect you with resources from community agencies and charities for more help providing for your practical needs.
Conclusion
Pastoral care encompasses a diverse variety of ways your church community can serve you. Whenever you need something important, don’t hesitate to reach out to your church leaders to see how they can help meet that need. God calls all church leaders to provide pastoral care as a way of putting his love in action.
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/DGLimages
