No one goes into the ministry to become wealthy. If they did it's likely they will get a reality check rather quickly. It's important that ministers understand how to manage their money wisely. Unfortunately, after 12 years of public education, four years of college and three years of seminary most have received little to no training in how to manage their personal finances. Many are struggling with student loan debt and the expenses of starting and raising a family. This can create huge problems in the home, increase stress and even cause the minister to leave the ministry in order to financially support his or her family.
While serving as an Area Minister I spent a lot of time in my car. At the time of my retirement I was serving over 130 churches scattered across the southern third of Indiana so I had a lot of windshield time. To pass the time driving I regularly downloaded a number of podcasts on my I-Pod to listen to. One of those podcasts was The Dave Ramsey Show. This was a three hour podcast where Ramsey took caller's questions about their personal finances. He would give them advice on how to solve those problems often referring to his Baby Step formula.
After listening for several months my wife and I decided to follow those steps, and we found out they worked! When I recently served as a Transitional Pastor in a church I asked an individual to lead Ramsey's Financial Peace University in a small group, and the results were amazing. To my knowledge, every person in that group saw tremendous improvement in their personal finances.
Ramsey has published several books on personal finance and members of his team have written more, but the one I would recommend to anyone who needs help with their personal finances is The Total Money Makeover: Classic Edition: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness. This book contains the Baby Steps and explains how to follow them. It also provides a lot of commonsense advice on money management. Because Ramsey is a Christian you will find that a lot of what he teaches is based on biblical teaching.
If you struggle financially you may find his recommendations will help you get better control over your finances. When you do that you will likely find that your ministry is more productive because you are not stressed out over money problems, and your home life will probably improve as well.
I would also recommend that your church offer Financial Peace University to your congregation. If your church is like most, there are probably several families who are struggling financially who would benefit from this eight session program. This could be a tremendous way to minister to them in an area in which they are hurting.
If I returned to pastoral ministry I would also begin to offer FPU to the community as an outreach effort. Jesus touched people where they were hurting, and many people today are hurting financially. This could be an excellent way to introduce people to your church and minister to their needs.
Thursday, August 29, 2019
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
How parents can raise healthy, happy children
There is no question that children and young people have it tough today. They face many more temptations and challenges than most of us ever knew when we were growing up. Many never get to know a real childhood as they are forced to grow up much too fast. When I was a pastor I often told our church that our number one priority as a church was to reach people for Jesus Christ and our second priority had to be to help families thrive in today's culture. I still believe that. There is no other organization than the church that has the tools that can help children survive these difficult growing-up years. How can we help parents ensure their children grow up to be healthy and happy individuals?
In his book What Americans Really Want...Really: The Truth About Our Hopes, Dreams, and Fears Frank Luntz offers six parental behaviors that can help raise such children.
In his book What Americans Really Want...Really: The Truth About Our Hopes, Dreams, and Fears Frank Luntz offers six parental behaviors that can help raise such children.
- Have dinner with your children. I have read that the average amount of time parents spend in meaningful conversation with their children is 3 1/2 minutes a WEEK. Sitting down to eat dinner with our children sends a message that they are important to us and gives parents an opportunity to actually talk with their children. This means no phones and no interruptions. Family dinners may be a thing of the past, but they do not have to be, and they are important for raising healthy children.
- Take your child to church every Sunday. Church attendance keeps dwindling while cultural problems keeps increasing. I think there is a connection. Don't take your child to church and drop him or her off while you do something else. Attend services with your child so they know that your faith is important to you.
- Check your child's homework every night. This demonstrates that you believe their school work is important, and it helps you spot early on if there are problems. It also allows more time for conversation, especially about things going on at school.
- Demand the truth from your children. When your children are going out you should know where they are going, who is going with them and what they are going to be doing. Don't be afraid to set boundaries about acceptable behaviors and those they associate with. Never tolerate deceit from your children.
- Take your children on vacation at least one week every year. They need a break from the normal lives they are living, and this gives you more time with them. Create special memories that will outlive you.
- Encourage them to participate in a team sport. When playing team sports they learn they are responsible to other people. It also gives them exercise and gets them away from video games, social media and other things that consume so much of children's time today.
Tuesday, August 27, 2019
Christian America is under attack
I just finished reading an incredible book DARK AGENDA: The War to Destroy Christian America by David Horowitz. Horowitz is a Jewish agnostic who has written extensively on the left's attacks on America and Christianity. In this book he explains how the left has worked tirelessly to promote their radical agenda that will forever alter our nation. Much of their efforts have been directed towards attacking the Christian doctrines that have been foundational to our nation's past success.
The divisions that exist in our nation today run deep. Although conservatives, and especially Christians are blamed for these divisions, much of it is due to the left's commitment to transforming America through any means possible. Anyone who opposes or in any way disagrees with the "social justice" agenda of the left is attacked, marginalized, and maligned. This has had a chilling effect on any attempt to dialogue on the issues or try to reach any type of compromise on the issues. A great example of this is the recent CNN commentator's response to a statement made by a GOP campaign veteran. Rather than discuss his statement she went on the attack saying that "the greatest terrorist threat in this country is white men who think like you." How does this lead to any discussion on any issue? It doesn't, but such rhetoric continues to divide the nation.
Although I have long been aware of what is going on in America I had never read anything that so clearly detailed how committed the left was to impose their agenda on this country and how effective they had been. Whatever your opinion is about President Trump, one reason he has been under such attack since being elected president is because he stands in the way of the left being able to continue to push their agenda on the nation. The radical left will not allow anyone or anything stand in their way.
This is also why they attack Evangelical Christianity with a vengeance. Since they could not achieve their goals through public opinion or by state statute they turned to the Supreme Court who could change the laws impacting the entire nation simply by convincing six unelected lawyers of the merits of their case. This attack began by removing prayer and Bible reading from the public school. In many school districts in the nation today students can be taught about Islam but not Christianity. They continued their onslaught against traditional values by convincing the court to legalize abortion and changing concepts of marriage that had been understood for centuries throughout the world. They are not done yet.
Horowitz details in the book how the radical left continues to shape our nation by forcing their agenda on the nation furthering dividing it. They will use any means possible to succeed including the courts, the media, violence, and constant attacks on anyone who opposes them. This includes conservative Christians who do not accept their view of a better America.
Many, including some Christians, wonder why Evangelical Christians support Trump. It's not because they approve of his lifestyle or choices he has made in the past. They support him because they share a common agenda with him which is stopping the radical left from doing further damage to our nation. However, conservative Christians must understand that a man cannot solve our nation's problems nor return us to traditional values.
The White House cannot save us, the state house cannot save us, the courthouse cannot save us. Only God can turn this nation around. 2 Chronicles 7:14 tells us that when Christians confess their sins, pray and humbly seek God He will hear and heal their land. We need a spiritual revival to sweep through our nation, and that begins within the church and the hearts of individual Christians. We need to know what the enemy is doing, and this book does a great job of detailing that, but we must place our hope in God. He alone can turn our nation back to what it once was.
The divisions that exist in our nation today run deep. Although conservatives, and especially Christians are blamed for these divisions, much of it is due to the left's commitment to transforming America through any means possible. Anyone who opposes or in any way disagrees with the "social justice" agenda of the left is attacked, marginalized, and maligned. This has had a chilling effect on any attempt to dialogue on the issues or try to reach any type of compromise on the issues. A great example of this is the recent CNN commentator's response to a statement made by a GOP campaign veteran. Rather than discuss his statement she went on the attack saying that "the greatest terrorist threat in this country is white men who think like you." How does this lead to any discussion on any issue? It doesn't, but such rhetoric continues to divide the nation.
Although I have long been aware of what is going on in America I had never read anything that so clearly detailed how committed the left was to impose their agenda on this country and how effective they had been. Whatever your opinion is about President Trump, one reason he has been under such attack since being elected president is because he stands in the way of the left being able to continue to push their agenda on the nation. The radical left will not allow anyone or anything stand in their way.
This is also why they attack Evangelical Christianity with a vengeance. Since they could not achieve their goals through public opinion or by state statute they turned to the Supreme Court who could change the laws impacting the entire nation simply by convincing six unelected lawyers of the merits of their case. This attack began by removing prayer and Bible reading from the public school. In many school districts in the nation today students can be taught about Islam but not Christianity. They continued their onslaught against traditional values by convincing the court to legalize abortion and changing concepts of marriage that had been understood for centuries throughout the world. They are not done yet.
Horowitz details in the book how the radical left continues to shape our nation by forcing their agenda on the nation furthering dividing it. They will use any means possible to succeed including the courts, the media, violence, and constant attacks on anyone who opposes them. This includes conservative Christians who do not accept their view of a better America.
Many, including some Christians, wonder why Evangelical Christians support Trump. It's not because they approve of his lifestyle or choices he has made in the past. They support him because they share a common agenda with him which is stopping the radical left from doing further damage to our nation. However, conservative Christians must understand that a man cannot solve our nation's problems nor return us to traditional values.
The White House cannot save us, the state house cannot save us, the courthouse cannot save us. Only God can turn this nation around. 2 Chronicles 7:14 tells us that when Christians confess their sins, pray and humbly seek God He will hear and heal their land. We need a spiritual revival to sweep through our nation, and that begins within the church and the hearts of individual Christians. We need to know what the enemy is doing, and this book does a great job of detailing that, but we must place our hope in God. He alone can turn our nation back to what it once was.
Monday, August 26, 2019
Where will smaller churches find pastors in the future?
Much has been written about the challenges smaller churches have in finding pastors. I've covered it several times over the years in this blog and have written about it in a couple of my books. It's a huge problem that is not going to be resolved easily unless these churches begin to change the way they think about calling a pastor. Trying to solve a modern problem by holding on to old ways of thinking and doing probably isn't going to work. Let's look at some options that are not only outside the box thinking but maybe beyond the box thinking.
- Become more realistic about what the church wants from their pastor. I occasionally read online posts of churches seeking pastors. It's not uncommon to find a church of 50 people who want the pastor to preach twice on Sunday, lead a Bible study on Wednesday night, do all the visitation of members, be involved in the community, attend all committee and board meetings, and grow the church. They prefer a seminary graduate and are only able to pay at this time a total salary of $30,000 a year. These are churches that need someone to come in and do a reality check with them. Even if they find a pastor willing to accept these conditions it's highly likely they will be looking for another pastor within a couple of years.
- Consider calling a bivocational pastor. Although the number of bivocational pastors are growing across almost every denomination, there are still some churches unwilling to consider a bivocational person. We used to think that bivocational ministers were only for small, rural churches of 20-30 people, but we are now seeing churches of 100 calling bivocational pastors who are doing a great job.
- Consider sharing a pastor with another church. The Methodists have been doing this for years. I once led a conference for UMC bivocational pastors in one district and preached in one of their churches. The pastor of this church served four churches. It can be done, but many churches won't even consider such an arrangement. It's time to put this option on the table.
- Consider becoming a satellite of a larger church. I once proposed this to a church who was struggling to find a pastor. Under my proposal, they would not give up any of their independence as a church. They would have the pastor of the larger church preach by satellite into their church at the same time he was preaching in his church or they could opt to videotape his message to be played the following week. He would provide some leadership and visioning to the church, but their basic pastoral needs would be met by a trained lay person from within their congregation.
- Consider calling a woman as pastor. I'm sure this will cost me some followers! If you are certain that it is theologically impossible for a woman to be a pastor, then ignore this option. Just be sure it is a theological position you are taking and not a cultural one. It bothers me that a handful of denominations are absolutely certain that a woman cannot pastor a church when so many conservative denominations have women pastors. If you automatically reject women as pastoral candidates for your church you have excluded a large percentage of your potential candidates.
- Consider calling a retired minister. Just because there is snow on the roof doesn't mean there isn't still fire in the furnace. I realize most churches want younger pastors, but there are many older pastors who would enjoy serving in a small church, and they bring a wealth of experience and training that younger pastors don't have.
- Consider calling someone from within your congregation and help them get the training they will need to be an effective minister. I've seen this work very well in a number of small churches. This training doesn't have to be a full seminary degree. There are some excellent online certificate programs that can provide quality training for lay people to fill this role. A number of denominations also offer such training for their lay leadership and bivocational ministers.
- Consider merging with another church. This is my least favorite option although it is doable. When churches ask me about this option I suggest that for it to work well both churches need to sell their property and purchase or rent something new. Otherwise, the church that met in the building will always consider it THEIR church, and there will be a division between the two congregations that might never be resolved.
Friday, August 23, 2019
Three dollars worth of God
For years I have been haunted by the quote from Wilber Rees: "I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don't want enough of Him to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please."
Does this sound like anyone you know? Maybe someone in your church? Maybe you?
In my book The Healthy Community: Moving Your Church Beyond Tunnel Vision I wrote about the problem of a lack of discipled believers. In my 14 years serving as a regional minister I saw too many pastors leave their church due to members who had no interest in growing in their faith. As one pastor told me, the majority of his congregation was content to attend worship service on Sunday morning if nothing interfered, and that was all they felt was expected of them. They had no interest in any type of discipleship training, and he had been unable to turn that around.
Discipleship is difficult because it's messy. The easy thing to do is to provide age-graded classes, have a promotion Sunday each year, and order slick, multicolored literature with a teacher's guide to make it easier for the teacher to lead the class. The only problem is that we have proven over the years this does not necessarily lead to discipled believers.
As I point out in the book, discipleship is caught, not taught. Education alone does not make a disciple. Jesus taught His disciples and then sent them out to minister. Did they do everything right? No, but they learned from their mistakes, and their faith was deepened. The church must give people an opportunity to do hands-on ministry if we expect them to grow. Sitting in air-conditioned classrooms hearing another take on Daniel in the lion's den won't produce disciples, but letting them in the lion's den might.
Pastor, how many people in your church are engaged in actual ministry outside the church? I'm not talking about serving on some board or committee but involved in real ministry that impact the lives of those they serve. Are there people in your church who can fill the pulpit for you if you need to be absent?
When I was pastoring two of my deacons took turns sharing the pulpit when I was on vacation. One evening in a deacon meeting one of them suggested the other deacons should also fill the pulpit to see what was involved in preparing and delivering a sermon. Two other deacons volunteered to do so. Dates were set for them to preach. When they had an idea for their message they came to me to borrow some study helps, and both delivered great sermons. It was a growing opportunity for each of these men.
Challenge your people to do more than show up on Sunday morning. It has been said that the first reformation gave the Bible to the people and the second reformation will give the ministry to the people. As people become more involved in ministry they will grow as disciples and they will never again be satisfied with $3 worth of God.
Does this sound like anyone you know? Maybe someone in your church? Maybe you?
In my book The Healthy Community: Moving Your Church Beyond Tunnel Vision I wrote about the problem of a lack of discipled believers. In my 14 years serving as a regional minister I saw too many pastors leave their church due to members who had no interest in growing in their faith. As one pastor told me, the majority of his congregation was content to attend worship service on Sunday morning if nothing interfered, and that was all they felt was expected of them. They had no interest in any type of discipleship training, and he had been unable to turn that around.
Discipleship is difficult because it's messy. The easy thing to do is to provide age-graded classes, have a promotion Sunday each year, and order slick, multicolored literature with a teacher's guide to make it easier for the teacher to lead the class. The only problem is that we have proven over the years this does not necessarily lead to discipled believers.
As I point out in the book, discipleship is caught, not taught. Education alone does not make a disciple. Jesus taught His disciples and then sent them out to minister. Did they do everything right? No, but they learned from their mistakes, and their faith was deepened. The church must give people an opportunity to do hands-on ministry if we expect them to grow. Sitting in air-conditioned classrooms hearing another take on Daniel in the lion's den won't produce disciples, but letting them in the lion's den might.
Pastor, how many people in your church are engaged in actual ministry outside the church? I'm not talking about serving on some board or committee but involved in real ministry that impact the lives of those they serve. Are there people in your church who can fill the pulpit for you if you need to be absent?
When I was pastoring two of my deacons took turns sharing the pulpit when I was on vacation. One evening in a deacon meeting one of them suggested the other deacons should also fill the pulpit to see what was involved in preparing and delivering a sermon. Two other deacons volunteered to do so. Dates were set for them to preach. When they had an idea for their message they came to me to borrow some study helps, and both delivered great sermons. It was a growing opportunity for each of these men.
Challenge your people to do more than show up on Sunday morning. It has been said that the first reformation gave the Bible to the people and the second reformation will give the ministry to the people. As people become more involved in ministry they will grow as disciples and they will never again be satisfied with $3 worth of God.
Thursday, August 22, 2019
Every church needs someone to lead outreach
A couple of days ago in this blog I stressed the fact that the church's one job is to reach people for Christ. This isn't about growing the church' it's about growing the Kingdom of God. It's about helping people find the forgiveness and the relationship with God through Jesus Christ that we all need. Outreach is everyone's responsibility in the church, but I've become convinced that someone must lead that effort. If someone does not have the responsibility to keep the importance of outreach before the congregation it becomes too easy for it to fall through the cracks of church life.
As I've thought about this I'm convinced if I returned to pastoral ministry the first staff person I would add would be an outreach leader in the church. In a bigger church that might be a paid position. In a smaller church it would likely be a volunteer. I would look for someone who has the gifts and the passion for outreach, someone who is a more mature Christian, and someone who is respected in the community. This individual would be a key person on the church leadership team. Together, he or she and I would develop strategies to effectively reach out to our community to help people discover the transforming impact a relationship with Jesus Christ would make on their lives, and then that person would lead the congregation in implementing those strategies.
For several decades most churches have focused on adding other staff people to the leadership team, and we have seen church attendance, baptisms, and salvation decisions continue to decline over the years. It's time to admit that what we have been doing is not working and new strategies need to be developed. There is nothing wrong with having music ministers, youth ministers, and other staff persons, but if the church's one job is evangelism it seems reasonable to think that area of ministry should be the first one staffed and funded in the budget.
I have read that every county in the US is at least 80 percent unchurched, and some are even higher than that. We have a huge mission field right in our back yards that too many churches are ignoring. As a result, our nation is becoming more secular and more hostile towards religion and the church. Since the 1960s we have moved further and further away from biblical standards of conduct. We can blame whomever we want, but the real issue is that the church has failed its mandate to take the gospel to all people.
Even more important than the impact on our nation is the impact on the lives of individuals who have never heard the gospel. Many of us reading this post would claim that we believe the Bible from cover to cover. Well... the Bible teaches that all who die without a personal relationship with God will be eternally separated from God. Men, women and young people are dying without God every moment because the church failed to reach out to them with the gospel message of hope and forgiveness. If we truly believe what the Bible says about lost people then we must make outreach the highest priority of our churches.
I want to encourage you to pray about who might be a good outreach leader in your church and ask them to consider fulfilling that role. Explain to them the impact they can have on your church, but more importantly, on the lives of those who are reached because of their ministry.
As I've thought about this I'm convinced if I returned to pastoral ministry the first staff person I would add would be an outreach leader in the church. In a bigger church that might be a paid position. In a smaller church it would likely be a volunteer. I would look for someone who has the gifts and the passion for outreach, someone who is a more mature Christian, and someone who is respected in the community. This individual would be a key person on the church leadership team. Together, he or she and I would develop strategies to effectively reach out to our community to help people discover the transforming impact a relationship with Jesus Christ would make on their lives, and then that person would lead the congregation in implementing those strategies.
For several decades most churches have focused on adding other staff people to the leadership team, and we have seen church attendance, baptisms, and salvation decisions continue to decline over the years. It's time to admit that what we have been doing is not working and new strategies need to be developed. There is nothing wrong with having music ministers, youth ministers, and other staff persons, but if the church's one job is evangelism it seems reasonable to think that area of ministry should be the first one staffed and funded in the budget.
I have read that every county in the US is at least 80 percent unchurched, and some are even higher than that. We have a huge mission field right in our back yards that too many churches are ignoring. As a result, our nation is becoming more secular and more hostile towards religion and the church. Since the 1960s we have moved further and further away from biblical standards of conduct. We can blame whomever we want, but the real issue is that the church has failed its mandate to take the gospel to all people.
Even more important than the impact on our nation is the impact on the lives of individuals who have never heard the gospel. Many of us reading this post would claim that we believe the Bible from cover to cover. Well... the Bible teaches that all who die without a personal relationship with God will be eternally separated from God. Men, women and young people are dying without God every moment because the church failed to reach out to them with the gospel message of hope and forgiveness. If we truly believe what the Bible says about lost people then we must make outreach the highest priority of our churches.
I want to encourage you to pray about who might be a good outreach leader in your church and ask them to consider fulfilling that role. Explain to them the impact they can have on your church, but more importantly, on the lives of those who are reached because of their ministry.
Wednesday, August 21, 2019
You had one job
We've all seen the meme that says "You had one job." It's usually said when someone messes up or fails to do the job they were given.
The church has one mission. That mission is the same for every church regardless of size or denomination. It is to fulfill the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. The Great Commission tells us to go into all the world and lead people to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ and help them grow as disciples. The Great Commandment tells us to love God with our entire being and our neighbor as ourselves. That's it. One job.
Business leaders are often told to ask themselves two questions. "What business are we in?" This is followed by "How's business?" So church leaders, what business are you in? In other words, what are you supposed to do? Then ask yourself, "How's business?"
What are we supposed to do? As I wrote earlier we have one job: to fulfill the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. So, is your church doing that?
The sad fact is that many of our churches are not. Among Baptists and other denominations baptisms have long been one way to determine our effectiveness at evangelism. Those numbers are down and have been for several years. Many churches have not reported a baptism in years, even decades.
As dismal as our evangelistic efforts are, disciple-making might be even worse. I talk with very few church leaders who are happy with the discipleship ministries in their churches. They talk about the difficulty in getting people to attend Bible studies, Sunday schools or small groups. Usually, only a small percentage of those in morning worship services are involved in any type of discipleship program. The result of this is that Christians are often spiritually immature and struggle to understand even basic Christian doctrine which also means they are less likely to live according to those teachings.
If we are not learning the doctrines of the church and not living them then can we truly say we are loving God with our entire being? Jesus said if you love Him you will keep His commandments.
The church needs to recapture its evangelistic zeal. That begins in the pulpit. If the pastor is not a soul-winner it's unlikely the church will be as well. There needs to be a clear call from the pulpit that the mission of the church is the winning of souls for Jesus Christ. There is time for other ministries that can impact our communities, but our one thing must be the winning of people to Christ.
With that there must be clear expectations that people are to grow in their faith. If people are not willing to grow then they should not expect to be placed in positions of leadership. The church needs to find a discipleship ministry that will work in its context and let people know they are expected to take advantage of it. Build your future leaders out of those who are growing deeper in the Lord.
Some might argue that their church is too small to do anything I've suggested. Perhaps that's why you're small. You've done nothing to reach new people for Christ and nothing to help people grow in their faith. Why would God want to send anyone your direction. BTW- The Great Commission doesn't say we are to wait until people show up at our front door. It tells us to go to where the people are proclaiming the saving work of Christ for all people.
We have one job. Now that you know what that is, what will you do to fulfill it?
The church has one mission. That mission is the same for every church regardless of size or denomination. It is to fulfill the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. The Great Commission tells us to go into all the world and lead people to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ and help them grow as disciples. The Great Commandment tells us to love God with our entire being and our neighbor as ourselves. That's it. One job.
Business leaders are often told to ask themselves two questions. "What business are we in?" This is followed by "How's business?" So church leaders, what business are you in? In other words, what are you supposed to do? Then ask yourself, "How's business?"
What are we supposed to do? As I wrote earlier we have one job: to fulfill the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. So, is your church doing that?
The sad fact is that many of our churches are not. Among Baptists and other denominations baptisms have long been one way to determine our effectiveness at evangelism. Those numbers are down and have been for several years. Many churches have not reported a baptism in years, even decades.
As dismal as our evangelistic efforts are, disciple-making might be even worse. I talk with very few church leaders who are happy with the discipleship ministries in their churches. They talk about the difficulty in getting people to attend Bible studies, Sunday schools or small groups. Usually, only a small percentage of those in morning worship services are involved in any type of discipleship program. The result of this is that Christians are often spiritually immature and struggle to understand even basic Christian doctrine which also means they are less likely to live according to those teachings.
If we are not learning the doctrines of the church and not living them then can we truly say we are loving God with our entire being? Jesus said if you love Him you will keep His commandments.
The church needs to recapture its evangelistic zeal. That begins in the pulpit. If the pastor is not a soul-winner it's unlikely the church will be as well. There needs to be a clear call from the pulpit that the mission of the church is the winning of souls for Jesus Christ. There is time for other ministries that can impact our communities, but our one thing must be the winning of people to Christ.
With that there must be clear expectations that people are to grow in their faith. If people are not willing to grow then they should not expect to be placed in positions of leadership. The church needs to find a discipleship ministry that will work in its context and let people know they are expected to take advantage of it. Build your future leaders out of those who are growing deeper in the Lord.
Some might argue that their church is too small to do anything I've suggested. Perhaps that's why you're small. You've done nothing to reach new people for Christ and nothing to help people grow in their faith. Why would God want to send anyone your direction. BTW- The Great Commission doesn't say we are to wait until people show up at our front door. It tells us to go to where the people are proclaiming the saving work of Christ for all people.
We have one job. Now that you know what that is, what will you do to fulfill it?
Tuesday, August 20, 2019
Another adventure
This past week my wife and I traveled to Cary, NC where our grandson was invited to try out for the 12U USA baseball team. After going through two rounds of tryouts in Texas he was selected to come to the USA complex in NC to compete for their developmental program. Twelve teams of players from across the country competed for the chance to be selected for this program. We do not know when the final selections will be made.
On the first day the young men did skills testing. The remaining three days involved playing in a tournament so each one could be evaluated. Staff went from field to field with radar guns, timers and clip boards recording as much as they could of each player's abilities. We saw some great players so their final decisions will not be easy.
It was the first time we had been in NC other than just driving through. It is a beautiful area. Spending the days watching baseball and being with our son and grandson made it even better.
Things took a different turn as we were driving home Sunday. A warning came on the car saying I had a low tire. We were about 10 miles from Princeton, WV so I slowed down and kept driving. When we got to Princeton I pulled into a gas station to check the tire. It was flat. I put air in it, but I could hear it coming out almost as fast as it was going in. A Wal-Mart was nearby so we drove there, but their auto center was closed for the day. By the time we drove back across the road to a motel the tire was flat again. We spent the night.
The next morning I called AAA to come and replace the tire with our donut and went back to Wal-Mart. After being there for almost an hour I was told they did not have that size tire in stock and repairing it would be iffy due to the location of the hole. I drove to another tire shop, and we waited there two hours for them to replace the tire. I guess when you're traveling the interstate you should make appointments with tire repair shops where you think you might have a flat. But, we eventually left and made it home without further problems.
Despite the incident with the tire, it was a great time away. We don't see our son and his family enough, especially since they moved to Texas, so it was great to spend time with them. We saw a part of the country we had not previously seen and got to watch some great baseball. I keep thanking God for these opportunities.
On the first day the young men did skills testing. The remaining three days involved playing in a tournament so each one could be evaluated. Staff went from field to field with radar guns, timers and clip boards recording as much as they could of each player's abilities. We saw some great players so their final decisions will not be easy.
It was the first time we had been in NC other than just driving through. It is a beautiful area. Spending the days watching baseball and being with our son and grandson made it even better.
Things took a different turn as we were driving home Sunday. A warning came on the car saying I had a low tire. We were about 10 miles from Princeton, WV so I slowed down and kept driving. When we got to Princeton I pulled into a gas station to check the tire. It was flat. I put air in it, but I could hear it coming out almost as fast as it was going in. A Wal-Mart was nearby so we drove there, but their auto center was closed for the day. By the time we drove back across the road to a motel the tire was flat again. We spent the night.
The next morning I called AAA to come and replace the tire with our donut and went back to Wal-Mart. After being there for almost an hour I was told they did not have that size tire in stock and repairing it would be iffy due to the location of the hole. I drove to another tire shop, and we waited there two hours for them to replace the tire. I guess when you're traveling the interstate you should make appointments with tire repair shops where you think you might have a flat. But, we eventually left and made it home without further problems.
Despite the incident with the tire, it was a great time away. We don't see our son and his family enough, especially since they moved to Texas, so it was great to spend time with them. We saw a part of the country we had not previously seen and got to watch some great baseball. I keep thanking God for these opportunities.
Thursday, August 8, 2019
Life is more than things
In Luke 12 we read of a man who approached Jesus wanting him to force his brother to divide the family inheritance with him. Jesus responded that "one's life does not consist in the abundance of things he possesses," and went on to tell a parable of a man who had acquired much in life and wanted to enjoy the abundance of his possessions. In the parable God said to the man that night he would die and asked who would then own those possessions.
As regular readers of this blog know, I enjoy going to auctions and I conduct auctions. They are a fun way to spend time and occasionally find a treasure. Unfortunately, some auctions are not that much fun, and that is when families are there to fight over the things being sold.
I once attended an auction in Kentucky that consisted of a large estate. It was obvious that family members were bidding on some of the items they wanted to keep which is not uncommon in an estate sale. One piece that was evidently a battle between two family members was over a small child's chair. It was just a common child's chair that might bring $5.00 at most auctions. Two men, who I assume were related, were determined to own that chair. It finally sold for over $600.00! It's not the first time I've seen something like that happen at an auction.
At least no tempers flared at that auction like I have seen occasionally at others. Auctioneers have told me stories of family members who were left out of the will or were not given things they wanted from the estate who caused problems at their auctions.
Things break, they rust, they get lost, but family relations are supposed to last forever. It's a shame when those relationships are destroyed over things. As I've written before, it's just stuff. Yes, it might have meaning to an individual, but it's still stuff. As Jesus taught in the above parable, there will come a time when our lives will end and someone else will have our stuff. That stuff won't have any meaning to us then. The only things that will have meaning then are our relationship with God and the memories our loved ones have of us. Our relationship with God will be determined by our acceptance or rejection of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, and the memories our loved ones will have of us will be determined by the relationship we had with them. Those memories are far more important than fighting over stuff.
My advice to executors of an estate is to give items that have meaning to family members before disposing of the estate. If a sale needs to be held to pay debts, then either ask a fair amount for the items or let them know they can bid on the items they want just like any other bidder at the auction. One word of caution though: They will have to pay for the items they purchase. I attended an auction once when a family member was arguing with the auctioneer about having to pay for something that belonged to a family member. He finally paid for it but wasn't happy! If it's bought at an auction it must be paid for regardless of who owned it.
Don't allow things to interfere with relationships with loved ones. Life is too short to be concerned about stuff.
As regular readers of this blog know, I enjoy going to auctions and I conduct auctions. They are a fun way to spend time and occasionally find a treasure. Unfortunately, some auctions are not that much fun, and that is when families are there to fight over the things being sold.
I once attended an auction in Kentucky that consisted of a large estate. It was obvious that family members were bidding on some of the items they wanted to keep which is not uncommon in an estate sale. One piece that was evidently a battle between two family members was over a small child's chair. It was just a common child's chair that might bring $5.00 at most auctions. Two men, who I assume were related, were determined to own that chair. It finally sold for over $600.00! It's not the first time I've seen something like that happen at an auction.
At least no tempers flared at that auction like I have seen occasionally at others. Auctioneers have told me stories of family members who were left out of the will or were not given things they wanted from the estate who caused problems at their auctions.
Things break, they rust, they get lost, but family relations are supposed to last forever. It's a shame when those relationships are destroyed over things. As I've written before, it's just stuff. Yes, it might have meaning to an individual, but it's still stuff. As Jesus taught in the above parable, there will come a time when our lives will end and someone else will have our stuff. That stuff won't have any meaning to us then. The only things that will have meaning then are our relationship with God and the memories our loved ones have of us. Our relationship with God will be determined by our acceptance or rejection of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, and the memories our loved ones will have of us will be determined by the relationship we had with them. Those memories are far more important than fighting over stuff.
My advice to executors of an estate is to give items that have meaning to family members before disposing of the estate. If a sale needs to be held to pay debts, then either ask a fair amount for the items or let them know they can bid on the items they want just like any other bidder at the auction. One word of caution though: They will have to pay for the items they purchase. I attended an auction once when a family member was arguing with the auctioneer about having to pay for something that belonged to a family member. He finally paid for it but wasn't happy! If it's bought at an auction it must be paid for regardless of who owned it.
Don't allow things to interfere with relationships with loved ones. Life is too short to be concerned about stuff.
Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Transitioning from bivocational to fully-funded
A friend of mine responded to my previous post about some of the challenges of transitioning from being a fully-funded pastor. He wrote that he is facing the opposite situation. He is nearing retirement from his other career and will be looking at becoming a fully-funded pastor. This can also be a significant transition with a lot of challenges, especially if the pastor remains at his or her current church.
First, it's important to consider if God's call on your life has changed just because you can retire from your current outside job. I retired from my factory job in 1997 but never felt led to leave the church I was serving bivocationally. Perhaps that is because a couple of years before my retirement we had taken ownership of a small business which I was managing. I've often wondered if that was something God made possible so I would remain at the church and continue to serve as its bivocational pastor. Regardless, I remained at that church until 2001 before I was led to accept a ministry role with our denomination. Even then, I continued to manage the business until 2010 when we closed it.
Retiring from one's other career opens up a lot of possibilities that do not necessarily mean that one becomes a fully-funded pastor. For example, I had time to write my first book which was published in 2001. That then led to several other books and speaking opportunities in the US and Canada. Perhaps if I had immediately began looking for a fully-funded church when I retired from the factory I would not have had the opportunity to do these other things.
The key is to discern God's will for your life and ministry. I have never felt led to serve as a fully-funded pastor. My calling has always been to bivocational ministry. My ministry has changed and my other careers have changed, but the call to bivocational ministry has remained the same. For others, retiring from their second careers may be God's way of sending you into fully-funded ministry. Just don't assume that is the case until you've spent much time in prayer and discernment.
For those making the transition from bivocational ministry to fully-funded ministry I would advise finding a mentor or coach to assist with that transition. It will require a different mindset and will involve different expectations from both the congregation and the minister. Having someone walk with you through that transition can help smooth out the rough places that you will encounter.
First, it's important to consider if God's call on your life has changed just because you can retire from your current outside job. I retired from my factory job in 1997 but never felt led to leave the church I was serving bivocationally. Perhaps that is because a couple of years before my retirement we had taken ownership of a small business which I was managing. I've often wondered if that was something God made possible so I would remain at the church and continue to serve as its bivocational pastor. Regardless, I remained at that church until 2001 before I was led to accept a ministry role with our denomination. Even then, I continued to manage the business until 2010 when we closed it.
Retiring from one's other career opens up a lot of possibilities that do not necessarily mean that one becomes a fully-funded pastor. For example, I had time to write my first book which was published in 2001. That then led to several other books and speaking opportunities in the US and Canada. Perhaps if I had immediately began looking for a fully-funded church when I retired from the factory I would not have had the opportunity to do these other things.
The key is to discern God's will for your life and ministry. I have never felt led to serve as a fully-funded pastor. My calling has always been to bivocational ministry. My ministry has changed and my other careers have changed, but the call to bivocational ministry has remained the same. For others, retiring from their second careers may be God's way of sending you into fully-funded ministry. Just don't assume that is the case until you've spent much time in prayer and discernment.
For those making the transition from bivocational ministry to fully-funded ministry I would advise finding a mentor or coach to assist with that transition. It will require a different mindset and will involve different expectations from both the congregation and the minister. Having someone walk with you through that transition can help smooth out the rough places that you will encounter.
Thursday, August 1, 2019
Transitioning from fully-funded to bivocational
When I was serving as a denominational minister one of the things I began finding was that a number of pastors were concerned their church may not be able to continue to afford having a fully-funded pastor. These churches were marginally fully-funded anyway, they were not growing, and even if the congregation had not realized their financial situation the pastor had. Sometimes the pastor simply began looking for another church. The ones who contacted me were willing to stay at the church but had a lot of questions about how they would transition from being fully-funded to bivocational.
One concern was what would they do for a second job. One pastor told me he had gone from high school to college to seminary. His work experience was part-time jobs during the summer months while he completed his education. Almost in panic he told me he didn't know how to do anything other than be a pastor.
I tried to reassure him that was not true. Many of the things we do in ministry are transferable to other careers. As pastors we teach, we counsel, we do social work, we lead, we manage, we work with people to get things done. We have been trained to do critical thinking, at least some of us have! We work with boards and committees and work within a budget. Hopefully, we have people skills that make us accessible to others. You can probably add many other things to this list, but it demonstrates that we have many skills and qualities that will work well in careers besides ministry.
My next question to this one pastor was what did he want to do when he began college. Many pastors begin their academic studies planning to go into a career other than ministry. He was no exception. He had originally planned to be a teacher. I reminded him that every school system I know always has a need for substitute teachers which would give him a great deal of flexibility and allow him to do something he had wanted to do before entering ministry. He could also develop a workshop and teach it. I have several seminars that I've taught across the US and Canada. Community colleges often need adjunct teachers as do small local colleges and universities. Teaching for a university online is sometimes an option. The fact is, he had numerous options available to him if he ever needed to become bivocational.
If you find yourself facing the prospect of transitioning from fully-funded to bivocational, don't get yourself in a panic. Find someone to help you think through what possibilities might work for you. Believe me, you'll find some.
Actually, the work aspect is the least challenging thing you'll have to address if you do go through that transition. Preparing yourself emotionally will be your biggest challenge. We ministers are wired to minister. You might find yourself spending a significant part of your day doing work that doesn't feel anything like ministry. That can be challenging emotionally, but it might also reflect a misunderstanding of ministry.
For the past few years I've operated an auction business. I got my auctioneer's license, and I conduct auctions for people in addition to working in ministry. But, I see that business as an extension of my ministry. I am serving people who need to downsize and perhaps move into a smaller home. I am ministering to people who need to settle an estate. I'm able to relieve them of a great burden in their lives that often comes at a difficult time. I also serve people who make their living buying and selling. You might also be surprised at the number of times I've been able to pray for people who are grieving at the loss they feel as they close out a family member's estate or have to let go of a lifetime of accumulation in order to downsize. I've also had the opportunity to refer people who do not attend church to a good church near them who can walk with them through this difficult time in their lives.
With the right attitude you will probably find that your outside job will offer you many ministry opportunities you might not have if you remained fully-funded.
So, if you find yourself in this situation, don't panic. Trust that the God Who called you into ministry in the first place knows exactly what is going on and is making a way for this to work out well for you and the church.
One concern was what would they do for a second job. One pastor told me he had gone from high school to college to seminary. His work experience was part-time jobs during the summer months while he completed his education. Almost in panic he told me he didn't know how to do anything other than be a pastor.
I tried to reassure him that was not true. Many of the things we do in ministry are transferable to other careers. As pastors we teach, we counsel, we do social work, we lead, we manage, we work with people to get things done. We have been trained to do critical thinking, at least some of us have! We work with boards and committees and work within a budget. Hopefully, we have people skills that make us accessible to others. You can probably add many other things to this list, but it demonstrates that we have many skills and qualities that will work well in careers besides ministry.
My next question to this one pastor was what did he want to do when he began college. Many pastors begin their academic studies planning to go into a career other than ministry. He was no exception. He had originally planned to be a teacher. I reminded him that every school system I know always has a need for substitute teachers which would give him a great deal of flexibility and allow him to do something he had wanted to do before entering ministry. He could also develop a workshop and teach it. I have several seminars that I've taught across the US and Canada. Community colleges often need adjunct teachers as do small local colleges and universities. Teaching for a university online is sometimes an option. The fact is, he had numerous options available to him if he ever needed to become bivocational.
If you find yourself facing the prospect of transitioning from fully-funded to bivocational, don't get yourself in a panic. Find someone to help you think through what possibilities might work for you. Believe me, you'll find some.
Actually, the work aspect is the least challenging thing you'll have to address if you do go through that transition. Preparing yourself emotionally will be your biggest challenge. We ministers are wired to minister. You might find yourself spending a significant part of your day doing work that doesn't feel anything like ministry. That can be challenging emotionally, but it might also reflect a misunderstanding of ministry.
For the past few years I've operated an auction business. I got my auctioneer's license, and I conduct auctions for people in addition to working in ministry. But, I see that business as an extension of my ministry. I am serving people who need to downsize and perhaps move into a smaller home. I am ministering to people who need to settle an estate. I'm able to relieve them of a great burden in their lives that often comes at a difficult time. I also serve people who make their living buying and selling. You might also be surprised at the number of times I've been able to pray for people who are grieving at the loss they feel as they close out a family member's estate or have to let go of a lifetime of accumulation in order to downsize. I've also had the opportunity to refer people who do not attend church to a good church near them who can walk with them through this difficult time in their lives.
With the right attitude you will probably find that your outside job will offer you many ministry opportunities you might not have if you remained fully-funded.
So, if you find yourself in this situation, don't panic. Trust that the God Who called you into ministry in the first place knows exactly what is going on and is making a way for this to work out well for you and the church.
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