Pastor's Prayer Team

In 1997 men from across this nation came to Washington DC to participate in Promise Keeper's "Stand in the Gap." Estimates of the size of the crowd vary widely, but it's probably safe to say there were one million or more men in attendance. I was there that day along with my son who had recently moved to the area and three men from our church. It was an incredible experience as we spent the day listening to various speakers and praying for our nation.

The next morning the group we were with left the hotel on our rented bus and after driving a couple of hours stopped for breakfast. The three men from our church was sitting at a table with their food when I sat down. They said they wanted to talk with me.

After the event our son had taken me to their apartment where we had dinner. By the time I returned to the hotel room I shared with the three men from the church they were all asleep. Evidently, as they had returned from the Mall they began talking about the day's activities. During that discussion they realized they all had been thinking the same thing: they needed to have a regular time of prayer for me as their pastor. That next morning over breakfast they asked if I would be interested in meeting with them each Sunday evening before our service for a time of prayer just for me and my family. Of course, I was more than agreeable!

The following Sunday morning I announced that at 6:30 each Sunday evening there would be a time of prayer for me. my family, and the church. These men shared their conversation that led to this decision and invited anyone who wanted to participate to join us in a back Sunday school room. From that time forward, every Sunday evening 4-8 people would meet to pray. They would ask what prayer concerns I had and then each of them would begin to pray.

This had an incredible impact on me, my family, and our church. There were times the evening service began late as we spent extended times in prayer. There's not enough space in a post to describe the many ways this impacted my wife and me personally as well as the impact it had on the church.

John Maxwell often talks about the prayer team that surrounded him when he was a pastor and the impact it had on his life and ministry. I experienced the same impact, and I believe any pastor will as well when people begin to intentionally pray for him or her.

Do you have a Pastor's Prayer Team who meet with you regularly to simply pray for you and your family? If not, I would encourage you to develop one. Ask some of your prayer warriors if they would be part of that team. If you can only start with one person, begin there and let it grow naturally as people begin to understand its value to you and the church.

If you are a layperson in a church that does not have such a prayer team, begin to ask God if you should begin one. Talk to your pastor to determine his or her interest in meeting with a prayer team on a regular basis. My guess is your pastor will be as excited as I was to have a group of people meeting for the express purpose to pray.

Pastors are often under a lot of pressure today. They need the support and prayers of those they lead. Sometimes, their families need it even worse. A Pastor's Prayer Team can make a big difference in the lives of your pastor and his or her family. It can also make a difference in the life of your church.

If I ever returned to pastoral ministry, one of the first things I would do is start a Pastor's Prayer Team. I encourage you to do so as well.

Open doors

When a person begins to serve God he or she never knows what doors God might open. Very shortly after I was saved I knew that God wanted me involved in ministry, but I wasn't sure what that might look like. I was married with two children and a good job in a factory. I had no education beyond high school and saw no way to get further education. I was involved in our local church teaching a Sunday school class and serving as a deacon when our pastor asked if I had ever felt called to the ministry.

A few months after that the church granted me a license to preach, and then nothing. The church had called a new pastor whose theology was more liberal than mine. I was never allowed to preach in the church that licensed me. I wrote to our judicatory leader telling him of my availability to fill the pulpit. He responded that once I earned my MDiv he would be glad to help me find a church. For a year no preaching opportunities appeared.

Slowly, such opportunities did come. Independent churches began to ask me to fill the pulpit when their pastor was away. Several months later a church in which I was raised asked me to serve as their interim pastor. A few months later they called a pastor, and I had no place to preach. Soon a neighbor told me of a small church in our county that was looking for a pastor. I contacted the church, and a few months later became the pastor of Hebron Baptist Church. I served there as their bivocational pastor for the next 20 years.

While serving in that church I did graduate from a Bible school and later earned a bachelor's degree. In 2000 our Region asked me to serve as an interim Area Minister. Although I had good relations with our former Area Ministers I wasn't sure what all the job entailed, but I felt led to accept it. Later that year the interim label was dropped as I accepted the call to be the next Area Minister.

I never dreamed such a ministry would be offered to someone without a seminary degree, and at one time I'm sure it would not have been. For the next 14 years I served in that ministry until I retired at the end of 2015.

The reason I share this brief overview of my ministry is because of a question I was asked last week. Another minister asked if I ever thought I would have the opportunity to speak to bivocational and small church pastors across the country and write books that would encourage and support them. Frankly, I've been surprised at every door God has opened for me. I've never felt qualified for any ministry that has come my way. Perhaps I'm the poster boy for the saying: God doesn't call the qualified; He qualifies the called.

I felt called to serve as the pastor of that small, rural church even though I knew very little about pastoral ministry other than what I had observed in my pastors. I felt called to judicatory work even though I did not have the experience or the education most people bring to such ministries. I felt called to write the books I've written even though when I began I didn't have a clue how to write a book or get it published. I felt called to travel the country to speak to bivocational and small churches pastors and try to provide them with some resources that would help them. And in every case, God has opened doors that only He could open.

You may struggle at times wondering if God can ever use you in some significant way. If you are serving him in any kind of ministry, you are already being used in a significant way. Never look down on your current ministry. In God's time He will open the doors He wants you to walk through. Our role is to be faithful where we are, continue to grow in our relationship with God, and be willing to walk through those open doors. You may find God will take you places you never thought possible.

Render unto Caesar

The Bible teaches us that Christians have an obligation to be good citizens. We are to render unto Caesar what is his and to God what is His. The past few days I've been rendering unto Caesar. Yesterday I voted in the Indiana primary, and the day before I paid my property taxes. On April 15 I mailed in my income tax payment. Last week I paid the sales taxes from the preceding month's auction's sales.

In addition we are taught in Scripture to pray for those in authority over us. I admit that following this one can be difficult at times, but I remind myself that I am to pray for the office and the person who occupies that office. I may not personally like or admire the person, but I am to respect the office he or she holds, and it is out of that respect that we are to pray.

When I turned 18 this nation still had a draft system in place due to the war in Vietnam. Knowing that I was getting close to being drafted I decided to enroll in the Navy instead. This nation enjoys the freedoms it enjoys today because brave men and women have been willing to serve in the military to protect those rights. I was not going to burn my draft card or run away to Canada to avoid serving my nation as some did, and I look on those four years in the Navy with a great deal of pride. I appreciate the opportunity to have served our nation in that way.

However, we must never forget that as Christians we hold a dual citizenship. We are both citizens here, and we are citizens of the Kingdom of God. We are called upon to also render unto God what belongs to Him. That includes our ultimate loyalty and faithfulness. Any time the state asks us to do something or accept something that is contrary to the clear Word of God we must obey God.

Sometimes people will say they would suffer the consequences if needed to obey God rather than the state. I have to admit that I wonder about that because there are many things in the Bible that we are commanded to do as citizens of God's Kingdom that most Christians do not do.

• We are commanded to share our faith, but few Christians have ever led anyone to faith in Christ.
• We are taught to tithe, but the average Christian gives less than 2.5% of their income to the church.
• We are commanded to gather together for corporate worship, but for many Christians today attending church on Sunday is something they do if there's nothing else going on.
• We are told that we are to grow in our faith, but many Christians have never grown beyond their initial salvation experience.
• We have been given spiritual gifts by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of ministry, but few Christians can tell you what their gifts are or how they are using them for ministry.
• We are told to pray without ceasing, but many Christians admit to seldom praying unless they are facing a crisis.
• We are taught to honor and care for our spiritual leaders, but many pastors and other ministry leaders often struggle financially. Clergy abuse accounts for a large number of clergy persons leaving the ministry every year.
• We are commanded to work for justice for those who are oppressed, but how many Christians or churches can you name who are doing that?

The list could go on and on, but I think this is sufficient. Most of us are faithful in rendering unto Caesar what is his, but that is often due to the fact that if we don't we break the law and face penalties. We are often less likely to render unto God what belongs to Him because we don't see an immediate penalty if we don't. We forget that there is a day of judgment coming for each of us.

But, we should not be motivated by the fear of God's judgment to do the things He has directed. Our motivation should come because of our love for Him and our appreciation for all that He has done for us. We should seek to be good citizens of the Kingdom of God because we are the recipients of Gods grace, not because we fear His judgment. We should desire to obey Him because blessings come through obedience, and those blessings are not only ours to receive but will also be experienced by those whose lives we touch on His behalf.

Sharing with bivocational ministers

This past Saturday I was privileged to share with Church of the Nazarene bivocational and small church pastors from the Michigan District. That morning I shared a workshop on "The Healthy Small Church," and after lunch I shared on "Transforming the Small Church From Maintenance-Minded to Missional." We had a great day with a lot of questions and discussion among those attending.

This event was the idea of District Superintendent John Seaman. John and I first met when I was a speaker at PALCON in 2010. He has a deep appreciation for bivocational ministers and wanted to offer them some training opportunities that would address some of their particular challenges. This fall I will return to lead two more workshops.

It is exciting to me that more and more judicatory leaders are seeking ways to offer training to their bivocational and small church pastors. These leaders recognize the growing numbers of such ministers and their importance to their churches. They also realize that these pastors face unique challenges and need training to help them address those challenges.

This recent conference was my third one for this year, and I have seven more currently scheduled for 2016. Seven different denominational groups have invited me to speak to their bivocational and small church leaders this year. There has been a very good turnout at the three previous events, and I look forward to the remaining ones on the schedule. It is exciting to meet these pastors and lay leaders, hear their concerns, and try to answer their questions. These are sharp folks who are doing a great work for the Kingdom of God.

There is still time for your church or denomination to get on my schedule this year, and it's not too early to be thinking about 2017. I was surprised at how quickly these 10 events were booked this year.

Before leaving Michigan I was invited to preach at Elmdale Church of the Nazarene on Sunday morning. We had a great service with some wonderful people. Their pastor, Nate Gray, has been at the church for six years and reminded the congregation when he introduced me of how my book The Healthy Small Church: Diagnosis and Treatment for the Big Issues had been instrumental in turning their church around after he came. It's always nice to know that something you've done has had a positive impact on others. I was blessed by being with this growing congregation and getting to know this young pastor and his family.

Your entire worship service is your message

Some pastors believe that everything that happens prior to the sermon is merely an introduction to the main performance. Nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is, our messages are conveyed through the entire worship service. If the service is well planned it will point to the One whose truths you will be communicating in your message. This is why it is so important that the pastor and the worship planning team work together in developing the service each week.

When I was a pastor I tried to give our worship leaders the title, text, and theme for my messages at least a month in advance. This allowed them to develop a worship service that would complement the message and bring the whole service together in a meaningful way.

The one thing I wish I had done differently was to incorporate more elements into the service even if it meant that there would be some Sundays there would be no sermon.

Our music was fairly basic. I often joke that we could have never built a ministry around our music, but what we did was done well. Music is the most important ingredient in a good worship service. It influences who your church will reach. Rick Warren correctly states that when you determine your music style you will also have determined who your church will and will not reach. It also prepares the soul for the message.

I visit too many small churches whose music ministry seems to have been an afterthought. The musicians have limited talent, the singing is anemic and uninspired, and there seems to be no flow to the service. Some churches have told me they are using the best talent they have. I would suggest they begin asking God to send them some talent. Believe me, I have extremely limited musical ability, and when I can tell that about every fourth note is off, it's off! It's an unnecessary distraction to the service and a stumbling block to attracting new people.

Multimedia wasn't available during my pastorate. The closest we came was overhead projectors which we did use occasionally. If I was pastoring today I would certainly use multimedia. We are a visual society. Talking heads do not communicate well to everyone. Add media to the sermon and it will have a greater impact. The cost of video projectors and laptops is now low enough to be affordable for any size church.

I would give one warning. Use multimedia wisely. You may not want to use it every Sunday. Have lots of white space on your slides. Media can also include objects, noises, etc. so mix it up to make your message stand out even more.

Several years ago I began to tell more stories in my messages rather than giving three-point sermons. I find that stories connect with people and make messages more memorable. The parables Jesus told were stories. If he found them helpful to get his point across we probably will as well.

Depending on the available talent in your church you can also use drama, puppets, liturgies, and other means to get the message across. Be creative. Remember that the purpose of worship is to allow people to experience God in a way that is meaningful and life-changing.

The hardened heart

In the book of Mark Jesus was confronted by a man who had a withered hand. He asked the religious leaders if it was lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do evil. No one would answer. The text goes on to say that Jesus looked at them with anger at the hardness of their hearts before He healed the man's hand.

I can't help but think that He may also look upon much of what the church does today with anger. Like the Pharisees of his time, we too often prefer our rituals and traditions over the opportunities we have to touch people for the Kingdom of God.

Such churches live in the past preferring their memories to a vision of the future. After spending 14 years in judicatory ministry and visiting in many churches I've seen many with large pictures hanging on their walls showing hundreds of people attending church events 40-50 years ago, but they could not tell you the last time anyone was baptized in their church. They point to these pictures with great pride, but they cannot point to a vision for doing ministry in the future.

In his commentary on the book of Revelation John MacArthur, Jr. wrote

A church is in danger when it is content to rest on its past laurels, when it is more concerned with liturgical forms than spiritual reality, when it focuses on curing social ills rather than changing people's hearts through preaching the life-giving gospel of Jesus Christ, when it is more concerned with material than spiritual things, when it is more concerned with what men think that what God said, when it is more enamored with doctrinal creeds and systems of theology than with the Word of God, or when it loses it conviction that every word of the Bible is the word of God himself. No matter what its attendance, no matter how impressive its buildings, no matter what its status in the community, such a church, having denied the only source of spiritual life, is dead.

If any of this sounds like your church, it's time to take a serious look at the heart of your church. A church in this condition will need a heart transplant or it will eventually die, and while it's waiting for the inevitable it will accomplish little of significance for the Kingdom of God. What will it take for a church to receive a change of heart.

• The church must be confronted with the hardness of its heart. This is what Jesus tried to do in the Mark passage, but the religious leaders refused to repent and instead sought ways to destroy Him and His ministry. The same may happen to you.
• The church must repent of its hardness of heart. Prayer will be an essential part of this repentance. God is more than willing to forgive us our sins if we will first acknowledge them and repent. 2 Chronicles 7:14 is a powerful promise to the church, and as we repent of our sins we need to stand on this promise.
• The church must begin to see people through the eyes of God. Until they matter as much to us as they do to Him, our repentance will not be complete.
• The church must seek a fresh vision from God as it prepares to move into the future. Your church started due to a vision, and if it is to continue to have an effective ministry it will need a God-given vision that is fresh for today and the future.

For more helpful thoughts on this subject I refer you to my book The Healthy Community: Moving Your Church Beyond Tunnel Vision.

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.