Next Wednesday a doctoral student will defend his dissertation on bivocational ministry. A few weeks ago he sent me a copy of his paper for my comments as he was preparing his oral defense. The paper is very good, and I've encouraged him to consider reworking it later into a book. I think it would be very helpful.
The focus of his paper is on ways denominations can better serve and resource their bivocational ministers. His focus is specifically on his own tribe, but what he writes has wide application to all denominational groups. As a bivocational minister himself he feels the pain of being isolated and misunderstood by many of his colleagues. He describes what many of us serving in bivocational roles have felt, and he challenges denominations to reconsider how they view their bivocational ministers.
His comments are not new. I've written widely on the problem as have many others. Denominations struggle to identify their bivocational ministers and the churches they serve which leads to those churches and ministers being largely under served. With the growing number of bivocational ministers across denominational lines, and the expected continual increase, it amazes me that more isn't being done to better serve those ministers and their churches.
The relative lack of denominational support means that many of these denominations are writing off a third to over one-half of their churches. They do not understand why these bivocational churches are not more involved in denominational life and mission, and they seem unable to correlate that lack of connection with their own lack of interest in better serving these churches.
This young man's dissertation offers specific ways denominations can come alongside their bivocational leaders and churches to build relationships and provide resources. I hope it will be widely read and applied.
In the meantime, a big shout out to all my fellow bivos. You remain my heroes. You're doing great work for the Kingdom of God, and whether anyone else recognizes that, He does!
Friday, February 9, 2018
Tuesday, February 6, 2018
Competing worldviews
I just finished reading a book that will surely make my top 10 list for books I've read in 2018. Steve Wilkens and Mark Sanford wrote Hidden Worldviews: Eight Cultural Stories That Shape Our Lives back in 2009, and I've just now discovered the book. It is an incredible study of eight worldviews that competes with a Christian worldview. The authors point out the positives found in each of these worldviews and demonstrate how each of them fail to provide a comprehensive worldview for believers. They also share how each of these worldviews can infiltrate the thinking of Christians in ways in which we may not be aware.
Regular readers of this blog will know that in recent years I have read much in the area of apologetics and Christian thinking. For much of my active ministry years I focused a lot of my study in the areas of ministry practices, but now I find myself drawn more to the philosophical, apologetical, and theological works. While I still believe that ministerial leadership is a vital component of effective ministry I am also concerned about helping people develop the ability to think deeper about their faith. There is no value in complaining about the shallowness of the faith of those in our pews if we are not actively helping them go deeper.
The authors do a good job of identifying eight worldviews that shape the thinking and lives of many people today, including those sitting in the pews. The eight worldviews they cover are individualism, consumerism, nationalism, moral relativism, scientific naturalism, New Age, postmodern tribalism, and salvation by therapy. These are the worldviews often taught in the universities, promoted by the media and found throughout today's music, film, and television programming. When people are bombarded with these worldviews throughout the day, seven days a week, it's difficult to develop a Christian worldview attending a worship service one hour a week.
It's easy to discount these views without acknowledging the positive aspects of them. I appreciate the fact that the authors do point out those positive elements while also addressing the failures of each of these worldviews. As they write, every worldview provides answers to questions about ultimate realities, how we know things, and what's good and valuable. They are also correct when they assert that "One of the basic worldview questions is, who gets to be God?" Only a Christian worldview provides the right answer to those questions.
Last year I did a mini-series of sermons that looked at a couple of worldviews and pointed out their shortcomings. This year I will focus on two or three more as I try to help our congregation better understand the importance of developing a Christian worldview. This book will be an important resource for those messages.
Regular readers of this blog will know that in recent years I have read much in the area of apologetics and Christian thinking. For much of my active ministry years I focused a lot of my study in the areas of ministry practices, but now I find myself drawn more to the philosophical, apologetical, and theological works. While I still believe that ministerial leadership is a vital component of effective ministry I am also concerned about helping people develop the ability to think deeper about their faith. There is no value in complaining about the shallowness of the faith of those in our pews if we are not actively helping them go deeper.
The authors do a good job of identifying eight worldviews that shape the thinking and lives of many people today, including those sitting in the pews. The eight worldviews they cover are individualism, consumerism, nationalism, moral relativism, scientific naturalism, New Age, postmodern tribalism, and salvation by therapy. These are the worldviews often taught in the universities, promoted by the media and found throughout today's music, film, and television programming. When people are bombarded with these worldviews throughout the day, seven days a week, it's difficult to develop a Christian worldview attending a worship service one hour a week.
It's easy to discount these views without acknowledging the positive aspects of them. I appreciate the fact that the authors do point out those positive elements while also addressing the failures of each of these worldviews. As they write, every worldview provides answers to questions about ultimate realities, how we know things, and what's good and valuable. They are also correct when they assert that "One of the basic worldview questions is, who gets to be God?" Only a Christian worldview provides the right answer to those questions.
Last year I did a mini-series of sermons that looked at a couple of worldviews and pointed out their shortcomings. This year I will focus on two or three more as I try to help our congregation better understand the importance of developing a Christian worldview. This book will be an important resource for those messages.
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Enjoying a balanced life and ministry
As a young bivocational pastor I adopted the attitude that I would rather burn out than rust out. That was really dumb! Either way, you're out! And I nearly was.
I've shared before in this space how, in the mid-1980s, I experienced clinical depression. For a year I took medication and visited a pastoral counselor every week as I worked my way out of that depression. I continued to function reasonably well. I worked every day at my factory job and pastored the church, but it took all the energy I had to do that. There was not much left for my family or anyone else. It was a very rough time, and it could have all been avoided.
I had to learn how to maintain a healthy balance in my life. I had to learn how to set priorities and how to say no. I had to learn that not everything was an emergency that needed my immediate attention even if some people thought otherwise. I had to learn how to listen to my body and spirit when they would warn me I was about to get out of balance.
A few years ago I wrote The Healthy Pastor: Easing the Pressures of Ministry to share with other pastors some of the things I learned about maintaining balance in life and ministry. I thought it would be a valuable resource to the many pastors who struggle with such balance. Frankly, I've been surprised it has not sold as well as I thought. Either it has gotten lost in all the books published every year for pastors, or many in ministry are pretending they do not have a problem in this area. For some of the latter, I suggest you talk to your family members.
One of the most valuable lessons I learned during that period of my life was that if I didn't take care of myself I would soon be unable to take care of anyone. I could share story after story of the times I was present physically but not emotionally for my family and my congregation during that battle with depression. Believe me, you don't want to go through that.
To all my ministry friends out there, please take care of yourselves. Ministry is not a sprint; it is a long-distance event. Your church and your family needs you, and they need you at the top of your game. Don't allow the pressures of ministry rob you of important times with your family and your congregation. Create margin in your life and seek balance in all you do so you can enjoy the best life God has for you.
I've shared before in this space how, in the mid-1980s, I experienced clinical depression. For a year I took medication and visited a pastoral counselor every week as I worked my way out of that depression. I continued to function reasonably well. I worked every day at my factory job and pastored the church, but it took all the energy I had to do that. There was not much left for my family or anyone else. It was a very rough time, and it could have all been avoided.
I had to learn how to maintain a healthy balance in my life. I had to learn how to set priorities and how to say no. I had to learn that not everything was an emergency that needed my immediate attention even if some people thought otherwise. I had to learn how to listen to my body and spirit when they would warn me I was about to get out of balance.
A few years ago I wrote The Healthy Pastor: Easing the Pressures of Ministry to share with other pastors some of the things I learned about maintaining balance in life and ministry. I thought it would be a valuable resource to the many pastors who struggle with such balance. Frankly, I've been surprised it has not sold as well as I thought. Either it has gotten lost in all the books published every year for pastors, or many in ministry are pretending they do not have a problem in this area. For some of the latter, I suggest you talk to your family members.
One of the most valuable lessons I learned during that period of my life was that if I didn't take care of myself I would soon be unable to take care of anyone. I could share story after story of the times I was present physically but not emotionally for my family and my congregation during that battle with depression. Believe me, you don't want to go through that.
To all my ministry friends out there, please take care of yourselves. Ministry is not a sprint; it is a long-distance event. Your church and your family needs you, and they need you at the top of your game. Don't allow the pressures of ministry rob you of important times with your family and your congregation. Create margin in your life and seek balance in all you do so you can enjoy the best life God has for you.
Thursday, January 25, 2018
When we refuse to work together
Once again we spent a few days in the midst of a government shut-down due to the inability of our government to work together for the good of the nation. Forget all the spin you hear from both parties, the shutdown is the result of Congress' inability to pass a budget that would fund the working of the government. That inability is due to the insistence of the Democrats that DACA be maintained in its present form which has nothing to do with the budget. Congress has until March to address DACA when it is scheduled to terminate. There is zero reason to use DACA as an excuse in January to refuse to pass a budget that would keep our government open and ensure our military and other government workers are paid for the work they do.
Our Congress has failed us, again. This includes members of both parties. Many of the persons supposedly representing the American people represent only themselves, their party, and the corporations who keep pouring money into their coffers. I said before the last election that the vast majority of the persons serving in Congress should be replaced. Term limits should be imposed, but of course, no one in Congress is going to vote to eliminate his or her cushy job. After all, the new military recruit making $17,000 a year would be paid during a shutdown, but the Senator making $174,000 a year would be paid during a shutdown. The chances of them passing a law to make it impossible for them to keep their job after two terms are slim and none.
However, term limits already exist. Elections are held every two years, and the American voter can vote the ones out of office who put themselves and their parties before the good of the nation. The problem is, few people vote, and of those who do vote, few are well-informed about what their representatives are really doing and supporting. We have become a nation of people who cannot think for themselves and rely solely on the spin put out by the political parties and our favorite news outlets to form our opinions.
Enough about politics. We see the same thing happen too often in our churches. Persons in leadership can become more concerned about their own positions and preferences than the good of the church and its mission. Controllers roam the halls and parking lots of our churches seeking to sway persons to their way of thinking and recruiting support for their agenda. Positive changes that are seen as a threat to their power are resisted despite the good they might do. New ministry opportunities are rejected if they do not personally benefit the controller. Too often, it's all about power rather than mission.
Nothing will ever change in such churches until the controllers are confronted. The pastor alone cannot confront these controllers. This is the task of the entire congregation who has finally grown tired of seeing their church hijacked by these self-appointed tyrants. They must either agree to work together for the good of the church or they need to leave.
Unity does not mean that we agree on everything, but it does mean that we are willing to work together to achieve great things. Our nation will never heal from its current divisions until those in leadership learn to work with one another, and our churches will never accomplish their God-given tasks until we learn to work with one another.
Our Congress has failed us, again. This includes members of both parties. Many of the persons supposedly representing the American people represent only themselves, their party, and the corporations who keep pouring money into their coffers. I said before the last election that the vast majority of the persons serving in Congress should be replaced. Term limits should be imposed, but of course, no one in Congress is going to vote to eliminate his or her cushy job. After all, the new military recruit making $17,000 a year would be paid during a shutdown, but the Senator making $174,000 a year would be paid during a shutdown. The chances of them passing a law to make it impossible for them to keep their job after two terms are slim and none.
However, term limits already exist. Elections are held every two years, and the American voter can vote the ones out of office who put themselves and their parties before the good of the nation. The problem is, few people vote, and of those who do vote, few are well-informed about what their representatives are really doing and supporting. We have become a nation of people who cannot think for themselves and rely solely on the spin put out by the political parties and our favorite news outlets to form our opinions.
Enough about politics. We see the same thing happen too often in our churches. Persons in leadership can become more concerned about their own positions and preferences than the good of the church and its mission. Controllers roam the halls and parking lots of our churches seeking to sway persons to their way of thinking and recruiting support for their agenda. Positive changes that are seen as a threat to their power are resisted despite the good they might do. New ministry opportunities are rejected if they do not personally benefit the controller. Too often, it's all about power rather than mission.
Nothing will ever change in such churches until the controllers are confronted. The pastor alone cannot confront these controllers. This is the task of the entire congregation who has finally grown tired of seeing their church hijacked by these self-appointed tyrants. They must either agree to work together for the good of the church or they need to leave.
Unity does not mean that we agree on everything, but it does mean that we are willing to work together to achieve great things. Our nation will never heal from its current divisions until those in leadership learn to work with one another, and our churches will never accomplish their God-given tasks until we learn to work with one another.
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
Small church and bivocational seminars
This past year is the first year in a long time I did not lead any seminars for bivocational and small church leaders. Since I was serving as a Transitional Pastor throughout 2017 I did not really advertise those seminars very much. Now, as my time in this church is starting to wind down I want to highlight those seminars once again.
There are several seminars I offer.
There are several seminars I offer.
- "The Healthy Small Church" This is the one I am most asked to lead and is based on my book by the same title.
- "Bivocational Ministry in the 21st Century" This seminar looks specifically at issues especially relevant to bivocational ministers and the churches they serve. Much of the content comes from my 20 years of serving as a bivocational pastor and the research I've done as I've written on the topic.
- "The Healthy Pastor" In this seminar I address many of the issues that many pastors struggle with that can lead to burnout and other problems.
- "Transforming the Small Church from Maintenance-Minded to Missional" This has been my second most requested seminar. Too many small churches are stuck in ruts they've been in for years. I challenge them to abandon those ruts and look at how they can engage in ministering to their communities.
I have also done special seminars and workshops for organizations that asked me to address specific issues. If this is something you need, I would be glad to work with you in preparing something for your church leadership.
These seminars have been given to church leaders from a variety of denominations in the US and Canada. Some of our terms might be different, but the challenges we face are similar regardless of our denominational tribes.
Each of these are available in a day-long (six hour) format, a half-day format, or as an hour-long workshop depending on the host's needs.
Since I will remain serving as a Transitional Pastor through August I will limit the number of seminars I lead prior to that. If you are interested in having me work with your small church and bivocational leaders, please contact me soon so I can get you on my schedule. You can email me at dbickers@roadrunner.com.
Tuesday, January 23, 2018
An exciting start to a new year
Madison FBC is having a great start to 2018. In yesterday's post I talked about the various small groups that will begin meeting this week. There is still time to sign up for one of these groups if you live in the Madison area. You do not have to attend this church to take part in one of these small groups.
The church also entered into a 40 day period of prayer and fasting as we began the new year. This came from a suggestion from one of our members to the deacons who then invited the congregation to participate. They put up a sign-up sheet for anyone who wanted to volunteer to fast and pray for a day or however many days they wanted. The sheet quickly filled up, and we know that some are fasting and praying who did not sign up.
A few years ago the church was able to purchase an abandoned school building. Although it is being used, there is still a lot of unused space in the building that could be used for a variety of ministries and, potentially, other ministry groups in the community. We had a brainstorming session last week to discuss some possible ways to maximize that space. There was a nice turnout of people who shared a variety of ideas that could expand the ministry of this church.
Last, but certainly not least, this past Sunday, the church voted to called Randy Crutchfield to be their new senior Pastor. Randy has served this church as Youth/Associate Minister for the past 25 years and will soon be stepping into his new role as senior Pastor.
However, Randy is scheduled to take a sabbatical this summer so he will not officially begin serving as pastor until he returns from the sabbatical in August. The church has asked me to remain as Transitional Pastor until that time. During this time he will continue working with the youth and fulfilling his other current responsibilities. We will work closely together as co-transitional pastors although we have not yet had time to discuss yet what that might look like.
The church has been seeking a pastor for around 18 months. During that time we've seen a lot of positive things happen. The church has certainly not sat idle waiting for a new pastor. We spent time discerning a fresh vision from God for the future of the church. We've been involved in community outreach activities. We provided leadership for a Community Vacation Bible School that reached over 220 children. One group visited our sister church in El Salvador, and our youth made mission trips to a community in Appalachia and to the Dominican Republic. There is much more I could mention but lack the space to do so.
So many churches go into a holding pattern when they are seeking a new pastor. I am so proud of this church for not doing that. The people have continued to seek ways to serve God and this community during this transition time. With Randy's leadership I believe this church will only continue to expand its ministry to this community and around the world!
The church also entered into a 40 day period of prayer and fasting as we began the new year. This came from a suggestion from one of our members to the deacons who then invited the congregation to participate. They put up a sign-up sheet for anyone who wanted to volunteer to fast and pray for a day or however many days they wanted. The sheet quickly filled up, and we know that some are fasting and praying who did not sign up.
A few years ago the church was able to purchase an abandoned school building. Although it is being used, there is still a lot of unused space in the building that could be used for a variety of ministries and, potentially, other ministry groups in the community. We had a brainstorming session last week to discuss some possible ways to maximize that space. There was a nice turnout of people who shared a variety of ideas that could expand the ministry of this church.
Last, but certainly not least, this past Sunday, the church voted to called Randy Crutchfield to be their new senior Pastor. Randy has served this church as Youth/Associate Minister for the past 25 years and will soon be stepping into his new role as senior Pastor.
However, Randy is scheduled to take a sabbatical this summer so he will not officially begin serving as pastor until he returns from the sabbatical in August. The church has asked me to remain as Transitional Pastor until that time. During this time he will continue working with the youth and fulfilling his other current responsibilities. We will work closely together as co-transitional pastors although we have not yet had time to discuss yet what that might look like.
The church has been seeking a pastor for around 18 months. During that time we've seen a lot of positive things happen. The church has certainly not sat idle waiting for a new pastor. We spent time discerning a fresh vision from God for the future of the church. We've been involved in community outreach activities. We provided leadership for a Community Vacation Bible School that reached over 220 children. One group visited our sister church in El Salvador, and our youth made mission trips to a community in Appalachia and to the Dominican Republic. There is much more I could mention but lack the space to do so.
So many churches go into a holding pattern when they are seeking a new pastor. I am so proud of this church for not doing that. The people have continued to seek ways to serve God and this community during this transition time. With Randy's leadership I believe this church will only continue to expand its ministry to this community and around the world!
Monday, January 22, 2018
Small groups
Madison FBC is starting our 2018 small groups this week. These will begin meeting the week of January 21 and will end by the week of March 25. Not all groups will run the entire 10 week period but most will. You do not have to attend Madison FBC to attend one of the small groups. The ones we offer during this term are
As you can see, we have a variety of small groups that should appeal to many people. Each are designed to help you better understand Christianity and grow in your faith. I encourage every member of our church to commit to one or more of these groups, and we invite anyone in the community to join us as well. Just contact the church office at 812-265-2331 to register for a group.
- "Women of the Bible and What We Can Learn from Them" which will meet in the church library on Sundays at 10:00 am. This group will be led by Nita Scarff.
- "Healthy Churches" will meet in the Lower Auditorium on Sunday evenings at 6:00 pm. I am leading this one.
- "Unoffendable" which will meet in the home of members of our congregation in Madison. Randy Crutchfield will lead this group which will look at how letting go of our anger can make our lives better and help us love God more. This group will meet on Tuesday evenings at 6:30 pm.
- "Jewish Origins of Christianity" will meet in the home of one of our members. This group will be led by Rabbi Aaron Bortz from Louisville and will explore the Jewish feasts, traditions, prophecies, and theological origins of the New Covenant. This group will meet on Wednesday evenings starting at 6:00 pm.
- "Spiritual Parenting" will be led by Grover and Debbie Anderson and will meet on Thursday evenings at 6:00 pm at the church.
- "A Study of the Book of John" will be led by Eric Rector and will meet on Wednesday evenings at 7:00 pm in the Lower Auditorium. This will be a discussion type of study with all participants asked to share what they learned from the assigned readings.
- "Religions of the World" will be led by Dana and Cheryl Hooton. This group will look at the various religions in the world to see what we can learn from them and how to pray for their followers that they might know Jesus Christ. This group will meet on Thursday evenings at 6:00 pm at the Eggleston building, 419 E 2nd Street in Madison.
As you can see, we have a variety of small groups that should appeal to many people. Each are designed to help you better understand Christianity and grow in your faith. I encourage every member of our church to commit to one or more of these groups, and we invite anyone in the community to join us as well. Just contact the church office at 812-265-2331 to register for a group.
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