Pastoral Invisibility.

Way too often pastors are considered invisible in the neighborhood they live.

They'll say things like,

"I'm too busy teaching my congregants how to be engaged in their own community to do it myself."

They'll say,

"If our church closed (meaning if the building disappeared) would anyone notice?"

A much better line of questioning is,

'If you moved your house to another neighbourhood,

Would anyone in your current neighbourhood notice?
Would anyone care?
Would you be missed?

Maybe it's not pastoral ministry that you're actually practicing.

Perhaps it's better termed,

PASTORAL INVISIBILITY.

Jesus was present in his neighbourhood.

Immanuel, "God with us,"

... He was not running off to a meeting, or to a building,

The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighborhood.