Thursday, December 31, 2020

Doing ministry with excellence

In some of the seminars I lead for church leaders I stress that smaller churches can often accomplish more by doing less. Sometimes smaller churches try to compete with larger churches by offering more ministries and programs than it can do well. It is far better to do a few things with excellence than a lot of things with mediocrity.

A good thing to do is to try to look at your church and its ministries through the eyes of a stranger. Some churches even hire "church shoppers" to do that for them. When we've been part of a church for a number of years we stop seeing the things that a new set of eyes would see. There was a time when the church nursery could be in the basement next to the furnace with a couple of teenage girls watching over the kids. New parents visiting a church for the first time are not going to find that acceptable today. There was a time when visitors to the church were asked to stand and introduce themselves. No one wants to do that today! I've been in churches where it took almost as long reading the announcements out of the bulletin than it took for the preacher to deliver his sermon.  Few people want to hear an announcement about an upcoming finance committee meeting.

People today have an expectation of excellence. They shop in stores that provide good value and a nice shopping experience. Most people would rather eat in a clean restaurant offering well prepared meals than to eat at the Road-Kill Grill. We want fast, reliable Internet service rather than the slow dial-up Internet we started with. When something goes wrong we want a quick response to our problem, and we want it fixed right the first time. That same expectation of excellence is carried over into our church experience as well.

How would outsiders rate the quality of your worship service? I realize that is pretty subjective, but there are some things you can measure. Are the people in your service engaged in worship or is there a sense of boredom and weariness? Do people rush out to their cars when the service ends or are groups of people standing around chatting after the service? Is there a warmth to your service? I've attended the First Church of the Refrigerator where there was a coldness felt throughout the worship service. Do things move along quickly? Our attention span decreases almost every year, and just like radio stations don't want dead-air time, our church services need to move along quickly.

As churches struggle financially one of the first things that often happens is that building maintenance and upkeep suffer. What do people see when they drive by your building? Is the yard kept mowed and the flower beds weeded? Do the windows and doors need a fresh coat of paint? How long has it been since the carpet was cleaned? Do the interior walls need a fresh coat of paint? If you're still using hymn books, what condition are they in? Are the bathrooms kept spotless and smelling good? Are there signs directing new people where they need to go? Do you have trained greeters at the entrances ready to welcome people as they enter? First impressions do matter, and they influence a person's entire worship experience.

Excellence is a mindset. Anything that a church is doing that is being done in a haphazard manner should be stopped. Either improve the way it is being offered or don't do it until improvements can be made. "Good enough" is not good enough for the Kingdom of God. I'm not talking here about perfection. We may not do some things perfectly, but they can still be done with excellence. Focusing on doing those things we can do with excellence will impact our ministries and make them much more effective.

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

A new year brings new beginnings

 Many of us make New Year's resolutions that last about a week! We understand the need to make changes in our lifestyles, but we find those changes are not easy. Still, this is the time of the year when we at least recognize the need to make such changes. Maybe this is the year to actually do something about them.

Maybe the problem is that we try to make too many changes and begin to feel overwhelmed. When a person wants to lose weight, exercise more, eat healthier, improve their finances, spend more time with family, draw closer to God, read more, quit smoking, get better control of their temper, etc., that is a lot of changes! What might happen if we just focused on one or two of them? Perhaps it might be better to identify the one or two that would make the biggest difference in our lives and address them. I think it would improve our chances of actually following through. Once we got that area of our lives under control we could then move on to another one or two.

I would suggest that drawing closer to God might be at the top of most people's list of things to do in 2021. In the midst of our busy lives it is easy to drift spiritually. We might still go to church regularly and even read our Bibles and pray once in a while, but how many of us feel as close to God as we did when we were first saved? From my fishing days I know how easy it is to drift until you suddenly realize where you are and wonder how you got there. How you got there is because you did nothing to intentionally stay where you were. You let the current dictate where you went. The same is true in our spiritual lives as well. Too often, we allow life to cause us to drift from the things that should be most important in our lives.

How can you draw closer to God? One way is to commit to reading His Word every day. The church I'm currently serving has been invited to read through the Bible this year. Several have told me they are going to do it. For some it will be the first time they've ever started at Genesis and read through the entire Bible. Scripture teaches us that our faith grows as we are exposed to biblical teaching.

Another way to draw closer to God is to engage in regular times of prayer. When I lay down in bed most nights I pray the Lord's Prayer. When I wake up most mornings I pray that same prayer. It helps me bookend my day with God. Throughout the day I pray at various times, especially when I'm driving by myself. I've found that is a good time for prayer. I'm just having a conversation with God. People in other vehicles probably think I'm talking on my phone, but I'm just talking with God.

The Bible tells us to not forsake the assembling of ourselves with other believers. Due to the pandemic many have not been attending church services, but so many churches are now offering their services online that there is no reason to not participate in a worship service. I understand some people not wanting to attend in person for health reasons, but we now have the option to view numerous services across the country. Commit yourself to attending or watching at one least worship service every week. Being with other like-minded Christians will help our spiritual development.

Read good books that will help you draw closer to God. Biographies of Christian leaders, books on theology, devotional books, books on living the Christian life can all help you draw closer to God.

The reason I have focused on this one aspect of changing our lives is because if we make a change in this area it is likely to have a ripple effect in other areas of our lives. While we may well need to be intentional about changing things in other areas, when we are where we should be with God it will help us in the others areas as well.

Tuesday, December 29, 2020

Favorite books of 2020 (1-5)

 Yesterday I shared some of my favorite reads of 2020. Today I want to share my top five books for the year.

5. Side Door: How to Open Your Church to Reach More People was written by Charles Arn. For years churches focused on inviting people to their worship services. Some today refer to that as front-door evangelism. Although that remains the primary (or only) outreach tool used by many churches, it is obviously not as effective as it was in the middle of the twentieth century. Side-door evangelism has been found to be much more effective. A side door is any activity designed to bring people together and help develop relationships between churched and unchurched individuals. I have heard of churches with over 200 such groups meeting on a regular basis, and through those side-doors have been able to reach many people for the Kingdom of God. While these are obviously larger churches, any size church can use this same concept. The key is to identify things people are interested in and persons to lead the groups. Arn does a very good job of laying out exactly how to plan and organize side-door ministries in a church.

4. Counter Culture: Following Christ in an Anti-Christian Age by David Platt addresses the problem of how the church can best respond to the cultural changes that surround us. Platt looks at some of the issues facing society and the church such as abortion, same-sex marriage, sex slavery, poverty, racism and others and offers a Christian response to each of them. He points out that it is not enough to just take a stand opposing the things we think is wrong, but the church must actively work to correct these injustices. He writes, "It is not possible to love the poor and live in unabated luxury. It is not possible to care for the orphan and the widow without major implications for the makeup of your family. It is not possible to confess gospel convictions about marriage and sexuality without being criticized, It is not possible to profess gospel truth at all and remain popular among all." Like Jesus, he reminds us that we must count the cost if we are to counter the culture around us. This is not a comfortable book to read, but it is an important one.

3. The Leader's Greatest Return: Attracting, Developing, and Multiplying Leaders was written by John Maxwell. In all the years I've published my top books of the year I don't think a year has gone by without at least one by Maxwell. For me, this was one of his best. The question is asked in the flyleaf, "After leaders have invested in their own leadership growth, what is the best way to accomplish their vision and grow their organizations? Develop leaders!" Growing leaders must be part of the focus of every pastor. Too often as a denominational minister I saw good churches fall apart after a long-term pastor left because there was no one there qualified to fill the leadership vacuum. Maxwell does a masterful job of describing how to identify potential leaders and then mentor them to grow their leadership skills. I really enjoyed this book and found it quite helpful.

2. Salvation and Sovereignty: A Molinist Approach was written by Kenneth Keathley, professor of Theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. This book looks at salvation and sovereignty through the lens of Molinism, a doctrine first identified in the 1500s. This view of scripture believes in a strong notion of God's control and an equally firm belief in human freedom. The author explains, "Molinism teaches that God exercises His sovereignty primarily through His omniscience, and that He infallibly knows what free creatures would do in any given situation. In this way God sovereignly controls all things, while humans are also genuinely free. God is able to accomplish His will through the use of what Molinists label His middle knowledge." Christian philosophers such as Alvin Plantinga and William Lane Craig are Molinists. It is a theological perspective I find interesting and plan to explore it in more detail in the coming year.

1. Arminian Theology: Myths and Realities was written by Roger Olson. I find that many theological books are written by Calvinists. Far fewer are written from the Arminian perspective. This may be one of the best. Olson is a professor of theology at George W. Truett Theological Seminary. The author writes that "This book is for two kinds of people: (1) those who do not know Arminian theology but want to, and (2) those who think they know about Arminianism but really don't." I regret I had not read this book earlier in my ministry because I learned more about what Arminians believe than I had learned throughout my ministry. Whether you are Arminian in your beliefs, Calvinist, or Molinist, this is a must-read book for anyone who wants to better understand theological thinking.

This concludes my annual top-ten reads for 2020. I must say that there were many others I read this year that almost made the list. I should give honorable mention to How to Reach the West Again: Six Essential Elements of a Missionary Encounter by Timothy Keller, One Blood: Parting Words to the Church on Race and Love by John Perkins, You Lost Me: Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church . . . and Rethinking Faith by David Kinnaman, and It's Dangerous to Believe: Religious Freedom and Its Enemies by Mary Eberstadt. If you are putting together a reading list for this year you may want to give these careful consideration.

Monday, December 28, 2020

Favorite books of 2020 (6-10)

 Each year I post a list of my favorite reads for the year. I try to read 50 books each year. Sometimes I read a few more, and some years I don't quite reach my goal. This year, with the Covid restrictions on travel, I managed to read 125 books.

I did something else different this year. I seldom read fiction. In fact, it is very unusual if I read more than one fiction book a year. Since I knew I would be reading a lot more this year, and since I enjoy Star Wars so much, I decided to read some of the books of that series. I thought they might give me some background stories that would make the movies more enjoyable. I was right! However, I didn't realize how many Star Wars books there are. Currently, there are nearly 200 adult Star Wars books plus quite a number of books written for youth, comic books, and others. More are being written. This year I managed to read 67 of them. While a few were not that good, most of them were very well written and enjoyable to read.

I will not include any of them in my top ten favorite books of the year but will focus only on the non-fiction books I read. Today I'll share numbers 6-10, and tomorrow's post will include the top five.

10. Christianity and Liberalism, new ed. by J. Gresham Machen was first published in 1923 as a defense of orthodox Christianity against the rising tide of liberalism that was becoming so prevalent in seminaries and churches. His commentary and warnings about the dangers of liberalism are as true today as when they were first written. As he points out the differences between Christianity and liberalism he correctly identifies the reason for their differences. He writes, "It is no wonder, then, that liberalism is totally different from Christianity,, for the foundation is different. Christianity is founded upon the Bible. It bases upon the Bible both its thinking and its life. Liberalism on the other hand is founded upon the shifting emotions of sinful man."

9. When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor . . . and Yourself was written by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert. Most churches want to help people who request their assistance, but many churches struggle knowing how to best provide that help. The authors consider the case of the person who comes to the church requesting help in paying the electric bill. If they are able to do so, many churches will pay the bill, but perhaps the real problem is the person lacks the self-discipline to keep a stable job. The authors do a great job of identifying the true characteristics of poverty and provides ways churches can address them. While going deeper into a person's life is more time-consuming and challenging it often does allow the church to help the individual make lasting chances in his or her life.

8. Pastor as Public Theologian was written by Kevin Vanhoozer and Owen Strachan. This is a book I had previously read and found it so helpful that I re-read it again this year. At one time it was recognized that every pastor was a theologian first, but that is no longer the case. As the book points out, "Contemporary ministry has been the victim. . .of images of leadership that are not borrowed from scripture, but from the surrounding culture - the pastor as CEO, as psychotherapeutic guru, or as a political agitator." Pastors themselves often see their role as being another helping professional alongside therapists and counselors or that of a manager. The authors point out that this confusion about the biblical role of the pastor is one reason for so much of the theological confusion that exists in our churches. Rather than complaining about the theological deficits that exist in the congregation, pastors need to reclaim their role as theologians. This means that theological study cannot be something that pastors try to fit into their schedules but that they see such study as their duty. Personally, I believe this is a must-read book for anyone called into pastoral ministry.

7. Growing Young: Six Essential Strategies to Help Young People Discover and Love Your Church was written by Kara Powell, Jake Mulder and Brad Griffin. The authors are on staff at Fuller Theological Seminary and used research assistants to help them study and analyze numerous churches who are reaching young adults. Most churches claim they want to reach youth and young adults, but they struggle to do so. This book is a great tool to help churches reach out to those age groups, but the recommendations they make will cause some churches to feel great discomfort. One of their first recommendations is giving young people keychain leadership responsibilities. As they point out, whoever holds the keys has the power to keep people out or invite them in. Churches that effectively reach youth and young adults invite them in to assume leadership roles. Too many churches see young people as the future of the church, but the churches reaching these young people see them as leaders in the church now. Youth and young adults do not want to sit on the sidelines. They want to be engaged now in worthwhile roles and activities. This research-based book provides important information to the church serious about reaching young people.

6. EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches by Dave Ramsey. This is another book I had read earlier and wanted to re-read this year. I believe that pastors are by necessity entrepreneurs and leaders. Ramsey's book brings the two together. While this is a business book that describes how his business was founded and operates today, it has plenty of transferrable principles that will help pastors. Even before the pandemic, major changes were taking place in society and in our churches. Trying to pastor today using the concepts taught in seminary 10-20 years ago won't get the job done. Some say we have to think outside the box, but I'm not sure there is a box anymore! It's important that we are led by the Holy Spirit and by an entrepreneurial spirit to lead our churches through the rapid changes currently taking place. This book will help the reader look at challenges in a different light and seek new solutions to the new challenges we face.

Tomorrow I will share my top five books of 2020.

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Seeking joy in the wrong places

 Many people know of C. S. Lewis due to his writings. The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe is a favorite that has been turned into a movie. Perhaps his best known book, and my favorite, is Mere Christianity This amazing book offers a classic defense of the truths of Christianity, and reading it is sure to strengthen anyone's faith.

If one just read his books and didn't know his history a person would be surprised to learn that for much of his life Lewis was an atheist. He was friends with J.R.R. Tolkien who continually challenged him to rethink his atheistic beliefs. While teaching at Oxford he did begin to consider if Christianity might indeed be true, and one night he decided that God must exist for many of the reasons he wrote about in Mere Christianity. Of his experience he wrote that he came to Christ "kicking, struggling, resentful, and darting his eyes in every direction looking for a chance to escape. . .I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed; perhaps, that night the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England."

One reason he struggled so much with his decision was that he believed that if he gave his life to Christ he would lose his freedom and have nothing in life to enjoy. He addressed this in another excellent book Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life. What he learned when he became a Christian is that his joy was not found in his career, his degrees, his finances, his relationships or anything else he knew in life. His joy was found in his relationship with Jesus Christ.

Lewis' fears are common to many people. They fear that if they give their lives to Christ that it will suck the joy out of their lives. What they fail to realize is that these things they depend upon for joy really don't bring them joy. They are substituting joy for happiness. These things may bring them happiness for a season, but that is only true when everything is going well. Finances can bring one happiness until the economy goes south for awhile, and then our finances can bring us grief, fear and worry. Relationships can provide happiness, but they can also bring some of the deepest hurts we know in our lives if they fail.

True joy is not based on things that can fail but is based upon a relationship that can never fail. We celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ because we know that the things we most seek in life - love, hope, peace and joy - are only found in a relationship with Him. It is in that relationship that we find a foundation for our lives that will stand when everything around us seems to fail. It is the anchor we need when the storms of life threaten to blow us away.

2020 has been a difficult year for many people. Turning over a page on the calendar isn't going to suddenly make everything better. There will be challenges to be faced in 2021 as well. If you want to overcome those challenges I encourage you to make sure Christ is at the center of your life. In Him, and Him alone, you will experience true joy in the midst of whatever challenges the new year might bring. 

Monday, December 21, 2020

Bivocational ministers are entrepreneurs

 I am currently re-reading a great book, EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches by Dave Ramsey. Although this is a business book it contains a lot of principles that are transferrable into ministry. Reading it reminds me that being in bivocational ministry requires that one is an entrepreneurial leader and if you aren't entrepreneurial you probably won't do well as a bivocational pastor.

One point Ramsey makes is that "A leader who won't, or can't make decisions is never going to succeed and certainly will never become a full-fledged EntreLeader." He further states that an "'Indecisive leader' is an oxymoron. Your business, your family, your team, and your future is paralyzed when you are. You put all you dream about in jeopardy when you are indecisive." I would add to that list your church as well. When a pastor, whether bivocational or fully-funded, is indecisive and cannot make decisions, the church is severely limited in what it can accomplish.

I will admit that I can be slow to make decisions sometimes. The same things that causes indecisions in others can often cause me to be indecisive at times. Ramsey identifies fear as the ultimate cause of indecision. We are fearful we will make the wrong decision, and we are fearful of the possible outcome of that decision. Some of those fears may be well-founded and potential negative outcomes should be considered, but they cannot be allowed to drive our decisions. When we allow ourselves to be controlled by fear we will never make the decisions we need to make that will allow our churches to move forward.

A second thing that prevents some leaders from making decisions is another fear, the fear of criticism. Pastors are often people-pleasers. We don't enjoy criticism, but if we are going to lead we have to accept the fact that criticism is inherent with leadership. In fact, I would add that if no one ever criticizes you it probably means you aren't leading. People are going to criticize you no matter what you decide to do. Leaders cannot allow the fear of criticism keep them from making the necessary decisions they need to make.

Third, we sometimes are slow to make decisions because we think we need more information. Sometimes we do, but often we are victims of "paralysis analysis." We don't want to make a tough decision so we claim we need more information. No matter how much information we gather, we still want more until the right time for the decision has passed. This often causes us to miss opportunities because we refused to make a decision in a timely manner while claiming we didn't have enough information to make the decision.

Does all this mean that we should make decisions too quickly? Absolutely not! One of the reasons I can be slow in making decisions is because in the past I've too often taken the approach of ready-fire-aim and been burnt. I've made decisions too quickly that have hurt our family and organizations I've led. It's made me a little gun-shy! I now try to make big decisions in a timely manner with the best information I have at the time. This gives me the best chance of making the best decisions while limiting the negative effects of a bad decision.

This is entrepreneurial thinking. It is taking risks in a responsible way. It is setting ourselves and our churches up to win while minimizing the downsides of a wrong decision. It also recognizes that refusing to make decisions automatically sets us up to fail.

To me, this approach in inherent in bivocational ministry. The very nature of bivocational ministry involves responsible risk-taking. By the nature of our ministries, bivocational ministers have to be EntreLeaders if we are to be successful. We won't survive long in this ministry if we are unable to make the tough decisions.

If you haven't yet read this book, I highly encourage you to do so. I have found it very helpful in many of the aspects of my life and ministry.

Tuesday, December 15, 2020

Taking the ministry to the community

 So much of what we do in our churches focuses on the Sunday service. Pastors spend large amounts of time (hopefully) on preparing a biblically sound message that will last from 20-60 minutes. Choirs, praise bands, orchestras and worship leaders spend time practicing their performances for the worship service. Much time is spent in discussing how to get more people to attend the services. We focus so much time on that one or two hour worship service on Sunday morning that we have limited time to think about how to best serve our communities the remainder of the week.

Please don't misunderstand me... it's important to prepare our sermons and our worship services. That worship experience is important and deserves our best efforts. But, for too many churches, that is their primary focus. They spend far less time thinking about the majority of people in their communities who will not be in a worship service on Sunday, who seldom (if ever) think about God and the church. We are largely unaware of the challenges and difficulties, the pain and heartache, of those outside of the church and the family of God. We are told that a minimum of 80 percent of every county in the United States is unchurched so that means we are not ministering to the vast majority of our communities.

In the Scriptures we find Jesus spending time in the Temple, but we see Him spending far more time with the people in the communities He visited. He spent time with the outcasts of society addressing their needs. He offered a despised Samaritan woman "living water." He healed the blind, the lame, the leper. He brought healing to the demon possessed. He offered people hope as He invited them into the Kingdom of God.

Shouldn't the church today follow the example of the one who is the Head of the church? A meaningful worship service is a beautiful thing and is needed, but should we also not spend even more time ministering to those who may never step foot inside our church buildings? Our worship services should provide us with the opportunity to worship our wonderful God and savior, to learn how to apply the teachings of Scripture to our lives and to fellowship with like-minded individuals. But, it should also equip us to take ministry outside the four walls of our buildings into the community so that we can share the love and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ with all we encounter during the week.

Every church will do this in different ways. The church I currently serve just mailed out letters to everyone in our zip code inviting them to share their prayer needs with us. We set up a special email address they can use to do that which will go directly into my email account. They can remain anonymous if they wish, or if they share their contact information with me I will respond personally to them. Their prayer needs will remain confidential unless they ask that we make them available to the larger church body. This is just one way we can touch the lives of those in our community. As the pandemic restrictions begin to lift we will offer more opportunities to touch our community for God.

I encourage every church to explore ways you can take ministry into your community. Let us never assume that a well-designed worship service is all God asks of us.

Monday, December 14, 2020

How does a fully-funded pastor become bivocational?

 Several years ago as I was serving as a Region Resource Minister with our judicatory a pastor asked to meet with me. He felt that due to the financial situation in his church he might soon be asked to go bivocational or find another church to serve. We met for lunch to discuss his situation. His concern was that he had gone directly into ministry after college and seminary. Other than summer employment he had never done anything other than pastoral ministry. He had no idea what he might do outside of ministry if he was forced to become bivocational.

I learned that he went to college originally to become a teacher. It wasn't until he was in college that he felt called to the ministry. I suggested that since he had an interest in education he might pursue that as his second job. Most school systems need substitute teachers which would give him flexibility for his ministry. We discussed some of the other training and skills used in ministry that might be needed in a second career. By the time lunch was finished he had a good list of potential jobs he could pursue if he needed to become bivocational. It turned out his church's finances remained solid, and he continues to serve that same church as a fully-funded pastor.

We are already seeing pastors who are leaving their churches due to the financial struggles their churches are having due to the pandemic. The finances are just not there to support the pastor and his or her family. In some cases, the church finances are so bad the pastors are leaving without having another place to serve. I believe we will see even more pastors pursue bivocational ministry, either in the church they currently serve or in another church.

Like the previous pastor, some may wonder what they would do. I would suggest that you sit down with a denominational leader, a coach or someone you trust to explore your options. Look at your skill sets and see where in the work force you might best fit. What were your majors in college? That might point you to a second career. Have you seen jobs that would have interested you if you had not been doing ministry? Maybe this is a good time to check out those jobs. Despite the unemployment numbers the media feeds us every week, there are numerous jobs in nearly every community that are going unfilled. This is a great time to be a bivocational minister!

Beyond the job search there is another component to consider when transitioning from being a fully-funded to be bivocational. That is your own sense of self-esteem. Too many pastors still consider bivocational ministry as something less than what they do. Some will feel they will have failed their calling if they become a bivocational minister. Actually, being bivocational enables you to fulfill your calling, especially in these financially difficult times for many churches. It allows you to supplement your income so you can provide for your family while remaining in ministry.

A third element to consider is how the church will respond to having a bivocational pastor after being served by one that was fully-funded. Sometimes, a church wants to go bivocational but still expect the same level of ministry as they knew when they had a fully-funded pastor. That is an unreasonable expectation. Before making the decision to have a bivocational minister the church needs to have a serious talk with their denominational representative or a consultant who understands bivocational ministry so they can develop more realistic expectations of what the pastor will be able to provide.

It's not always easy for the church or the pastor to suddenly have its pastoral leadership have a second job. This represents a paradigm shift that will take time to work through. Many churches and their pastors need to consider how they will handle this change if it does occur as I believe it will happen in many churches in the next 18 months.

Friday, December 11, 2020

Time to stop pastoral abuse of churches

 In recent years there have been several instances where senior pastors of large churches have resigned or been forced to step down due to abusive behavior towards their congregations. Since these churches are large this often makes the headlines. Not only does this embarrass the congregation and its other leaders, it confirms the negative opinions many have towards the church.

The same thing happens in smaller churches as well. Because these churches are smaller it may not make the news, but word soon travels around the community. More than once I've talked to small churches struggling to survive after such abuse. One question I ask is how the community feels about their church. The answer is usually very negative. Some of these churches have since closed their doors unable to find a way to overcome the past abusive behavior by former pastors. Others are limping along, a fraction in size due to the numbers of people who refused to be abused or who followed the abusive pastor when he or she left the church.

Abusive pastors are fond of quoting Psalm 105: 15 where it commands the people to not touch God's anointed. They are quite skilled at sidelining people who oppose them and warning others to avoid their critics. They move swiftly against any perceived threat to their control over the congregation. These are not the behaviors of servant leaders.

I am a believer in strong pastoral leadership. I despise any effort of a pastor to be a dictator. There is a big difference. Strong leadership listens to others, respects others, seeks to find ways to lift up others and is committed to doing no harm to those he or she serves. A dictator cares only about himself or herself and the position that has been achieved. He or she will use anyone to accomplish his or her goals. Dictators take all the glory for things that go well and blame everyone else when failure occurs. Truth is not important to a dictator who will justify his or her lies as the means to accomplish his or her purposes.

This blog has contained numerous posts about controllers in the church focusing on lay persons who attempt to control the church for their own benefit. Controllers will also be found behind the pulpit. These individuals bring great harm to the church and to the work of the Kingdom.

What can a church do when it experiences pastoral abuse? Such abuse needs to be challenged when it begins. Don't wait until the abuse has gained momentum. To be fair, everyone, including pastors, have bad days. We don't always make good decisions. A really bad decision may not be pastoral abuse but a symptom of a bad day. However, when there is a pattern of pastoral abuse, that is when the church needs to respond quickly and firmly.

If the pastor admonishes the church about touching God's anointed, remind him or her about Ezekiel 34: 2-4, "This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not the shepherds of Israel take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally." The Lord goes on and says nothing positive about such shepherds and promises to hold them accountable. The church must do so as well.

Thursday, December 10, 2020

What is the vision you have for your church?

Many people are glad to see 2020 come to an end. When someone mentioned to me how happy she was that this year was about over I asked her if she was certain that 2021 would be any better. We assume that turning the calendar over to a new year is going to make things any better. It's not likely that Covid-19 will disappear on January 1. It appears the nation will have new leadership in 2021, and that always brings about a measure of uncertainty. If 2020 has taught us anything it is that we can take nothing for granted and that we have much less control over our lives than we previously thought.

However, there is one thing we do not want to do, and that is to simply drift through 2021 and take whatever it gives us. We need a plan, a vision for ministry as we approach the new year. Admittedly, that vision may have to be altered occasionally as we are confronted with changes that occur, but it's much better to have a vision going forward than it is to not have one. What is your vision for your church for the coming year and beyond?

A vision gives us the ability to shape our future instead of just accepting whatever the future wants to give us. If I have a vision to be out of debt by the end of the year, and I've identified the steps needed to achieve that, I will live my life in a way that will enable me to get out of debt. 

The mission of the church is the same for every church. It is found in the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. The vision for the church is how will it go about fulfilling that mission, and that vision will be different for every church. Churches are made up of different people with different gifts ministering in different communities with different needs. Therefore, the vision will be different for each church.

Vison is not something that is simply determined by the leadership. The congregation needs to be involved in a vision discernment process. Out of that process we can prayerfully begin to discern what God's vison for the church is. His vision is the only one that really matters.

Without a vision our churches will be buffeted back and forth by the winds of change. With a vision we can be intentional and purposeful as we move into the new year. We have a destination in mind and a plan for how to achieve it.   

Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Church closures after the pandemic

The Christian Post recently published an article stating that as many as one in five churches could close in the next eighteen months due to the pandemic. This comes from research done by the Barna Group. The study found that although many churches handled things well when the pandemic started, things have not gone so well since the churches were able to open. Even when the doors opened, many people did not return. David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group, said in the article that "the relationships that they thought were much deeper with people were actually not as deep as they expected."

Kinnaman notes that online attendance has increased and is likely to remain strong for the near future.  Digital ministry appears to be the wave of the future. However, this has an impact on churches as well. One impact is in the financial support churches are receiving. The National Association of Evangelicals have reported that nearly two-thirds of churches have seen a drop in giving since the pandemic began with nine percent of those churches experiencing a drop of 75 percent or more. Churches will have to look at more ways to receive tithes and offerings than merely passing the plate. For many of these churches, if they are to remain open and continue to offer the ministries they have offered previously, they are going to have to look at providing online giving opportunities.

Another impact will be felt as churches try to fill volunteer positions. With fewer people attending services there will be fewer people to serve in the positions traditionally found in many churches. Churches will have to examine new ways of structuring that will allow necessary ministries to continue with fewer people. This will likely force many churches to reduce the number of things they are doing and focus on doing only those ministries that are most productive.

With fewer people attending in person it will force churches to take a new look at how it disciples people. People who are not attending worship services are also not attending Sunday school or in-person small groups. These have been the primary instruments by which many churches have done discipleship. If churches are going to take the disciple-making element of the Great Commission seriously they will have to find creative ways of doing so.

Right now it is difficult to provide pastoral care in the ways it has traditionally been done. In most cases, pastors are not allowed in hospitals or nursing homes. Many people do not want visitors, even family members, in their homes. Telephone calls, text messages and emails are the primary means by which we can do pastoral care right now.  That may not change much for our online congregations even when things open up more. It will be easy for people to disappear unnoticed. Churches will have to work harder to stay in touch with members in order to know how best to serve them.

Those serving in staff positions will also be impacted by the increased numbers of online congregation members. With a decline in giving there is less money for staff salaries and benefits. With fewer people participating in person there is less need for people to provide leadership for youth ministries, music ministries, educational ministries. etc. What we may see in the future are staff persons serving as discipleship coordinators for the online congregation or people serving in positions we haven't even thought of staffing before. I believe we will definitely see more staff ministers serving bivocationally.

These are just some of the ways an increased online congregation will impact our churches. For those churches that cannot make the adjustments, many of them probably will be forced to close in the next few months. 

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

When helping hurts

This is the time of year that many churches have Angel Trees and do other things so church members can give gifts to those who might not receive them otherwise. Food baskets will be distributed to those who might not have a good Christmas meal. Many church offices will receive numerous phone calls from people requesting assistance. Some of these individuals will call every church in town. When the gifts and food are given out everyone feels good about what has been done, but how much good has actually been accomplished? While we should celebrate the fact that a child has a Christmas gift he or she might not have had otherwise and that a family had a good, nutritious meal, we also need to take a look at the long-term effect that much of our charity work has on people. A book that has been very helpful to me on this subject is When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor . . . and Yourself by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert.

They write, "Consider the familiar case of the person who comes to your church asking for help with paying an electric bill. On the surface, it appears this person's problem is. . .a lack of material resources, and many churches respond by giving this person enough money to pay the electric bill. But what if this person's fundamental problem is not having the self-discipline to keep a stable job? Simply giving this person money is treating the symptoms rather than the underlying disease and will enable him to continue with his lack of self-discipline." The writers explain, "A better - and far more costly - solution would be for your church to develop a relationship with this person, a relationship that says, 'We are here to walk with you and to help you use your gifts and abilities to avoid being in this situation in the future. Let us into your life and let us work with you to determine the reason you are in this predicament.'"

The writers are right. This approach would be far more costly than paying a bill. It would involve time, often a lot of time, to earn the trust of the individual seeking help that would allow us access into their lives. Resistance, and even hostility, are likely to be present when we begin to identify some of the underlying issues that have created their financial problems. People who have learned to be dependent upon others often struggle to take responsibility for their own actions and choices. This will require them to learn new ways of thinking and new ways of behavior which will also take time for them to learn.

There is another cost often not considered. It is the cost of saying no to people who ask for help. There are some who have no interest in changing their lives, their way of thinking or their behavior. They want to persist in their sins and dysfunctions and expect others to meet their material needs. At that point the church needs to realize that it is not being loving by enabling such behavior. The writers point out that "the loving thing to do is to allow them to feel the burden of their choice in hopes that this will trigger positive change." It is important to point out to those in this situation that they are the ones refusing help due to their unwillingness to make the changes in their lives they need to make.

Churches have an obligation to help the poor. Jesus made this very clear as He spoke of giving a cup of cold water in His name. At the same time, our help should go beyond meeting the material needs. In order to truly help these individuals we need to enter into a relationship with them, assist them in identifying the underlying factors that have caused their financial distress, and find ways to help them overcome these factors so they can become responsible for meeting their own needs in the future.

As a result of that relationship we will also have the opportunity to share the importance of having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ if they do not already have such a relationship. Along with helping them meet their material needs we also need to be addressing their spiritual needs as well. In so doing we will be truly helping them.

Monday, December 7, 2020

What happens when a church keeps secrets?

Once, while working with a troubled church in my role as a denominational minister, I discovered that the church leaders had not been truthful with the congregation in the matter. I had suspected the same thing happened in a previous situation in this church, but this time I had the evidence. I contacted one of the key lay leaders and confronted him with the information I had. He admitted it was true. I then said I had the feeling that this was standard procedure in this church and was one of the reasons why the church had lost so many members in recent years. He admitted this was not the first time this had happened.

A church is only as healthy as the secrets it keeps. When church leadership keeps information from the congregation problems will arise. Any time people are not told the facts about a situation they will make up their own facts. These can sometimes be worse than the truth and can easily take on a life of its own. The rumor mill begins to operate, first through the church and then into the community. If the church tries to do damage control by sharing the truth about the situation it then faces the risk of being asked why it didn't tell the truth in the first place.

Any time it is found that church leadership kept important information from the congregation or that it gave out false or incomplete information trust is broken. As I wrote last week, when trust is lost leaders cannot lead. People do not follow those they do not trust. If the pastor is the one at fault, there is a good chance the church will not trust the next pastor either. Even though he or she had nothing to do with the earlier deception the new pastor will have to jump additional hurdles to earn the trust of the congregation.

People vote with their feet and their checkbook when they believe trust has been violated. They may leave for a season or they may never return. Sometimes they drop out of church completely fearing that they will be deceived again at a new church. Sometimes people will remain in the church but give little or nothing to financially support the church. Some will give their money to parachurch ministries or to some other organization they trust and support.

Not only does the church lose some of its members, it also finds it difficult to reach out to new people. If the church is seen as having to try to cover up something the public will also react negatively. Many non-Christians already struggle to trust churches, and if they learn of an attempt by the church to cover up something they will be convinced their lack of trust was justified.

Admittedly, sometimes it's difficult to know how much information to share with the congregation. Sometimes there is the matter of confidentiality which must be protected in most situations. There may be the issue of needing to protect innocent parties who may have been impacted by the situation. When either of these are the case the leaders can explain that there are some details that cannot be shared for these reasons, but then without betraying confidentiality or innocent people the matter can be discussed honestly.

Such discussions are seldom pleasant, but it is far worse to have to admit later that in previous discussions leadership was being less than honest. Honest discussions about matters than impact the church help the church remain healthy and leads to growth. Trying to keep secrets from the congregation leads to an unhealthy environment in the church and often results in decline.

Thursday, December 3, 2020

Giving ministry to the people

 Someone wrote that the first reformation gave the Bible to the people. The second reformation will give ministry to the people. I totally agree. Too many churches expect their pastors and staff to provide all the ministry for the church while they sit back and evaluate how well these leaders are doing. The Bible teaches that the role of the pastor is to equip the saints for the work of ministry. In other words, the work of the pastor is to teach the congregation how to minister to the people they encounter every day.

In my seminars to small church leaders I give this illustration. No matter how good the pastor may be, he or she can only be in one place at one time doing one thing. Let's say this pastor is serving a church of 70 people, the median size church in America, who have been trained to do ministry wherever they go. Now you have 70 ministers in 70 places doing 70 things. Would you rather grow your church by addition, 1+1, or by multiplication, 70X1? Which do you think will be most effective for the kingdom of God?

If this is the biblical method of ministry why do we not see this happening in more of our churches? There are several reasons.

  • Some pastors do not want to share the ministry with members of the congregation. They enjoy the appreciation and accolades too much when they minister to people. Although they may complain about being stretched too thin, they want to be a one-man show.
  • Many churches will not change their expectations of the pastor as the ministry-provider. "This is what we pay him for," will be their response to what I'm writing about.
  • For too long we have bought into the pastoral care concept when we should be moving towards a congregational-care style of ministry.
  • Pastors do not know how to train people to do ministry. Some may believe that it is only in seminary one can receive this kind of training, and it's not really the role of lay people anyway.
  • The church is so busy with committee and board work that there is no time for lay people to actually be involved in ministry. While some committee and board work may be needed, this is mostly maintenance work. Much of this can be done without requiring a group of people to give up an evening to discuss things that really do not need discussing and trusting the leadership to make these decisions. Now people have time to minister.
You can probably find other reasons that exist in your church. Regardless of the reason, the church must move towards equipping its members to do ministry. There is simply way too much work that needs to be done to expect that one minister can do it all.

Wednesday, December 2, 2020

What do you see when you look at others?

One of the things Zig Ziglar used to  say in his motivational messages was that too many people look for the worst in others as if there was a reward for finding it. Instead, he would challenge his audience to begin looking for the good in people. We should be good-finders, not fault-finders Ziglar would say. Some of us might not understand how important that it.

It's easy to look at people the way they appear to be. We have in our mental folders certain images filed away and catalogued.  We form immediate beliefs about individuals we've never met based upon those images. Too often, that allows us to overlook aspects about that person's character or personality that may not be immediately seen. That leads to incorrect assumptions about the value of the individual. That is why we are told in the Bible that we are not to judge on outward appearances. Jesus judges the heart of the individual. He sees us as what we can become, not what we are currently. If we want to lift others up we must learn to do the same.

One of the keys of developing people is to begin seeing them not as they are or even as other people see them, but to see them for what they can be. Every person has potential. Perhaps that potential has been buried under a lot of bad decisions on their part, but it's there. Sometimes it only takes a word of encouragement to bring that potential to the surface. Maybe all it takes it someone affirming that potential to give someone the courage to try.

When I became pastor of the first church I served it had been in decline for a number of years. It had little money, few people and no vision. In a few years I suggested we carpet the old wood flooring in the church. The cost was not huge, but it took a year to raise the money. The carpet looked so nice it made the wooden pews look bad plus they weren't very comfortable. We looked into covering and padding the pews which, surprisingly, cost the same as the carpet. But, this time we raised the money in only a few months. Little successes built upon one another, and within a short period of time our congregation began to feel that they could accomplish bigger things which it did. All that time I kept telling them that I had more confidence in them than many of them had in themselves. They could tell I really meant what I was saying. We began to live up to our potential.

I believe it is natural for many of us to live up to the expectations others have for us. That's why it's so dangerous to speak negatively to our children. There is many an adult today who cannot get those negative messages they heard as a child out of his or her mind, and those negative messages keep them from moving forward in their lives. Such people need someone to enter their lives and speak words of encouragement to them.

One Sunday I sat in a worship service and heard the pastor browbeat the congregation for 45 minutes. I almost walked out. Later, while talking to a member of the church, I was told that this was a weekly occurrence. The people sitting in our pews are beaten up by life six days a week. They don't need it again when they go to church on the seventh day. We can preach the Word of God with authority without beating on people. Let's remember that Jesus spoke words of comfort and healing to the masses while saving his strongest words for the religious leaders who abused the people.

I want to be a Barnabas, one who encourages others and helps them live up the potential God has placed within them. I want my ministry to be one that helps people find a relationship with Jesus Christ that will offer them forgiveness and healing. I want to see the good in people and help them see that same good in themselves.

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Pastor, do you love your people?

 Several years ago I read that one of the primary questions people in smaller churches have of their pastor is "Do you love us?" While this is probably true of people in all churches, it is especially true for those attending smaller churches. These churches are built more upon relationships Those relationships are built upon love and trust. If people do not believe that you care about them they will find it hard to trust you, and if they do not trust you a relationship is impossible.

As a denominational leader I've listened to numerous pastors complain about the people in their churches. It was obvious to me that they cared little for those people. Sitting there I had to wonder why they stayed. Did not they realize that people knew how the pastor felt about them? As much as we might try, we really cannot hide our true feelings about others for very long.

I have been blessed in my ministry. I've only served three churches. One I served as pastor for 20 years. The second church I served two years as their Transitional Pastor, and the third church I'm currently serving in that same capacity. I can honestly say that I have genuinely loved the people in all three churches. When I left the church I pastored for denomination work, it was tough. Those people were my friends, my family. Although I frequently told them how much I loved them, I doubt many truly understood the depth of the love I felt for them. The same was true of the first church I served as the Transitional Pastor. I was happy they found the person God had prepared to lead them into the future, but I knew I would miss serving that congregation...and I have.

Now, I am in my second church as a Transitional Pastor, and, again I am finding a precious group of people I love. Covid has made it difficult to build the relationships with them I would like. Unable to visit people in the hospitals or their homes makes it harder to connect with some in the church. Several in our congregation will not attend services in person due to the pandemic, but they are faithful to watch the services online. I'm looking forward to the time when we can all gather together again, without masks, so I can better connect with everyone in the congregation.

One way to know whether or not you love the people in the church is in the way you refer to the church. I had not been at my present church very long when I noticed that I kept referring to it as "our" church in my sermons. I'm not a member of the church. I'm the Transitional Pastor and will be gone when the church calls a new pastor, but I feel so close to the church and the people in it that I consider it "our" church. When a pastor consistently refers to the church he or she is serving as "this" church or "the" church, that pastor needs to check his or her heart.

Seminary can teach a minister many things, but it cannot teach you to love your people. That has to come from your heart, as an act of your will. There is an old story of a stranger planning to move to a new town. He stops an elderly resident of the community and asks if the people in the town are friendly or not. The man asks in return what the people were like in the community he is leaving. The stranger said they were some of the meanest, most unfriendly people he had ever known. The older man replied that he would find most of the people in this community would be the same way.

Later, a different person stopped the elderly gentleman and asked the same question. Again, he responded by asking what the people were like in the community he was leaving. The individual said that the people in his former town were some of the sweetest, kindest persons he had ever known. The older gentleman said, "You will find most people here to be the same way."

Of course, the moral of the story is that most people are what you expect them to be. If you expect people to be mean and unruly that is what you will find. If you look for the good in most people you'll quickly find it. Pastors, if you're having trouble loving the people you are serving, begin to look for the good in them. You'll probably find it rather easily, and you'll find it much easier to love them. If you can't find the good in them and can't begin to love them, then maybe you need to look into your own heart.

Monday, November 30, 2020

Four things the post-pandemic church must focus on

We have spent much of 2020 dealing with a world-wide pandemic that has impacted many aspects of our lives including the church. Churches have scrambled to continue providing worship services in-person and online and have sought new ways of conducting Bible studies and small groups. In some states churches have been forced to close for a season. Church camps and other church-related entities were forced to cancel many of their activities resulting in financial challenges. It has been a difficult and challenging year. While many are looking forward to the end of 2020 there is no guarantee that 2021 will not present even more challenges. Rather than sitting back and waiting until things return to "normal" I believe there are four things the church must focus on as we move into the new year.

The first of these is prayer. We talk about prayer more than we actually pray. One reason we don't see a spiritual revival in our country is that we don't pray as we should. When one studies the great revivals of the past it becomes obvious that each of them began as a result of prayer. We need to pray bold prayers asking God to move across our nation to bring healing and revival. We need to pray prayers of confession admitting to our sins and seeking God's forgiveness. We need to pray intercessory prayers on behalf of one another. And as we pray we need to do so in faith believing that God will answer those prayers.

Secondly, the church needs to refocus its commitment to fulfilling the Great Commission. This is the mission of every church. This is our mandate, and yet many churches do little or nothing towards the winning of souls to Christ. The numbers of non-Christians continues to grow while the numbers of Christians continue to become less and less. It seems the modern church is willing to do anything except evangelize the lost. Let's not forget who these people are. They are our neighbors, the sweet grandmother next door who does not know Jesus Christ, the young lady who checks us out each week at the supermarket, the teacher who helped our children learn. They are our parents, our children, our grandchildren, and our best friends. Rather than think of non-Christians in the abstract let's begin to put faces on them and then begin to take seriously the Great Commission and make it a focus of everything we do as a church.

Thirdly, we must be open to radical change. Many churches don't like any change; now I'm talking about radical change. What kind of radical change? No one knows, but as the challenges the church face increases it will require us to make the necessary changes in order to address them. Not only will the changes we will be forced to make be radical in nature, they must also be made faster than we are comfortable with. I do not believe the church in the future will have the luxury of spending months discussing potential changes in committee and board meetings before voting on it at the next business meeting. In many cases the church will need to respond quickly to grasp the opportunity before it. These changes will no doubt make some people uncomfortable, but they will be necessary in order for the church to succeed in its mission.

Finally, the church must be willing to sacrifice it all. Yesterday, during our invitational hymn the church sang "All to Jesus I Surrender." As we finished I responded that it is often easier to sing the great hymns of the faith than it is to live them. Are our churches really willing to surrender everything to Jesus. Are we willing to sacrifice it all if that is what is required of us? Sometimes we cannot know victory until we are willing to lay it all on the line.

While we do not know what 2021 will bring we can begin now to prepare for whatever it might be by focusing on these four things.

Friday, November 27, 2020

The real loser in this election

One of the key ingredients that determines if a leader can lead is trust. If people do not trust the leader they will not follow him or her. This is true in churches, in businesses and other organizations, and it is true of a nation. It is almost a certainty that Joe Biden will be our next president. However, whether that is the case or if President Trump somehow retains the office, America is in trouble.

This was a close election with nearly one-half of the votes going to each candidate. If Biden becomes president a large number of people will claim that many of his votes were fraudulent. If Trump wins his court cases and remains in office Biden's supporters will claim he stole the election. Either way, many Americans will resent whoever is in office. If Congress remains split with the Democrats in the House holding a slim majority and the Republicans in the Senate holding a slim majority our nation will once again be held captive by partisan bickering and posturing. By virtue of holding office the president will be able to enact some of his agenda through the use of executive orders, but that is not true leadership. These orders will be met with great resistance due to the lack of trust half of the nation feels towards whoever holds the office. Some are saying the Joe Biden received a mandate from the American public for the things he wants to do, but no such mandate exists. Neither did this election provide a mandate for the current president if he remains in office.

The approval rating for Congress tanked years ago and shows no signs of improving any time soon. Although a few new faces were elected to office in the recent election, for the most part we returned the same politicians we claim we don't trust back to office. I guess enough pot holes in our streets got repaired for them to stay in office. Much is made of the president's approval rating, but at even their lowest levels the past few presidents had ratings much higher than that of Congress.

What is lacking in our nation is statemanship. We have an abundance of politicians, but we do not have statesmen. When our nation was founded it was led by statesmen such as George Washington, John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Samuel Adams and many others. While these individuals held different views on various subjects, they worked together to create a constitution that has stood the test of time and been the envy of people around the world. Now we have politicians who want to rip up the constitution and replace it with their own private agenda. Is it any wonder they are not trusted and are unable to accomplish anything meaningful for the good of the nation? I find it interesting that our nation is so much larger now than when it was founded and yet we are unable to find leaders of the caliber of our founding fathers. We might want to explore why that is.

We have also learned that we cannot trust the news media. Not only do they determine what news to report, they determine how they can best spin it to fit their worldview. This is true whether one watches media with a conservative bias or a liberal one. I used to watch 3-4 hours of news every night. Now, I watch about a half-hour of local news and then go on to other things. I don't trust them so why should I listen to them? Until someone figures out how to restore trust in our elected leaders and our media we will see our nation continue its downward spiral. 

I must point out the same is true of churches. One of the reasons so many churches struggle to remain healthy and to have an effective ministry is that its leadership is not trusted. There are many reasons for the lack of trust in churches. Former pastors may have provided poor leadership which has made the congregation leery of trusting another pastor. The church may have a lot of secrets it is trying to keep from being made public. A church is only as healthy as the secrets it keeps. Lay leaders in the church may have deep divisions among themselves, and any time there is factional fighting there will be a lack of trust and a breakdown of leadership. When any of these things occur, the church is in trouble.

We may still be a few weeks away from knowing who the next president will be, but this election is going to impact our nation for years to come. We simply have to do a better job of ensuring fair and honest elections in the future, and we need to begin now looking for qualified people to support for office who will have the good of the nation ahead of their own personal good or that of their political party.

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

Can we have morality without God?

Philosophers have long tried to insist that man can be a moral creature without a belief in the existence of God. As our society grows more secular today this claim is heard even more frequently. Many would point to the work of Immanuel Kant as the godfather of this worldview. Kant taught that the rules of morality were rational  and evident to people apart from any belief in God. He further believed that people not only had the ability to know right from wrong but also had the ability within themselves to choose to do what is right. Obviously, there are some problems with this philosophy.

One, watch any news program and you will readily see that many people do not appear to have the ability to know right from wrong nor the ability to choose to do what is right. Our world is overwhelmed with violence, chaos, greed, hatred, abuse, addictions, and far more problems than can be listed here. Without a Moral Lawgiver there is no universal standard of right and wrong, and without such a standard there is bound to be everything described above as each person does what seems right in his or her own eyes.

A second problem arises when the person who insists there is no moral standard given to us by God but then complains when someone does something they believe is wrong. If God does not exist, and there is no objective moral standard, then who is to say that anything is right or wrong? What is the basis for such judgment? Without such a standard then there is no compelling reason why a person cannot do anything he or she pleases. 

What we often find is that nearly every person will eventually admit to certain behaviors as immoral, but then they struggle to explain why those actions are immoral. The reason they struggle with their explanations is they are using biblical standards of right and wrong and doing so while still trying to deny the existence of God. It is here that the hypocrisy exists.

The late apologist Ravi Zacharias frequently wrote about this dilemma faced by those who claim that man can be moral without God. In his book Can Man Live Without God he wrote, "Let me say forthrightly that what we have actually done is to smuggle in foundational strengths of Christian thought, buried far below the surface to maintain some stability, while above the ground we see humanism's bizarre experiments growing unchecked. If we truly put into place the same principles below the ground that we flaunt above the ground, we would completely self-destruct."

Our culture wants to deny the existence of God, claim that mankind is free to create its moral code of conduct without an objective moral standard, free people to live according to their conscience, but then revert back to a biblical foundation of morality when needed. They cannot have it both ways.

Tuesday, November 24, 2020

Change in the digital world

I'm currently reading a very interesting business book that was published in 2009. That doesn't sound very long ago until you begin researching some of the things recommended in the book. The book focuses on doing business in the 21st century and the importance of having a web-based business. In one chapter the author suggests six free online tools that entrepreneurs should use. Two of the six have been discontinued since the book was published. Just as quickly as online tools are developed, they are replaced by something better and faster. It's kind of the like the new computer you buy with all the bells and whistles, and three months later it's outdated due to new technology having been developed.

Think about other changes that have occurred in the digital world. From 2005-2009 My Space was the largest social networking site in the world with over 100,000 users per month. However, it was then surpassed by Facebook, and today it is but a fraction of its former size. Now, Facebook faces challenges from newer social media sites such as MeWe, which is the currently the second most downloaded app on Google Play Store, Pinterest, WT Social and a host of others.

Another change that is coming in 2021 is that Microsoft 365 products will stop supporting Internet Explorer. In 2003 IE was the most widely used web browser, but its popularity has decreased steadily since Firefox and Google Chrome were introduced. In 2015 Microsoft announced that Microsoft Edge would replace IE on its Windows 10 devices.

Now, you may be like me and these changes do not affect you very much. Or you may be a person who is always on the lookout for the latest and greatest in technology. If you are in the latter group, good luck keeping up with all the changes occurring in the digital world. I suspect these changes will only increase in their rapidity. 

The real purpose of this post is to point out that changes are coming just as quickly in the church world as well. This year we saw the need for churches who had no online presence to quickly develop one. For many of these churches their online presence was an introductory one. The challenge now will be to understand how to build upon that. 

Many churches that began offering their worship services online found that their in-person attendance and the number of those who were watching the services online were more than previously attended their services. I mentioned in a previous post that we now have three congregations: those who attend in person, those who attend only online, and those who attend some services in person and other services online. How do we minister to these three different groups of people? How do we even identify the ones who only attend online? How do we do discipleship with each of the three groups? How do we help the ones online to feel connected to our churches? How do we provide pastoral care to our online congregation if we do not even know who they are? I'm sure you can add many more questions to this list, but this is enough to help us understand that we are facing an entirely new way of doing church that most of us have not considered in the past.

We can ignore these questions, but we do so at our peril. If we want to continue to be used by God to be a witness to this generation we must find answers to these questions, and many others as well. In my opinion, if you think 2020 has been challenging to the church, you ain't seen nothing yet!

Monday, November 23, 2020

The failure of atheism

 Many would point to Frederick Nietzsche as the philosopher who has had the greatest impact on atheism today. In a very powerful book I'm currently re-reading, Can Man Live Without God by Ravi Zacharias, the author points out the fallacy of Nietzsche's claims about the positive attributes of atheism.

Nietzsche taught that Christianity denied human progress because of its teachings on morality, repentance and humility. He believed that a civilization of power could not be built on such teachings and therefore Christianity, and the belief in God, had to be destroyed. One who bought into his philosophy was Hitler who tried to create a world without God and plunged the world into a horrible war.

Zacharias points out that the reality of Nietzsche's philosophy "is, under close examination...philosophically incoherent, morally bankrupt, and unable to logically or existentially support civilization...We do not see the promised greatness or harmony. Instead we are trapped in a world of violence, discord, emptiness, alienation, and racial hatred. But having become masters of deceit and able manipulators of reality, we have also become deaf to the truth."

Does this not sound like what is happening today in our world? Violence, discord, emptiness, alienation and racial hatred make up the news stories every evening. We have removed God from the public square. We have rejected the very teachings Nietzsche said was preventing society from moving forward, and the result is chaos, confusion and division.

Atheism is a failed philosophy, but it is quickly becoming the dominant worldview of many within our nation. We have seen the results of this belief system played out in such countries as the Soviet Union, China, North Korea, and other nations, and yet it is proclaimed in the media, on university campuses and in a growing number of our political leaders as the best hope for mankind.

The church must boldly proclaim the truth of God's Word and challenge atheism wherever it is taught. We must know what we believe and why we believe it. We must pass our faith on to our children and grandchildren. As someone has said, we are only one generation away from losing Christianity. We must be able to defend our beliefs and faith to those who would question it.

It's important to remember that Jesus promised that the church would withstand every attack made against it. Our battle against atheism is not a battle against flesh and blood but against the powers of darkness. It is a spiritual battle that we will win but only if we are willing to stand firm on the beliefs we claim we hold.

Friday, November 20, 2020

Sometimes we just need to reboot

 When I came into the church office this morning I tried to call a church member. There was no dial tone on the phone. I checked with the office administrator and learned she didn't have a dial tone either, and a couple of people had called in and they could not hear one another. We assumed the power outage last Sunday had fried our phones and were looking into replacing them. I suddenly thought that maybe if I unplugged my phone and plugged it back in it would reboot. It worked!

Sometimes we need to reboot our spiritual lives as well. When someone has been a Christian for a long period of time it's easy to begin taking our spiritual lives for granted. We stop reading our Bibles as we did as new believers. We pray when we think about it. We find it easier to not attend church services than it used to be. Suddenly, we feel distant from God and wonder what happened. We know God hadn't moved so it must be us who have began to distance ourselves from Him.

At some point in our lives most of us will need to reboot our relationship with God. That doesn't require that we disconnect with him as it did with the phone. It just requires that we return to doing the things we did when we first became Christians. We spend time in prayer, in reading the Bible and in attending the worship services. We find ways to serve others on His behalf. We ask God to restore unto us the joy of our salvation.

We can be certain the devil will attempt to stop our efforts to reboot our relationship with God. He has invested a lot in luring us away from that relationship, and he will not let go easily. It's important that we surround ourselves with people who will help us rebuild our relationship with God. That's one reason it's so important that we are faithful in being active in our church. Everywhere there are people and other things that work to pull us away from God; we need persons and activities in our lives that will encourage us to grow in our relationship with God.

If you live in the Westport, Indiana area, and you need to reboot your relationship with God we would love to walk with you through that. If you don't live in the area, find a good Bible-believing church to help you.  If you've never invited Christ into your life but feel this is the time, please contact us. If you just want to ask questions about what it means to be a Christian, please feel free to DM me. I would love to talk with you about that.

Thursday, November 19, 2020

Five levels of leadership

 Thanks to the pandemic and spending more time at home than usual I have read over 100 books so far this year. I just finished what was probably my favorite one of them all. The 5 Levels of Leadership: Proven Steps to Maximize Your Potential by John Maxwell is an excellent book for anyone in a leadership role including those of us in ministry. It builds on his belief that everything rises and falls on leadership. In order to grow and improve an organization the leader must first be growing in his or her leadership abilities and then develop other leaders. It is a concept that I bought into years ago, and I have tried to do both ever since.

The five levels are

  1. Position - The person is given a leadership role and others follow him or her because that person is in charge. This is the lowest level.
  2. Permission - People follow the leader because they want to because they have a relationship with the leader and trusts him or her.
  3. Production - At this level the leaders gain credibility because they have produced results.
  4. People Development - Level 4 leaders change the lives of the people they lead and empower them to become leaders in their own right.
  5. Pinnacle - Few leaders reach this level of leadership. At this level they develop others to become Level 4 leaders.
Maxwell points out the upside and downside of each level and explains how one can move into the next level. He also explains why many do not move into higher levels of leadership. It costs something to move into a new level of leadership, and many are not willing to pay the price. As he said in one of his other books, you have to give up in order to go up. Moving into the next level will always cost the leader something, and unless the individual is convinced it's worth it, he or she will likely decide to stay at the level where they are.

Of course, that decision can also be costly. Once a leader decides to remain at his or her current level that means he or she cannot take the organization any further. How many pastors have resigned their place of ministry because they realized they had taken the church as far as they could? On the one hand, it's good they recognized that and stepped aside so new leadership could be brought in, but on the other hand it is often an admission they have not grown as leaders.

While there are some who seem to be born leaders, anyone can learn the principles of good leadership. Even the born leaders must commit themselves to growing in their leadership skills or they too will find themselves and the organizations they lead stuck. Every person called to ministry must commit themselves to being a lifelong learner in the area of leadership.

I have only one regret after reading this book. I wish I had read it sooner.

Wednesday, November 18, 2020

Is your church ready for a bivocational minister?

 Yesterday I wrote about a pastor who had asked permission to seek part-time employment to supplement his salary due to financial challenges the church was having due to Covid. I mentioned that he would probably have no problem finding such employment in his area, but the greater challenge will be for the church making the shift from having a fully-funded pastor to one who is bivocational. During my time in denominational work I found that churches often had more trouble making that transition than did the pastor.

Churches whose pastors move into a bivocational role cannot expect that individual to be available as they once were. Their other work now requires a certain amount of their time, and they still need time for their families and their own well-being. That means the church has to assume more of the ministerial tasks that they may have asked their pastor to perform. For instance, he or she is not going to be able to be in immediate contact with everyone in the church. When the pastor is at the other place of employment he or she cannot be reached at the church office as before. His employer likely will not want him or her taking phone calls regarding church business when he is at work. 

Some bivocational ministers contract with the church for a set number of hours each week. I've never been a fan of this. No minister is going to refuse a phone call because they have already worked their contracted hours for the week. When I served as a bivocational pastor I told our church there were some weeks I probably didn't do more than 5-6 hours of church work a week. There were other weeks I did 50. I felt it all balanced out. Like most bivocational ministers I know, my motto was "Whatever it takes." So I didn't worry about tracking hours.

One pastor who moved from a fully-funded role to a bivocational one in his church was able to make the transition smoothly, but his church didn't. Although they agreed he could go bivocational, they could not overcome the mindset that they held when he was fully-funded. They resented he wasn't there at their every beck and call. I had met with the church before he made the transition and explained to them the differences they would experience. They were in agreement with all of them until they actually began to experience them in real life. I understand it eventually led to so much conflict in the church that the pastor resigned.

If your church is considering making the shift from a fully-funded pastor to a bivocational pastor make sure you understand all the changes that will occur. Bring in a consultant who understands bivocational ministry or a denominational leader who has helped lead other church through this transition to meet with the pastor and congregation so everyone is fully aware of how things will change. Make sure there is agreement within the congregation as to their willingness to accept greater ministry responsibilities. Identify who will be primary contacts for people when the pastor is unavailable. With proper planning this can be a smooth transition that can benefit both the church and the minister.

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Church giving and the pandemic

 A fellow minister posted on Facebook last week that their church was experiencing financial shortages due to the pandemic. He had asked the church for permission to begin seeking part-time employment to supplement his salary. He did not say if the church had reduced his salary due to their financial situation or not. The church allowed him to seek that employment. He lives in an area with a lot of jobs available so he should not have a problem finding one. The challenge will be whether the church can make the shift to being led by a bivocational pastor.

Most of the church pastors I speak with tell me their churches are doing OK financially during the pandemic. Although their giving is down a little, their expenses are also down. I suppose the ones who are struggling the most are those churches whose budgets consist mostly of pastoral salaries and benefits. If 80 percent of a church's budget goes to the pastor and/or staff there is not a lot of room to cut expenses without impacting the minister. Denominational leaders may want to study how many of their churches were forced to allow their ministers to become bivocational due to financial giving issues related to Covid. It might serve as a predictor of the future for those churches.

Unless a church has a number of people unemployed due to Covid there really is not a good reason there should be a significant decrease in giving. Those members of the congregation who are not attending services due to the pandemic are not prevented from mailing their giving to the church. The giving of our tithes and offerings should not be limited to just when we attend services in person. Every church with a web presence should offer online giving options to make it even easier for people to give. When the pandemic started many churches found how easy it was to begin offering their worship service online, and they will find that it is just as easy to make online giving available.

As I wrote last week in this blog, things are not going to return to "normal" any time soon, if ever. That includes the way we receive the offering. Many churches, rather than passing the offering plate, now place them in the back of the sanctuary. That's a different way of doing this for many people, and new things are easily forgotten. There is nothing wrong with reminding people occasionally of those offering plates. Just this past Sunday I realized I still had my offering in my shirt pocket when the treasurer came to collect the money from the plate near where I was standing. People start talking with one another, as I was doing, and simply forget the offering plate is there.

If providing online giving options and reminding people of the offering plates in the back of the church doesn't improve the giving in your church, then it's probably past time to preach on stewardship. This should be part of your annual sermon planning anyway. Despite what some people believe, there is nothing wrong or improper about sermons on stewardship.

Giving our tithes and offerings is part of our worship the same as our prayers, singing and other things we might do in our worship service. We should never be embarrassed about inviting people to worship God through their giving.


Monday, November 16, 2020

Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor pandemic, nor darkness...

Yesterday was a first for me. It was the first time I've preached with no electricity in the church. Strong winds knocked out the power in the area surrounding the church. The lights went out 4-5 times before staying out. The energy company reported they didn't expect power to be restored until later in the afternoon. So, we had no sound system, no songs on the screens, no PowerPoint for the message and no lights. What we did have was a worship service.

We had enough outside light to see inside the sanctuary so we opened our hymnbooks and sung. A young couple provided some wonderful special music. Two people recorded the service on their phones to be put on our website later in the day so the many who tune in each week for the service can watch it. And I preached just as I always do. As I've often said, I have a great voice in case of fire or shipwreck (in other words I'm a loudmouth) so I doubt no one in the sanctuary or those watching the service at home had a problem hearing the message.  

Sometimes the church gets too used to the technology it has available today. We can become dependent on it if we're not careful and feel we can't function without it. All that technology is great, but the only thing we really need is the Holy Spirit in order to worship and serve. Our electrical power may fail; His power will never fail.

Friday, November 13, 2020

Invest in yourself

While the stock market is doing well right now it's probably about due for a correction. One thing long-term investors know is that the market does not keep going up indefinitely. There comes a time when it corrects itself. Values go down as investors take their profits. Or, a situation like 2008 occurs and stock prices plummet overnight. Whether it is due to a correction or a recession, stock prices do go down for a period of time, and people who have not invested wisely can lose a lot of money when that happens.

There is one investment that will never lose money. That is investing in yourself. We live in a time when being a life-long learner is not an option. Whether you are a minister, a business professional, or a blue-collar worker, your world is constantly changing requiring you to have new skills and a new knowledge base.

As a factory worker I saw our company change from using single-spindle drilling machines to highly computerized equipment. The company began offering various training courses to the shop workers, and I took advantage of every class I could take. During my 30 years working in that factory I saw amazing changes take place, and I'm sure since taking early retirement a few years ago the changes have come even more quickly requiring new levels of knowledge.

I've owned businesses that required licenses and continuing education to maintain those licenses. The business world keeps evolving, and anyone who doesn't stay on top of it soon finds himself or herself on the outside looking in. As the saying goes, what got you here won't keep you here, and it certainly won't take you there.

I'm approaching my fourth decade of ministry, and, again, the changes that have occurred since I began in 1981 have been amazing to consider. Many of the things I did in my early years as a pastor cannot be done effectively today. I remember the first sound system we had in our little church. At times it picked up the CB radios the truckers used out on the highway. That was entertaining! Today, I serve a church that began broadcasting its services on social media when Covid began to shut down churches. Along with technology changes in ministry, there have been many changes in worship styles, outreach, discipleship, and virtually all aspects of ministry.

How does one acquire the knowledge to stay current? One can take courses at nearby colleges or universities or take online classes. There are numerous conferences and seminars available where new insights can be obtained. Some of these are now being offered online due to Covid. Reading books and serious journals can add to one's knowledge base. Podcasts have become a popular way of keeping up with the changes occurring in one's field. Joining a peer group can help one learn best practices.

Some of these suggestions cost very little while others will involve some cost. However, rather than looking at it as an expense it's best to look at it as an investment. It is an investment in yourself, your future, your success, and your family. It's the one investment you can never lose. As we prepare to enter a new year, now is a good time to consider how you can invest in yourself in the coming year.