Spiritual Codependency

It has been quite awhile since I have posted and since I am sure everyone desperately missed my insights, I apologize for not being more diligent.  The truth is, I frequently struggle with what to write about and rather than just randomly blab, I tend to choose not posting.  However, today I was reading an article in a magazine that I get and I came across the question "Are you fostering spiritual codependency?" and I thought it would be a good topic for a post.

As a pastor, my desire is to help people realize their need for Jesus and see them obediently follow Him with their lives.  Not as a religious pursuit to earn any kind of reward, but because they are in love with Him and their heart is transformed so that they desire what He desires.  But is that what the Christian church looks like today?  Check out this quote from Mark Batterson's book "Wild Goose Chase"

I'm afraid we've turned church into a spectator sport.  Too many of us are content with letting a spiritual leader seek God for us.  Like the Israelites, we want Moses to climb the mountain for us.  After all, it is much easier to let someone else pray for us or study for us.  So the church unintentionally fosters a subtle form of spiritual codependency.

Where does my job as a pastor end and the responsibility of the individual follower begin?  Am I helping people or am I actually hurting people?  These are tough questions to answer definitively but I think they are good questions to ask.   Since most of you are not pastors, can I suggest a different question?  Are you spiritually codependent on your pastor (or some other person)?  Let me assure that other than being paid to minister, I am not really any different than you.  I am a guy trying to figure out what it looks like to follow Jesus and trying to apply the things I think I have figured out.  My desire is to help you do the same but not do it for you.  Let's step out together in being spiritually dependent on Jesus!