In the face of the suffering that characterizes the life of the Christian in this broken world, the Lord has graciously supplied elders (leadership-giving men) with the mandate to shepherd God’s flock through the trials of life. As servants under the Shepherd, these under-shepherds are duty-bound to adopt mindsets in their thinking that reflect accurately where the Chief Shepherd already is and so where their own focus is, that is, the inheritance today preserved in heaven for them (1 Peter 1:4). A church cannot (will not) thrive when her shepherds are focused on themselves or on the values of this life.
2 Paissez le troupeau de Dieu qui est sous votre garde, non par contrainte, mais volontairement, selon Dieu; non pour un gain sordide, mais avec dévouement;