Life-Long learning

 In a survey I did in 2004 among bivocational pastors in the American Baptist Churches, USA I learned that there were a variety of educational backgrounds. Some had a college education, usually in the secular field in which they worked, a few had master's degrees and even fewer had doctorates. Many had no education beyond high school. That was my category when I began as a bivocational pastor.

Every so often in this blog I have an article about life-long learning because I believe it is essential for bivocational and fully-funded pastors as well. Even though I now have a masters degree and a doctorate, I do not necessarily believe they are required for ministry. But, even with such degrees I am convinced that every minister must be committed to life-long ministry.

Our world is constantly changing, and if a minister does not keep up with those changes he or she will soon find themselves irrelevant to the culture they are trying to reach. Exegeting Scripture is important, but so is exegeting our culture. I began my pastoral ministry in 1981, but if I was to try to repeat what I did then now my ministry would be mostly ineffective. Our world has changed, and our ministries must change as well if we hope to reach this current culture.

Please don't misunderstand. Our message does not change, but our methods must change. Some churches and denominations have decided they must become "woke" if they are going to be relevant to our culture. These churches and denominations are rapidly shrinking in size because they have abandoned the Word of God and substitutes the accepted politically correct views found in today's culture. I predict they will continue to decline until they no longer exist. God will write "Ichabod" (the glory of God has departed), and they will one day fade from existence.

Our methods of sharing the gospel must change. There was a time in my ministry when it was acceptable to go door to door inviting people to church. People today consider that an interruption. Quite honestly, so do I. I don't like people I don't know ringing my doorbell trying to sell me something I don't want. There was a time when churches held one or two revivals every year. The problem was few people after the 1960s ever got "revived." Churches still had their revival meetings because that was all they knew to do. Today, most churches understand such meetings are largely ineffective.

I could go on about the changes that have taken place since I began my ministry, but if we don't learn what doesn't work we will keep doing things that are not productive. Life-long learning is essential if we are to understand our generation.

I urge each reader to commit to being a life-long learner. Attend conferences. Read books. Find a mentor or coach who can help challenge you and answer your questions. Believe me, it will make a difference in your ministry.

Training for bivocational ministers

 About the second or third month of my time as a Regional Minister in our Region our Executive Minister notified me that we had a training program for lay leaders, and it was part of my portfolio responsibilities. He further said, "It's broke, fix it."

I scheduled a meeting with the committee that oversaw that program and soon learned why it was broken. After a couple more meetings we determined it was broken beyond repair and needed to be replaced with something new. Some of the people left the original committee, and I was able to bring new people on board. After several months we developed the Church Leadership Institute, a two-year program of study for anyone in a church leadership position. We set a date for starting the program, and decided if we had 10 people register we would consider it a success. That first class began with 30 people registered!

When the first group neared the end of their two-year program they kept asking, "What's next?" We went back to the drawing board and designed another year of classes making 15 classes total if someone wanted to complete all three years.

Although the program was originally designed for church lay leaders, we found many of our bivocational pastors began taking the classes as well. In fact, for those who completed all three years we awarded them a Diploma in Pastoral Ministries. Many of the bivocational pastors in our region received their training through our CLI program. We even had the occasional bivocational pastor from adjacent states attend our program driving three hours each way to attend classes. By any measure, CLI was a tremendous success for our region. But, it has ended.

Our region has entered into a partnership with Kairos University-Sioux Falls Seminary to provide leadership training for our pastors and lay leaders. A former colleague of mine is the dean of this program so I know it will be highly successful. I don't know why the region made the decision to switch from CLI to this opportunity, but I know it was done for the right reasons.

It's been an interesting few months since learning that CLI, which was such an important part of my ministry when I served as a Resource Minister, was being replaced. While I know all things come to an end and need to be replaced by something better, I also know how it feels when changes are made in a church that makes the current members uncomfortable. I'm currently serving as a Transitional Pastor in a church that needs to make a number of changes. I know exactly how some of that congregation will feel when changes are made because I know what I felt seeing CLI ended.

I want to make something very clear. All things must come to an end. CLI served its purpose for its time, but when something better came along it was right to make the change. For anyone invested in something, that change can be hard. We pastors who want to come in and change things need to understand that. We sometimes complain that people are being difficult when we try to make needed changes; we need to understand they are not being difficult, they are hurting. Something meaningful has been taken from them. While they may understand the need for the change, that doesn't make it any less painful.

The good news is that our region continues to provide training for its bivocational ministers and lay leaders. While I have not talked to anyone from the region, I assume this is open to anyone who wants to enroll in this training. I could encourage you to check out that web page for the American Baptist Churches of Indiana and Kentucky to learn more about the program. There are also a number of schools such as Campbellsville University that also offers an educational program for bivocational ministers. 

When I began as a bivocational pastor in 1981 these types of training opportunities were very limited. Now that many of these are online, there is no reason that every bivocational pastor doesn't take advantage of the oppotunties.

Train up a child

Last night in my library I came across an old book I had not seen in a long time. It was A Harmony of the Gospels by A. T. Robertson. Inside on the cover page was written "To Dennis Bickers - Star of his class - Jr. class 1959" and signed by the teacher. I remember when I received the book. I believe it was for winning the Sword Drills that was popular back then for children's classes. Finding this book brought back a lot of memories.

In Proverbs 22: 6 we read "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it." This is a verse that is often quoted, and misquoted. It does not necessarily mean that the child will always stay on the right path. Many godly parents have tried to raise their children in the Lord only to see them make different choices later in life. In fact, that is exactly what I did.

Like many young people raised in church there came a time when I didn't need God or the church or the teachings I had been taught as a younger child. I wanted to experience life on my terms, and I did. Growing up in the 1960s gave me many opportunities to experience life. So did my stint in the Navy. Now, don't get me wrong. I didn't make some of the choices others my age did, and I certainly didn't doubt the existence of God. I was just a good old boy who wanted to live life on my terms.

That came to an end toward my late 20s when I found myself in a rather difficult situation with no solution in sight. I realized that living life on my terms wasn't working out so well. To make a long story short, I turned back to my childhood faith and invited Christ to be my Lord and Savior. I've been living for Him ever since and have found that it is the only way to enjoy life as it is meant to be.

But...what if I had not had that early childhood training in church, in Sunday school, in VBS? What if my parents had been like many parents today who don't take their children to church but claim that they will let them make those types of choices on their own when they get older? How can they make a choice for God when they've never been exposed to God or the teachings of the Bible? What will happen to them when life begins to press down on them as it did me?  I had something to come back to; many young people today won't because they've not had the training I experienced as a child.

I realize it was probably easier in 1959. There was nothing happening Sundays and Wednesday nights except church activities. Today there are dozens of sports events and other activities that pull families away from church on those days. Back then it was acceptable, and in many places expected, that you would be in church on Sundays and Wednesdays. Today people look at you sideways if you say you are going to attend a church service. Just because it might have been easier back then doesn't mean it's not just as important today to raise children to know God and the Scriptures. In fact, with the abundance of temptations out there for young people today it may be even more important. The world today is an evil, scary place for persons who are not morally grounded.

As church leaders we need to do whatever we can to offer the very best training for our children and youth that we can. The day may come when they turn away from it, but there may also come a day when they come back to it.

When people are not taught the basics

When Jay Leno was host of the Tonight Show he often did a man-on-the-street interview. He would ask random people various questions about current topics or issues to get their responses. He would ask questions about how our government is structured and other questions pertaining to our way of life. He would ask historical questions or ask people to identify certain current leaders. The answers were often amusing because they were so wrong. It's not amusing now because these people are now holding political offices and their ignorance does not bode well for the future of our nation. People running for political office are finding a lot of support from people with this same lack of understanding of political and economic realities, and they are getting this support.

It wasn't too long ago that no socialist could hope to hold political office in the US. Today, they do, and more are running for office. Socialism is popular today because young people were not taught the history of socialism and its failure every where it has been tried. Civics stopped being taught in schools years ago, and today young people do not know how our government is structured or how it is supposed to work. Many of them can't understand why it would be tragic for our nation if the Electoral College was removed because they don't know why it was put in the Constitution in the first place. They don't know the three branches of government and how each branch works, and these people are now assuming leadership positions within these branches. It's bad enough that such people are seeking office; it's even worse that unaware people vote them into office.

Unfortunately, it's not much better in the church world either. We have many people sitting in pews week after week who do not understand basic Christian doctrine. If asked, they would struggle to explain what they believe and why they believe it. Their lives and worldviews are not much different than that lived by the unchurched because they have not been taught how to think and live as Christians.They are like the people the apostle Paul referred to when he wrote that they should now be given meat but instead they must still be fed milk because they are not mature enough to handle the meat of the gospel. What's the cause for this? They have not been taught the Word of God.

In another age sermons sought to make men God-centered in their thinking and how they lived. Today, many messages are man-centered. They address how one can find peace and happiness in life. We hear much about the love of God but little of His wrath. Messages often focus on how God can provide the help we need to face our circumstances but often ignore addressing our duties towards God such as worship and service.

Writing this I am not suggesting that our sermons should beat up our listeners. I've sat through some of those and you probably have as well. I am suggesting there must be a balance in our preaching. Yes, we should encourage people to turn to God for the solutions to life's challenges. The Bible encourages that, and so should we. But, we also must not ignore the warnings we find in Scripture and the demands Christ made on those who would follow Him. These too must be proclaimed.

For me, preaching through large sections of the Bible ensures the balance I seek in my messages. There will be the comforting passages that most ministers prefer to address, and there will be the challenging ones that many of us would prefer to ignore. But, we ignore them to our congregation's peril. When we commit to preaching through these larger sections, even complete books of the Bible, we cannot ignore these difficult passages.

When it comes to elections, let's vote for the candidates who are able and willing to honor our Constitution and work within its confines. In order to do that we must ensure that we are informed as to their values and beliefs and vote accordingly. When it comes to our religious life, let's make sure that we are preaching the whole counsel of God. For the person in the pew, make sure you are receiving everything the Bible teaches and seek to understand how to apply it to your life.

Are you looking for training for your bivocational ministers?

I had a conversation Monday with a denominational leader who had just finished reading one of my books on bivocational ministry. He wanted to know if I could lead a seminar for the bivocational ministers in his denomination? We talked about the ones I've led for numerous pastor groups in the past, and he requested more information on those seminars. As I was sending him that information it dawned on me that I have not said anything publicly about these in some time.

The one for which I receive the most requests is "The Healthy Small Church" which is based on my book by the same title. This seminar has been done for eight different denominations and several state conventions. After discussing some of the myths people believe about smaller churches we look at some of the benefits a small church offers. We then examine some of the potential problems that can exist in smaller churches and how to address them. The seminar ends by examining some initial steps a church can take to become healthier.

The second most requested seminar is "Bivocational Ministry for the 21st Century." Material for this one comes out of the several books I've written specifically on bivocational ministry and my own experiences as a bivocational pastor for 20 years. We look at the growing numbers of bivocational ministers across denominations and why that number is likely to continue to grow. We study some of the advantages and disadvantages of bivocational ministry and some of the challenges faced by all ministers today. I talk about how one can prepare for bivocational ministry. One of the most important aspects of this seminar is the time we look at how important it is that bivocational ministers maintain balance in their lives. I conclude this seminar by affirming the call to bivocational ministry in a person's life.

Another seminar that I am sometimes asked to present is "Transforming the Small Church from Maintenance-Minded to Missional." In this seminar we compare maintenance-minded churches to missional churches and how churches can move to a more missional perspective. We look at the life-cycle of churches and the eventual result of remaining maintenance-minded. A key component of this seminar examines how to introduce change to a church, and especially how to deal with the controllers that are in many churches regularly opposing change. We spend time looking at the importance of a church having a God-given vision and ways to begin to discern that vision if the church does not have one.

Other seminars I've led are "The Healthy Pastor" and "Finding Balance in Ministry."

These seminars have been presented to pastor groups from eight different denominations, several state conventions and even individual churches. I've led them for groups as small as 12 people and to groups that numbered in the hundreds. Many times during the breaks I've had pastors come to me and ask how I knew their churches so well. Bivocational ministers are my heroes, and I love working with them and adding value to their lives and ministries.

Each of these seminars are developed for a six hour presentation. I have also reduced them to a half-day presentation and even a one-hour workshop. Of course, the smaller time frames means we present less material. For that reason I prefer the all-day seminar, but these other options are available to fit your needs.

If you believe that one of these would benefit the bivocational ministers and small church leaders in your organizations, please contact me for more information. I would love to get your meeting on my calendar.

Training bivocational ministers

In my last post I wrote about a recent doctoral thesis written on the trend of mid-size churches to seek bivocational staff persons. As part of that post I suggested that we need to find ways to provide these individuals with the training they need to be effective in their calling. Some schools today offer such training.

Campbellsville University offers a Certificate in Christian Ministry through their School of Theology that would provide excellent education for a bivocational minister. This program is offered entirely online making it convenient for the student to work into his or her schedule. When completing this program the credits would be transferable if the student decided to continue his or her education at CU in their undergrad program. You might be thinking to yourself that if you completed that certificate program you would not be interested in continuing your studies. I thought that as a student at Boyce Bible School (now Boyce College), but when I completed that I felt led to continue my studies all the way until I earned my doctorate. You never know what God might lead you to until you begin the journey.

There are other schools offering similar programs, but I am not as familiar with them as I am with CU's program. Some seminaries are now offering dual degree programs for persons intentionally planning on going into bivocational ministry. This might be an option for some who sense a call to this ministry.

The American Baptist Churches of Indiana and Kentucky took a program that is being used in another region and used it to develop the Church Leadership Institute (CLI). It was originally designed to train lay leaders in our churches, but in the initial class we had several bivocational ministers who saw it as a way to get some much needed training. As they neared the end of the two-year program they kept asking for more training so we added another five courses for those who wanted to take them. Completing the entire program earned the student a Certificate in Christian Ministry, but more importantly, it gave our bivocational ministers more training than many enjoy.

CLI was never intended to replace a seminary education, but for many of the bivocational ministers in our region it provided an opportunity to receive both theological and practical skills training to help them better serve their churches. We intentionally kept the cost of each class low to make it available to everyone.

One of the things I most appreciated about CLI was it said to our bivocational ministers that they were important to our churches. We did not see them as second-class ministers. We wanted to come alongside them to help equip them for the ministry God had called them to do. I often receive emails from bivocational ministers around the country who tell me they wish their judicatories felt about them the way that our region does.

If you are a bivocational ministers you should check to see if your judicatory offers something similar to CLI. If it does not, ask them to think about developing such a program. I'm sure our region office would send them some materials to show them what we are doing.

Just before I retired we opened CLI up to anyone regardless of denominational affiliation. If you are serving in Indiana, and think this might be a good opportunity to receive some training, contact the Region office at 317-635-3552 for more information.

Bivocational ministry is increasing across denominations and even now appearing in larger churches. Those of us in seminary, denominational and judicatory leadership must find ways to ensure those serving in that role receives the training they need to be effective.

The discipleship challenge

Part of the Great Commission is the mandate to make disciples. If the modern day church has failed at anything it is the making of disciples. Nearly every pastor can point to Christians who have never matured beyond their conversion experience. We sometimes call them baby Christians because they've never grown up; they still act like babies who demand their own way and throw a tantrum if they don't get it. Even worse, these are often the people responsible for many of the conflicts that arise in churches.

We fail to disciple people because we approach discipleship the wrong way. Traditionally, churches have offered Sunday school classes to teach people the Bible. That model has become quite ineffective in many churches today because a decreasing number of church members now attend Sunday school classes. If a church has one-half of its worship attenders in Sunday school it is doing well.

Another reason the Sunday school model is not working as well as it should is because of the material often used. For the 20 years I served my church as pastor I taught the Young Adult SS class. At least the last 10 years I did not use any Sunday school material. We tried material from several publishing companies including our own denominational publisher. My class and I felt it has been dumbed down so much that it wasn't useful. Our children's teachers complained about the same thing and said it didn't provide enough material for the class time. Although many of the children's teachers continued to use Sunday school material I began to teach through books of the Bible to my class. I don't know if the material has improved since then.

A third reason Sunday school has not worked is because we have mistakenly believed that education was all that was needed for discipleship. It's not. Discipleship requires both knowledge and experience. We must find ways to give people opportunities to put into practice what they are learning. This might mean mission trips to serve people overseas or in other places in our own country. It might mean serving in our own local communities. After Jesus had spent some time teaching the disciples He sent them out to minister. This is a good example for any church serious about making disciples.

In a smaller church it might seem difficult to find ministry opportunities for our members, but it becomes much easier if we join with other churches, both small and large, and work with them. I've seen small churches join forces for specific projects and accomplish a great deal working together. Not only was important work done, there were opportunities for fellowship with Christians from other churches, and people grew in their faith.

Churches can no longer ignore the disciple-making element in the Great Commission. It is not enough to help people enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ. They must be led into a life of discipleship which only happens when we combine education with experience.

Free education

I frequently write about the need for bivocational ministers, and all Christians, to develop their minds through reading, attending continuing education (CE) opportunities, listening to podcasts in the car rather than the mindless drivel many listen to while driving, and other ways by which we can improve our knowledge. We must do this is we are to develop a sound Christian worldview and be able to defend our faith and values in a world that has largely rejected both.

Education is not inexpensive. Attending college and seminary can lead to huge student loans if one is not careful. Many CE opportunities are fairly inexpensive, but for the bivocational minister many of them will require missing work to attend those held during the day. Podcasts, for the most part, cost nothing to download, and over the years I've found that books can be expensive or rather inexpensive depending on where you buy them and if they are used or new.

However, there is one free way to get some great education, and that is through the Internet. YouTube offers a huge collection of educational courses that are free for the taking. Last week I started a six session course on YouTube on logical reasoning taught by an instructor at the University of Oxford. Obviously, this is not a full course that covers everything that would be taught if I were a student at Oxford, but I am also not paying the $12,000 Oxford would charge for the course if I were a student there. And, I can watch a session any time I want, stop it if I need to and come back to it later.

Every day we are bombarded with arguments on everything from politics to religion to business and every other area of our lives. People put their own private spin to convince us their argument is right. How can we best determine if their arguments are valid or invalid? Perhaps even more important, how can we determine whether their arguments fit into our Christian worldview, especially if we don't have a particularly Christian worldview or can't defend it?

As Christian leaders we have a responsibility to not only have a personal Christian worldview, we have an obligation to help others develop one as well. The sad fact is that many Christians have allowed themselves to be more influenced by our culture than by biblical teaching. Many sitting in our churches cannot explain their Christian worldview, cannot defend it to others, and many couldn't even explain what a Christian worldview is.

Jesus told the Scribe that the greatest commandment was "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind...and the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" Not only are our hearts and souls to be dedicated to God but also our minds. To me, that says that it is imperative that we continue to grow intellectually. And part of loving our neighbor well is being able to give him or her a reasonable defense of our faith.

There are so many ways to grow in our understanding of our faith and our culture. As Christian leaders we need to take advantage of as many of them as possible.

Bivocational ministers need training

There were some interesting responses to an article posted a couple of days ago about the need to identify bivocational ministers for the growing numbers of churches who need them. These responses came to my Facebook page so you may not have seen them. One of the comments addressed the problem that many persons entering bivocational ministry lack any kind of training for the ministry.

I agreed with the individual who made the comment and said that one of the biggest problems I encountered as a judicatory minister was the small church who would call the first person as their pastor who came down the road wearing a cross around his neck. These churches could not stand the idea that they did not have a pastor and would call the first person who showed any interest in serving in that position regardless of whether he was qualified and had any type of ministerial training. When the inevitable train wreck occurred they wanted me to somehow fix it.

For those who do not know my story I need to share some important aspects of my beginning as a bivocational minister. I began my ministry with no experience and no education beyond high school. I had served as a deacon in our church, a Sunday school teacher and had done some supply preaching, but I had zero training as a minister.

To make things even worse, the search committee of the church that called me did not ask me a single question of what I believed or my philosophy of ministry. They were just glad to find someone willing to serve as their pastor. This is the very scenario I am saying is ripe for disaster. Fortunately, in our case the disaster did not happen. After going to that church I did enroll in a Bible school and received some excellent training. I did this while pastoring the church and working a full-time job in a factory.

Unfortunately, not everyone is willing to pursue the education I did. In fact, I have met some bivocational ministers who ridiculed such education. These are often the same ones who leave train wrecks everywhere they go.

As we focus on identifying persons God might be calling to bivocational ministry we also need to identify ways to train them if they have not attended seminary. The Region from which I retired developed a program called the Church Leadership Institute which, although originally designed to train lay leaders, also became a great training opportunity for many of our bivocational ministers. It was never designed to take the place of seminary, but it offered much more training than I had when I began my ministry.

Many denominations and judicatories have such training opportunities, but the challenge is to get their bivocational ministers to take advantage of them. As stated above, some do not see the value in ministerial education. Some argue their schedule makes it impossible to attend the classes. Some have attempted the programs available to them and found the material offered did not meet their needs. For some, it's a problem of finances.

There may be many legitimate reasons why a bivocational minister doesn't take advantage of the training opportunities offered. We must find ways to overcome everyone of them if we want qualified persons leading our smaller churches. To me, this isn't something we need to do if we can find the time or the money. We must find the time and money to offer quality training to the folks who are going to be leading our smaller churches. It is imperative to do so if we want our smaller churches to be healthy places of ministry.

If we have a quality program, and if we have tried to remove as many obstacles as possible that prevent people from enrolling in the program, then we need to do everything in our power to encourage them to do so. I believe the United Methodist Church requires their bivocational ministers to complete the training they offer before they will assign them to a church. At least, this is what I was told by a DS several years ago. For those of us in denominations that do not place pastors we can still let our small churches and potential bivocational pastors know that we expect them to take advantage of the training opportunities we offer them. If they refuse, we should simply also refuse to assist them in further placement needs they might have.

More about this last comment tomorrow.

Ministry education that matters

A few weeks ago a well-known, retired church consultant, author, and coach made some comments on social media about concerns he had that seminary education no longer prepared one for the ministry. As I remember his comments, he felt that the typical seminary education was insufficient preparation for ministry in the real world. As you might expect, his comments were met with numerous responses. Some agreed with him while others strongly disagreed.

Regular readers of this blog will know that I have my own concerns about seminary education. I've made no secret of my belief that the typical MDiv degree is probably more suited for someone considering pursuing a PhD while an MA in some area of ministry might be more suited for one going into pastoral ministry. I should note that I began my pastoral ministry in 1981 and became a judicatory minister in 2001 but did not enroll in seminary until 2003. At that time I earned a MAR with a concentration in leadership. After earning that degree I enrolled in a DMin program completing it in 2010.

No, I can't parse a Greek text,, but the funny thing is in 38 years of ministry no one has ever asked me to. As a pastor I was often called upon to help someone with a marriage issue or a problem child. I was asked how to become a Christian and why life seemed so unfair at times. None of those questions depended upon me having three semesters of Biblical languages.

Some are probably getting real antsy now and wonder how anyone can preach Biblical sermons without that knowledge. If you saw my library you might understand how. I've spent a lot of money on good commentaries and biblical helps. Again, three semesters of Biblical languages does not make one a scholar. I would much rather invest in good material from individuals who have spent a lifetime studying Greek and Hebrew than to trust three semesters of such study.

Do I think it's a bad thing for a seminary student to pursue an MDiv? No, in some cases it makes a lot of sense. But, for some it doesn't. It depends on what one believes God's call on his or her life is and what it will take to fulfill that call. What I am opposed to is that everyone assumes that the MDiv is the ONLY degree that is suitable for ministry and ordination.

I am in favor of everyone in ministry getting all the education they need, but just make sure that what you are getting will prepare you for ministry in the 21st century.

Dumbing down of America and the church

Schools are much different today that when I attended them back in the Stone Age. That's understandable. Young people today need to learn different things that we did. The world has changed making these changes necessary. However, there are some things that are no longer being taught that is leading our nation down a dangerous path. One of these is Civics.

I still remember taking Civics and my teacher in that class. Don't ask me why I remember that teacher because I don't remember most of them, but I can still see her standing in front of the class teaching us valuable information about how our nation is structured and why it is important. I do not believe that many, if any, schools teach Civics today. This means today's graduates do not understand why there are two separate houses of Congress, how bills are passed, the separation of powers, the importance of voting and many other things that we were taught in Civics.

Why is this dangerous? We have people today in Congress, many running in 2020 for the office of President, advocating eliminating the Electoral College. They claim that doing this will make every vote equal. No, there is a reason the Founding Fathers created the Electoral College. It ensured that the entire nation was equally represented in the Presidential election. Eliminate the Electoral College and the East Coast and West Coast states, along with Texas, will elect the President making the votes of the rest of the nation of no value.

The same people want to allow non-Americans the right to vote. Voting is a privilege for the citizens of this country. It is the means by which we select the persons who will represent our wishes. I know of no other nation on the face of the earth that allows non-citizens to vote in their elections. Any introductory Civics class would point out the fallacy of even considering doing such a thing.

Speaking of voting, many of these same individuals want to lower the voting age to 16. They insist these young people have the maturity to vote in national elections. However, one must be 18 to purchase a long gun in America and 21 to purchase a handgun from a licensed dealer. The legal drinking age is 21. Why these higher age limits? Because our nation has determined that persons younger than this lack the maturity to purchase weapons and alcohol. I wonder if our presidential hopefuls would be in favor of lowering the age to purchase guns and alcohol to 16 as well.

The same people also want to enlarge the Supreme Court, what some are calling "packing the court." There's no valid reason for doing so except they aren't happy with the recent justices who have been named to the court. They have no idea of the importance or the role of the Supreme Court. They just want to make sure there are enough justices to get what they want.

These are just four dangerous ideas being floated by some Presidential hopefuls. Again, a class in Civics 101 would show how dangerous they are. They all go against the desire of our Founding Fathers to limit the control the government has over the people. Some are unconstitutional, but they don't care about that.

What makes them even more dangerous is that many young people today do not know what makes them dangerous because they've been deprived of an education that teaches what it means to live in a Republic governed by a Constitution. They've had zero education in the founding of this nation and how it was set up and why it was set up the way it was.

BTW - The same thing is happening in our churches. When we fail to adequately teach our young people what Christians believe and why we believe it we set them up for failure. Unable to defend their faith many choose to abandon it once they leave home. When all we do is entertain them we and teach them cute little Bible stories we send them out into a world filled with dangerous beliefs that many of them will find attractive.

If the schools are not going to teach Civics, perhaps the church needs to. We certainly need to do a better job of teaching our young people sound theology that includes both the what we believe and why we believe it.

What should you look for in a seminary?

In yesterday's post I talked about my personal educational journey, and I encouraged my readers who have not pursued a formal theological education to consider doing so. Today, I want to suggest some things you should think about when pursuing such education.

First, the seminary you attend should be one that will help you grow in the faith. Some seminaries are so liberal that they do more harm than good. They turn out graduates who have more doubts than faith. More than one seminary student has walked away from his or her faith because of the teachings of the professors under whom he or she studied.

This does not mean that you will necessarily agree with every professor and that your theological beliefs won't be challenged. Part of an education is being exposed to different beliefs and viewpoints, but this exposure should help you solidify your beliefs so you become stronger in your faith. There is a difference between presenting different viewpoints and trying to indoctrinate you with heretical teaching.

Second, the school you choose to attend should offer you a variety of degree choices. As I said yesterday, because of my sense of being called into bivocational ministry I did not want to pursue an MDiv degree. The school I chose to attend offered a variety of MA degrees in their theological school that seemed to be a much better fit for me. Because these programs were offered through distance learning, it was an even better fit for me since I was serving in a judicatory role at the time and managing a small business. I was able to schedule my studies around my schedule rather than having to adapt to a rigid school schedule.

Third, the school you select should be one that is affordable for you. There is absolutely no reason for anyone going into pastoral ministry to incur $60,000 in student loan debt, but I've known several who have. There's nothing wrong with going to some big, prestigious seminary if you can cash flow it, but there is also nothing wrong with attending another seminary or Bible college that you can afford.

Fourth, without question the school you attend should be fully accredited. There are a lot of diploma mills out there offering a theological education. You may find you've spent a lot of money for very little return.

Be wise when you consider which school will be best for you. This is a significant investment in your life and ministry and is not a decision to enter into lightly. I believe I grew as an individual and a minister through my educational experience, and this should be your goal as well.

Seminary or not

It's funny that I've often been accused of being anti-education because of some comments I've made about a seminary education. As many of you know, I began my pastoral ministry with no education beyond high school, and I did not follow a normal ministry education track.

About 18 months after beginning my ministry I began to attend a Bible college about an hour from my house. Although it was a two year program I needed four years to complete it as I was working a full-time job and pastoring a church besides attending school and being a husband and father. When I completed that program I enrolled in a university, also about an hour from our home, and spent the next seven years earning a bachelor's degree. I sat out five or six years before beginning a master's program, and then I followed that with a DMin degree which I completed when I was 62 years old.

The truth is that I sometimes wish I had sought even more education, maybe a PhD or a ThD so that I could teach in seminaries or Bible colleges now that I am retired. Although I have 35 years of practical ministry experience as both a bivocational pastor and a judicatory leader, I do not have the education that these schools seek in their instructors.

However, that is not the only reason I wish I had pursued additional education. While in Bible school I fell in love with learning. I learned to love the reading, the study, the writing of papers, especially in the postgraduate studies. I was able to go deeper in my understanding of the Scriptures and the ministry through my studies.

Although my education experience was not the norm, there were some advantages in doing it the way I did. I never incurred any student debt as I was able to cash flow my education since it took me so long to complete each of my degrees. In college I enrolled in General Studies which meant I did not have to take specific courses to complete a major. That gave me great freedom to take courses I thought would be most helpful to me and fewer courses that were required to complete a major or minor. Rather than earning an MDiv I enrolled in a MAR program with an emphasis in leadership. Again, a much more practical program for a bivocational minister (and for many other pastors as well IMHO).

I've written in this space recently about how ministry is going to change in the future, and one of my prayers is that seminaries are looking now at how to best prepare their students for these changes. I am concerned that many seminaries are now preparing people for a ministry that will not exist in a few years.

Do I believe that pursuing a ministerial education is a good thing? Absolutely, but don't think you have to follow an educational path that might have made sense in the 1950s but might not be the best one for you to take today. Also, do not limit your education to formal degree programs. Young ministers today must accept the fact that they will be lifelong learners if they are to remain effective in ministry.

Teaching the Bible

We are working our way through the book of Acts for our Sunday night Bible study. In Acts 11 we find the Gospel going to Antioch where a great number of people were saved. Barnabas was sent to Antioch to check out the reports of the people turning to the Lord. He soon went to Tarsus to find Saul to bring him back to Antioch where they spent a year teaching the new converts.

As I was studying this passage it dawned on me how these first converts to Christianity knew nothing about the teachings of Christ. They had no Bible. They had never had contact with Jesus Christ to our knowledge. They were a clean slate when it came to Christian teaching.

To make their lack of knowledge of Christian teaching even worse, they came out of a very secular and immoral environment. Antioch was not only a large cosmopolitan city, it was also well known for its immorality. The temple at Daphne was only about five miles away. Filled with temple prostitutes it was the center of immoral practices which impacted the entire city of Antioch. These new converts needed solid Christian teaching if they were going to successfully put their immoral past behind them.

I became very much aware that this is another way in which our society today resembles the first century. Several decades ago people often came to faith in Christ after having learned much about him through regular attendance in both worship services and Sunday school. Even before they became Christians they had an awareness of biblical teaching and Christian doctrine. That is often not the case today.

People in today's culture often come to faith in Christ with little to no knowledge of Christian teaching. They have not had regular exposure to Scriptural teaching so they do not have a sound grasp of Christian doctrine. This makes them easy prey for the enemy of their souls and is one reason so many fall away after making a profession of faith.

Not only have they not received very much Christian teaching before they became Christians, many do not receive much after inviting Christ into their lives. Sunday school attendance figures continue to go down in most churches. Mid-week and Sunday evening Bible studies no longer exist in many churches. Some of the churches offer small groups that study the bible at other times, but many of them don't.

Churches need to recognize that evangelism and discipleship are two sides of the same coin. Not only are we to share the gospel with others to lead them to a relationship with Jesus Christ, we also have a responsibility to help them grow in their faith. We have to find ways to encourage people to want to be taught the Word of God, and Christians must want to be taught.

We will never walk in victory or enjoy the kind of life God wants for us if we are not knowledgeable about what the Bible teaches. It is imperative that new Christians ensure they are attending a church that is not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and teaches it in every possible setting. Churches must see teaching the Scriptures is one of their primary duties and be very intentional about how they go about doing this.

Training for bivocational ministers

In my last post I discussed the need for denominations and judicatories to begin to intentionally develop pools of potential bivocational ministers to serve their smaller churches. Just identifying these individuals is not enough. We also need to provide the training they will need to be effective in this role.

Many of the people we identify as possible bivocational ministers will not have any kind of formal ministerial training. Since they have other jobs they may not be able to pursue a typical seminary education. Such education may not be what they need most anyway, but they do need to have training available to them.

When I joined the staff of the American Baptist Churches of Indiana and Kentucky one of my portfolio responsibilities was a program called the Certified Lay Ministry training. The way it was structured was not working so after a few months we eliminated this for another program we called the Church Leadership Institute. I led a great committee consisting of educators, lay persons, and pastors who developed an outstanding program that has not changed much since its inception. Although originally designed primarily to train lay leaders, a number of people competing the program have gone on to serve as pastors in our bivocational churches.

Similar training programs are found in numerous denominations and judicatories. However, some areas still lack any kind of training for bivocational ministers. This will have to change or these areas will struggle to find qualified persons to serve in these churches. Not every person serving in bivocational ministry will avail themselves of such training, but the best ones will, and they are the ones who will serve their churches well.

Various schools such as Campbellsville University's School of Theology are now offering online programs specially designed for bivocational ministers. I predict we will see more schools offer such opportunities in the future, and denominations may want to partner with these schools to help train their bivocational ministers.

Every judicatory needs to consider offering one or two training events each year specifically for their bivocational leaders. Obviously, most of these will need to be held on Saturdays. I'm leading about a dozen of these events this year for numerous denominations, and it's exciting to see more denominations and schools hosting such events each year.

Just as it's important to be intentional about identifying persons who might have God's call on their lives to become bivocational ministers, we must be intentional about offering them training to help them succeed in their ministries.

Bivocational ministry and life-long learning

I spoke at a recent bivocational minister's conference at Earlham College's School of Theology. The final segment was a discussion by all present about how seminaries and Bible schools can do a better job of training bivocational ministers. There were many great suggestions made from the bivocational ministers. Some of them had attended a seminary or Bible school; others had not. At one time I told them that if a school tried to teach all the things they were suggesting it would be a 10 year program! The dean and a number of his staff were present and promised to continue to study this matter.

As reported here before, all expectations are that bivocational ministry will continue to increase in importance in virtually all denominations. This is an important discussion to have. Most of the participants at this conference who had graduated from a seminary or Bible school agreed that much of their education did not prepare them well for the realities of bivocational ministry. If the numbers of bivocational ministers are going to increase then it's important that we find the best possible ways to educate and prepare them for this ministry.

However, we must also realize that seminaries and Bible schools cannot do it all. I was only half joking when I told the group that they were describing a 10-year program if any institution tried to teach everything they were suggesting.

It would appear to me that seminaries, Bible schools, and denominations need to work together to develop the training that bivocational ministers need. There are some things that the educational units should teach such as theology, church history, leadership,  pastoral care, preaching, etc. Denominations can then provide training in church growth, relationship building, and other practical skills bivocational ministers need. I certainly don't have it all figured out, and it would probably vary by school and denomination.

The key to this training, however, will be the bivocational minister. I've met too many who see little value in formal training, and among those who do many see no way they have the time to pursue it. I'll be the first to admit that it's tough. I was a bivocational pastor working full-time in a factory with a wife and two children at home when I first enrolled in a Bible school. It isn't easy, but the difference it made in my ministry caused me to enroll in college when I graduated from the Bible school. Later I went on to earn my master's and doctoral degrees while serving in fully-funded ministry. In between degree programs I attended numerous continuing education events.

Ministry is changing just as rapidly as everything else in our world. I still have most of the text books from the Bible school I attended in the mid-1980s on my bookshelves, but much of what's in those books no longer apply to the 21st century church. If you want to enjoy the ministry today you have to commit to being a life-long learner. Seminaries and denominations must offer cutting-edge continuing education events at a time that is convenient for bivocational ministers to attend, and these ministers must commit to attending such events. The ministers must invest in good books that explore new findings in theological thought and practical ministry skills.

I do not know what seminaries and Bibles schools will do in the future to train bivocational ministers. Some are already offering certificate programs that can be taken online that provide a nice mix of theological and practical ministry skills. Some are exploring how they can better serve this sector of ministry, and I'm sure some will choose to ignore it and focus on preparing people for fully-funded ministry.

However, regardless of what these institutions do, nothing stops you from being a life-long learner. There are numerous workshops and conferences held around the country today that are developed especially for bivocational and smaller church leaders. I know because I'm involved in several of them this year. Take advantage of these opportunities. If there are none close to you, contact your denominational leaders and ask them to provide some training that will improve your ministry. Take the initiative and develop the skills and knowledge you need to fulfill the calling of God on your life.

How can seminaries better equip bivocational ministers?

This past Monday I was privileged to deliver the keynote message at a bivocational minister's conference hosted by Earlham School of Religion in Richmond, Indiana. The event had about forty people in attendance including bivocational ministers, members of their churches, and individuals from the School of Religion. It was a very well developed conference that included insights from a recent study conducted by Phil Blaisley who traveled the country interviewing bivocational ministers and members of their churches as well as a brainstorming session on how seminaries and Bible schools can better train bivocational ministers for ministry.

This final question is one that every seminary and Bible school needs to address. The facts are obvious. Bivocational ministry is growing across denominations and is projected to continue that growth. The church is going through an incredible transition, and I don't think anyone knows right now what it will look like on the other side. Most seminaries are still training pastors for the old model of church. Their assumption is that their graduates will go to fully-funded, growing churches, and the role of the pastor is to manage the church.

I'm not sure that assumption will be valid in the future; I'm not positive it's valid now! The median size church in America continues to be around 75 people. This size church can seldom provide adequate compensation for a fully-funded pastor. In fact, we now see churches of 100-120 unable to provide a financial package that will support a fully-funded pastor and his or her family. Add to this, there are a growing number of ministers who feel specifically called to bivocational ministry and have little interest in serving a fully-funded church.

While bivocational ministers might want to pursue theological and ministerial training, many of them are not going to be interested in the traditional MDiv degree. Serving a church and working a second job often doesn't allow them time to attend seminary, and many of them don't see the MDiv as suitable for the ministry they are doing. Many of them will look for a two-year degree that offers practical ministerial training as well as some theological education, and many of them want that education available online.

As the attendees brainstormed some of the things they would like to see seminaries offer bivocational ministers I was struck by the number of them who did, in fact, already have an MDiv from Earlham or another seminary. However, they realized there were some things missing from their previous seminary education that would have better prepared them for the realities of bivocational ministry. They contributed much to the discussion about how seminaries can better equip bivocational ministers for their ministry.

The Dean of the School of Religion was in attendance throughout the conference. He and others from the school have much to consider over the coming months, and I applaud them for their willingness to listen and think about how they can better serve their students. This is a conversation that every seminary and Bible school needs to have or they are going to see their future students seeking their education elsewhere.

As we all agreed, this is not an easy discussion for seminaries to have because we don't really know what the church is going to look like as it goes through it's current transition. The only thing we do know is that it will likely be different than it is now, so now's the time to begin thinking about how this transition will impact the education our seminaries will offer the students of the future.

A problem with big Sunday school classes

Last week I shared a link on Twitter to an article that explained how big Sunday school classes can harm a church. The article was very well done, but I felt the author left out one important issue with big Sunday school classes. They are often not attractive to new people.

The people who enjoy a big Sunday school class are often the people who have been in the church for years. This class is like a second family to them. In a very large church this may be the primary place where they receive pastoral care. Everyone in the class knows everyone else, and it's like going to a family reunion once a week.

However, new people don't know everyone and do not have the relationships with the people in the class that the long-time class members enjoy. They can feel very much like an outsider who has crashed a family reunion. After a few weeks of trying to join in they abandon the idea and either come to church after Sunday school or go to another church entirely. Because the class is already large it's possible that their absence won't be noticed for weeks, and by then it's too late to get them to return.

The Sunday school can serve as an important outreach arm of the church. While it's primary purpose is to educate and disciple, it can also be used to reach new people who are not attending church services. However, it's important that the adult classes be kept small for it to appeal to new people. You don't want a small Sunday school program; you just want small adult Sunday school classes. This is why it's important to begin new adult classes on a regular basis.

A good rule of thumb is that an adult Sunday school will stop growing after about eighteen months. This means if you want to grow your Sunday school program you need to be adding new adult classes about every eighteen months. This will require a great deal of intentionality on the part of the church leaders.

New leaders and new teachers must be kept in the developmental pipeline so they are ready to lead and teach when you begin a new class. Sunday school budgets should reflect this planned growth. Effective outreach tools must be developed. People must be trained in outreach and hospitality, and prospect lists must be maintained. Follow-up with first-time guests should be a priority of the leadership, and systems should be developed that will make your follow-up more productive.

When I was going to Bible school in the mid-1980s we were taught that one purpose of the Sunday school program was to reach out to the unchurched. I believe it can still be an effective outreach tool if it is used correctly, and that includes keeping the adult classes small enough that new people will feel comfortable and want to return.

Adult education in the church

One of the things lacking in many churches today is a strong adult education program. For a long time we assumed about half of the people attending the worship service would also attend Sunday school, but I find that number is quickly becoming less in many churches. The children's Sunday school may still be somewhat strong, but there seem to be very few adults, except for the senior saints, who see the education program of their church a priority for themselves. Obviously, something needs to change.

Years ago, before I went into pastoral ministry, my pastor told me he wanted to start a new young adult Sunday school class. The current class was getting rather large, and it was difficult for new people to feel comfortable. I agreed to teach the class. We didn't take anyone out of the other class, but people who wanted to change classes were allowed to do so. New young adults would be brought to the new class. Although we didn't have the best place to meet, the choir loft, the class grew and helped new people assimilate into the church.

Most of our adult Sunday school classes have been around forever. Since they continue to be made up of the same people, it can be very difficult for new people to feel comfortable. In order to grow the adult Sunday school program a church needs to be regularly adding new classes. A good rule of thumb is that 20 percent of your adult education classes should have been started within the past two years. It's very difficult to grow an existing adult class that has been in existence for more than 18 months so starting new classes is a must if your church wants to grow.

We live in a time when people like options so churches need to consider giving people options when it comes to its education program. Offer both short-term and long-term classes. You may want to offer a six or eight week class to people who do not normally attend Sunday school. These classes might focus on a particular topic. At the end of the period the participants can be asked if they want to continue.

Rather than just offering age-graded classes in your adult education program consider offering classes based upon people's interest. One class might feature more in-depth Bible study. Another class might focus on biblical responses to various social issues confronting our culture. Short-term classes could be taught on personal finance, child rearing, aging, or a whole host of issues that might be important to the people in your church and community.

Finally, your adult education program needs to be outward focused, and not merely inward focused. A relevant education program that addresses real issues can be an excellent side door into your church for people who do not attend church. Just be sure you are offering an adult education program that is done with excellence and is seen as relevant to today's needs.

The entitlement mindset

Recently, while on vacation, I witnessed a young boy of about eight years old screaming and crying because he had not been the winner of a costume contest. This kid had lost it! He was out of control. To make things worse, his mother just sat there letting him act out in public. I mumbled to my wife, "There's a kid who's going to know a lot of disappointment in life," while she was trying to get me to be quiet.

Children are now being raised by helicopter parents who hover over their kid ensuring that he or she never falls down, always wears a helmet, never hears the word no, and gets everything his or her little heart desires. On the sports field everyone gets a participation award, and schools put smiley faces on homework instead of grades. We wouldn't want to hurt their self-esteem. They may not be able to read their graduation diploma, but at least they'll feel good.

Now that we've taught little Johnny and Mary that they are entitled to anything they want we should not be surprised at any demands they make. You've probably read about the recent million student march that demanded free college tuition and student loan forgiveness. In their mind, an education is a right and making people pay for their education denies them that right.

 It's a shame they weren't raised by my parents who told me more than once, "Society doesn't owe you anything. If you want something you have to work and earn it." When I got my driver's license and wanted a car all I had to do was get a job and buy it. I wasn't entitled to a car, and nobody was going to buy one for me unless I bought it myself. So, I worked all through high school so I could afford to buy a car. There is a certain dignity to earning the things you want in life rather than waiting for someone else to provide everything for you.

There is a very simple way to avoid student loan debt. We need to be teaching our children is that student loans should be avoided at all costs, and the best way to do that is to work and pay your way through school. Don't lay around all summer playing video games and spend your spring break laying out on some beach. Get a job. Have some dignity about yourself. Go to school part time and pay for your education as you go. That will help you grow up and keep you out of student loan debt. And by the way, you are not entitled to a college education. If you want a college education, then you pay for it.

To help you understand where I'm coming from, I didn't decide to go to college until I was in my mid-thirties. I was married with two children, working in a factory and pastoring a church. Working full-time I could only go to school part time, but that allowed me to cash-flow my education. By the time I eventually finished my education I had three degrees and never borrowed a dime for any of them.

Now that I'm off that soapbox let me say that unfortunately that same entitlement mindset exists in our churches as well. People leave the church because "they are not being fed." They leave because their feelings get hurt. A lady called me once and said she just didn't think she and her husband could attend their church any longer because she didn't like the way their pastor dressed. After 15 years in a judicatory role I should not be surprised at anything I see in churches, but I continue to be surprised at the pettiness and childishness I see in supposedly mature Christian adults.

Until we recognize that it's not all about us our churches are never going to function as God intended. People are going to hell while we argue over the color of carpet we're going to install in the sanctuary and whether or not the daycare should use the crayons in the Sunday school rooms.

In tomorrow's post I'll share the mindset we need to have rather than an entitlement mindset.