Coaching new pastors

This afternoon I had lunch with a new pastor of one of the churches in my Area.  He is a very impressive young man with an obvious love for Christ, for ministry, and for the Word.  He is already involved in a challening situation in his church, but he is approaching it with grace and with Scripture.  I believe he will be a good pastor for this church.

Our Region recently decided to offer to provide six months of coaching for our new pastors, so our meeting today was not only a get-acquainted session but also to get started on our coaching relationship.  Our plan is to have a coaching conversation every three weeks for six months, and we will extend that time if he feels it would be helpful.  Our Region staff felt this would help us give our new pastors a boost as they begin their ministries.  I know I would have loved to have had someone to coach me when I began my pastoral ministry.  The pastor today said it was very helpful for him to have someone with whom he could discuss this early challenge he's encountered.  He doesn't feel he's all alone in his new place of service, and that was our goal.

You may or may not be starting a new pastorate but you might feel that you could benefit from having a coach to work with as you are facing new challenges or seeking new direction.  Coaching is especially helpful when one is considering something new in their lives or ministries or when one is feeling like he or she is caught in a rut.   During such times it can be very helpful to have someone to talk to and having a coach can be especially helpful.  A coach can help a person begin to move forward with his or her life.

It's been my privilege to coach a number of bivocational and fully-funded pastors.  Most began their coaching sessions with me seeking direction for some area of their lives or they were facing challenges in their ministerial or personal lives.  In virtually every case, they were able to move forward with a sense of purpose at the end of our coaching relationship.

If you believe a coach could benefit you, I would be glad to talk to you.  I do limit the number of people that I coach at any one time, but I currently could accept 2-3 persons who would like to have a coach to help them address some issue in their lives.  If you are one of those people, feel free to contact me so we can discuss it.