Leonard's Enroute

Bosko


On Saturday, we had the privileged of having the previous student Dean of Hillsong college, John Ollis come speak to our leaders in Amplify at CSC. John is a dear friend and a mentor to me and to have him come and speak to my leaders was a dream and a prayer come true. Thank you Jesus! He spoke for two hours over two sessions on the subject of Mentoring and building a Bible-patterned ministry.

I went away, as usual, with alot to chew on. I begin seriously thinking about the ways we shepherd and disciple people in the Amplify . John spoke about two kinds of shepherding from John chapter 21.

In the familiar exchange between Jesus and Peter, Jesus asks Peter to both feed (greek: 'bosko') and shepherd ('poimaine') His sheep:

Jesus: "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?"
Peter: "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus: "Feed (bosko) my lambs (young believers)."
Jesus: "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?"
Peter: "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus: "Take care of (poimaino) my sheep."
Jesus: "Simon son of John, do you love me?'
Peter: "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you."
Jesus: "Feed (bosko) my sheep (older believers).


Jesus gave Peter two distinct instructions on shepherding. One is "poimaino" which is general caretaking that a shepherd does for the sheep - feeding, caring for, guiding, guarding, and protecting.

The other one is "bosko" means simply "to care, to feed." John pointed out that its a picture of the shepherd going in close to the sheep, running his hands through the wool and picking the lice out. Its the shepherd holding the sheep so close that its smell gets on him.

John pointed out that as leaders we need to tend to people in a general way - outreaches, big meetings, socials, talks, P&W etc. But we also need to move in closer to where individuals are and 'bosko' them. Its not enough to simple care from a distance, we need to draw nearer to each other. As he said, teaching on prayer is not the same as journeying with someone until they really become a prayer-er.

I think in Amplify we are good in the general tending of the community God has entrusted us, but we need to work on the moving in more personal, closer and caring for the individual member where they are at. (older or new believers) And more importantly - NURTURING their intimacy with God.

I think it relates perfectly with our theme for this year: Wider, Deeper. As we grow in our capacity to 'poimaino', I think we need to consider seriously how we can break the community down to smaller bits so Bosko can happen.

I think I will devote some time thinking and praying about this.