Developing a Culture of Honor
By Nathan Camp
What Is Honor?
Honor means “to hold in high esteem, to regard with great respect, to revere”.
When it comes to being a follower of Christ, honor is a fact and way of life. Honor is a lifestyle of stopping to embrace the people and places that surround your life. Yet, so often in ministry, honor sometimes seems elusive.
How are we supposed to honor the people and places in which we live? If the Chief of Police enters into your church service...how would you honor them? How about a judge or a military person?
As pastors and ministry leaders, the truth is, we are called to show honor to all those around us. Sometimes, it’s a blessing for us because we are giving what we have never received ourselves.
Many church planters haven been “dis-honored” by others. Either from their pastor, friends, or co-laborers with Christ. And so honoring isn’t at the top of our list. But, one great aspect of “christ-likeness” is the ability to show honor to others...to hold them in high esteem...to show them high regard...to stop and embrace them for who and what they represent in our lives.
Yet, honor is not always easy. Given to ourselves, we can naturally deteriorate into selfishness. Just watch any group of children play and you’ll quickly see that preferring one another doesn’t come naturally. “Mine...Me first!” quickly becomes the prevailing attitude!
Many Pastors want to be honored but have yet to model that before their congregation.
The truth is, honor has to be cultivated. Honor doesn’t happen by accident but is the result of intentionally living out a vision to lift up those around us.
Truths About Honor
Honor is CULTIVATED
Honor doesn’t happen by accident. It happens as the result of an intentional pastor or leader that decides to sow the seeds of honor in how they serve our ministries to how they treat their ministers. The honor level in your church is a direct reflection of the level of honor we have modeled as pastors.
In the church I grew up in, our pastor was amazing at honoring. He made sure that when a woman walked off the stage, an usher arose to hold her hand as she came down. If she walked out the door, we held the door open. If we had food, the women were allowed to go first. If we talked about our wives, we tried to lift them up. As a result, women were highly honored in our church. They felt loved, respected and highly esteemed. And it showed in their countenance. It was evident that this culture of honor was cultivated. It was the direct result of an intentional vision.
Let me ask your a question. If someone was to ask one of your church members: Describe the culture of your church. Would they say “Honoring”? If not, perhaps we need to start cultivating it by sowing some seeds of honor.
Honor is MANDATED
The bible has a lot to say on the subject of honor! In fact, the bible calls us to live a lifestyle of honor.
Romans 13:7 (NKJV) “Render therefore to all their due...honor to whom honor.”
1 Peter 2:17 (NKJV) “Honor all people...”
We are called to live a lifestyle of honoring people, of highly regarding those around us. Often, as pastors, we take pride in being Word based, but when it comes to our cultivating a culture of honor, have we embraced the Word’s call?
Honor is CELEBRATED
Here’s a great truth about honor: Whether it is in your family, business or church, wherever there is a culture of honor present, joy is always there.
The reason is, a culture of honor releases people to celebrate each other.
Honor looks like… pointing out people’s strength, not their weaknesses.
Honor looks like… celebrating people’s wins, not their failures.
Honor looks like… seeing people’s future, not just their past.
Do you want joy in your family, business or church? Sow the seeds of honor and watch out for a harvest of joy!
How do we begin to cultivate a culture of honor?
3 Steps To Develop a Culture of Honor
Honor the PEOPLE you serve with
From the usher and greeter to the children’s worker and worship leader, the church is the people. And if we are honest, it takes a whole lot of them to make our churches and ministries succeed.
Usually, because of the pace of ministry, we can often forget the unsung heroes that walk the halls of our churches.
But, what if you change that now? What if this weekend you began to sing the songs of the heroes down the hall? What if we decided this weekend, is a weekend of honor?
Think about your church for a moment, or your ministry...
Who could you honor this weekend? The faithful usher? The wise board member? The single mother who serves so faithfully?
This could be the beginning of developing a culture of honor!
Honor the PLACES you serve in
One thing I love about being a church planter is the sense of being called...of waking up every day with the understanding that you are called to help reach the city in which you live. There are few things that compare to living for a vision.
Outside the walls of your ministry or church are thousands of people who are serving the city that you are called to love!
It could be the Police Chief, the EMT’s, the judges, or any number of the people serving your city. But they are there. They are serving the hurting, the dirty and the dying. They are making a difference in the lives of the people God has called you to pastor.
What could your ministry do to honor them?
What could you do let them know they are highly esteemed in the eyes of your church and that you are glad they are in this city with you?
This step could open doors like never before!
Honor the MINISTRIES you serve near
No church is an island. Your city has within it other believers, brothers, sisters and ministries who are co-laboring with you...although they are on the other side of town.
These men and women represent God’s deep devotion to reaching everyone in your city for Christ.
How could you honor what God is doing through them? What would happen if you were somehow able to honor those fellow laborers in your vineyard?
In this era of so much division in the body of Christ, what if your church started to swing the tide of division to a place of unity by honoring those who are called to win the same ground you are fighting for?
Honor can change the atmosphere of your church and your city. I want to encourage you to look for ways to honor. We must cultivate a culture of honor and expect a great harvest!
Recently, StartCHURCH released a new product called “Honor”. Honor is the culmination of a heart desire to help churches and ministries know how to being to sow seeds of honor. For more information on this resource, please click here.