Thirty-eight years ago this month I was installed as senior pastor at Fellowship Missionary Church. The church was a small plant and met in a YMCA. And I was as green as grass!
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In light of my experience of handing off a church I led for 34 years, I’m often approached both by pastors and church boards to share with them what I learned about succession. What worked for us well, where we made some mistakes, and what I would do differently.
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The comments I’m hearing from the pastors I’m dealing with are growing in their consistency and intensity. They are all feeling overwhelmed (“The burden of leadership is so heavy!”, disillusioned (“I didn’t sign up for this!”), and perplexed (“I don’t know what steps to take!”).
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One of the surprising things that I’m hearing from pastors these days is that they are sensing the need to hire more staff to meet the new needs that have surfaced in this season. And by shifting around their church budgets, some dollars have been freed up to do so.
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In this season of prolonged stress brought on by the repercussions of a global pandemic, the need for good soul care is essential – especially for pastors and leaders. Without it, we may find ourselves headed toward burnout, depression, addiction, and/or damaged relationships.
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One of the primary responsibilities of leadership is solving problems. It simply comes with the territory. The problems may arise from circumstances that are not really anyone’s fault.
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It was Harry S. Truman said, “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” Those men and women at the top of their field often quote Truman’s philosophy as one of their keys to success.
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The thought comes to every pastor sooner or later. Should I stay in my current role in my current church or is it time for me to go?
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Back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, scientists constructed a research facility in Arizona called Biosphere 2. Its purpose was to study the interactions between life-systems in a controlled environment, ostensibly to explore the possibility for usage in outer space.
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For most of my years as a Senior Pastor, I took time off during the month of July to rest, think, pray, and plan. In addition to allowing me to slow down and engage in personal renewal, I also used this time to do long-range sermon planning and study.
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That leathery old saint, A. W. Tozer, is credited with a quote I’ve shared quite a few times. “It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply.”
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I was recently asked, “What were the most difficult moments you faced in your 40 years of ministry?” I had to ponder the question for a moment as dozens of memories came flooding back.
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I checked in with a pastor friend last week to see how he was doing in these challenging days. He responded that he was “hanging in there,” but as I pressed him a bit more, he said, “I am struggling with decision fatigue.
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In last week’s post, I talked about how the recent shutdown during the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic actually presented the 21st-century church with a wonderful opportunity. Almost overnight we went from being the church gathered to being the church scattered.
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As often happens when we go through hard times, somehow, someway, something good comes out of it. I think that’s true for the western church in this current crisis. The shut-downs brought on by COVID-19 have forced churches all over the world to rethink the ways we “do church.”
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As a young leader, I was 100 percent convinced that competency was the key to effectiveness in leadership. I no longer believe that’s true.
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Without a doubt, 2020 been one of the most challenging years our country has faced. A pandemic with over 100,000 dead in just 10 weeks. Economic upheaval leaving millions jobless. And now protests in the streets decrying racism and police brutality against African Americans. These are days when leadership is desperately needed.
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Millions of people have now viewed the horrifying video as George Floyd was murdered on camera by Minneapolis police while bystanders pleaded with officers not to kill him. As he lay helplessly in the street with the policeman’s knee on his neck, Floyd’s haunting last words were, “Please! I can’t breathe.”
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Listening is one of the most important skills you can have. How well you listen has a major impact on your job effectiveness and on the quality of your relationships with others.
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Jesus was the greatest leader who ever lived. He inspired multitudes with His teaching. He performed miracles before thousands. Yet, for all of His interaction with large numbers of people, His primary investment was with a small group of individuals.
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