Unique challenges for bivocational ministers

In my book The Art and Practice of Bivocational Ministry: A Pastor's Guide I discuss some of the unique challenges many bivocational ministers face. The number one challenge is that of time constraints. While every minister struggles with finding the time to do everything he or she needs to accomplish, bivocational ministers face the added problem of working another job. This may be a full-time or part-time job, but for those hours worked he or she cannot do any of the other things that may need to be done. It is always a challenge for a bivocational minister to balance the five primary areas of life we must address: our time with God, our time with family, our ministry, our other job and our own personal self-care.

A second common problem has to do with self-esteem issues. I can still remember when some people would look at me as a second-class minister since I wasn't fully-funded. It's very easy to allow yourself to start questioning yourself when others are questioning your commitment to God and to ministry. It's easy to repeat the mantra that we are only called to be faithful where we are, but it's also human to wonder why we are where we are. I still remember the day someone asked if I was full-time or part-time and I responded that I was a full-time bivocational minister.

One of the issues I often hear from bivocational ministers is the lack of support they feel from their denominations. I was coaching a bivocational pastor who voiced this complaint. We were discussing a problem in the church when I asked if he had contacted his denomination for help with it. He said no one from the denominational office was willing to work with his church because it was too small. I challenged him to call to confirm that, and at our next coaching session he said their judicatory representative was meeting with him and the church the following week. I never felt that I was not supported by our judicatory leaders as the bivocational pastor of a small, rural church, but I also know that many do feel that way, and in fact, are not well supported.

In a survey I conducted a few years ago with bivocational ministers in my denomination I found that their educational level ran the gamut from high school to holding a PhD. However, for the majority of them, their college and post-graduate degrees were not related to ministry but were in other fields of study. Many of them lacked basic ministerial and theological training. Those of you who know my story know that I began my pastoral ministry with only a high school education. It's tough to do quality ministry like that, but it's also difficult to pursue theological education while working, supporting a family and leading a church.

To compound the problem, it's also difficult to attend any type of continuing education opportunities. Most of them, unfortunately, are still held during the day when many bivocational ministers are working. Many of things that are presented in these training sessions apply more to larger churches than the traditional bivocational church so the pastors of these churches are reluctant to give up a vacation day in order to attend them. This makes it difficult for bivocational ministers to be aware of recent trends in ministry.

In the book I try to respond to these challenges. The book contains the stories of ten ministers I coached who faced most of these challenges and how they addressed them. If you are struggling with any of these challenges in your own ministry, you might find these stories helpful.