Another One Bites The Dust

One of Queen's songs says "Another One Bites The Dust". Today, that song title applies to one of our friends. The church leaders met in a secret session and then told the senior pastor that he is terminated. This is immediate and he is not allowed in the pulpit again. He only has a few weeks to vacate the parsonage and will get three months severance. When he asked why he was told the church constitution states they do not have to give him any reason. The congregation was told Wednesday Evening that he resigned and they guess he just didn't want to come back.

This would be different if there was a moral issue or he was preaching heresy but neither of those applies. It is getting hard for me to understand why my friends keep getting hurt by churches. This story could be told of many churches in our country. It happens all the time. This time, it happened to a friend. That is why this one makes me mad. God's people should be better than that.

First we need to understand that God considers that His preachers are special people. Romans 10:14-16 says "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? Even as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that bring glad tidings of good things!"

I know that my feet are not physically beautiful. I also know that God has called me and therefore He will take care of me. I believe that churches that abuse pastors and then spew them out will be held accountable to God. The emotional and spiritual damage done to pastor's families is unconscionable and is a terrible indictment against the church in general.

The above scenario occurs when expectations for churches and pastors differ. Too often the search committee and church in general will not give an accurate description of what kind of pastor that are looking for. When they say "we want a pastor to lead us", ask probing questions. Does that mean the church is willing to follow when it is in a direction that is different from the past? Does that mean they will follow even when it is out of their comfort zone? Will they follow if it means new people will be involved and the old guard will no longer be in charge? These are healthy questions to ask before accepting the call. Too often we have a false impression of leadership styles and desires. Because of this false impression, things come crashing down after the honeymoon period ends.

Most often I try to acknowledge that church issues involve both pastor and church. I will leave that for another discussion because today I have a friend and his family who are hurt. We have to stop this trend. Too many pastors are leaving the ministry and some go to extremes and take their life. How does God get glory in that?

At http://www.ministrytogether.com we attempt to ask those probing questions. Our 54 point matching system helps determine the type of leadership the church wants and matches it with the same leadership style of the prospective pastor. Perhaps we need to revise our questions to include "Why did your last pastor leave? Was he forced out or did he resign? Will you be willing to give contact information so the prospective pastor can talk with him about his ministry there." That might help stop some of these hurts.....Now that I have vented I have to go. I have to determine what Joy and I can do to help this family pick up the pieces from this tragedy......Preacherman

Interim Pastor

For the past four months I have been serving as Interim Pastor at the beautiful Lakeview Baptist Church. This has been a very rewarding time as well as being very tiring. When I retired from full time pastoring I thought my life would become simpler. My thoughts; get up when you want, do what you want and enjoy the view of the lake. Well, I can tell you that has changed. It takes a lot of time and energy to pastor a church with almost 300 active members. Some of my goals during this time are to heal, hope, and have. We will spend the first few months healing our past. I believe every church needs a time for healing. We create wounds even when we do everything right. Our church has had some very good years and also some times when things didn't go so well. The healing must take place in order to go into the future with a new pastor who can lead us to ministering like God would have us minister. We have seen great progress with this healing. I have been speaking about living our lives with the Christlike spirit. The sermon series on living out the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives has been very successful in getting us to focus away from the past and looking positively toward the future. We can have hope as we see the changes take place. I am encouraged as I see people sitting across the table from each other on Wednesday and eating together, laughing, and just being a family. We now see the glass half full rather than half empty. We are looking to the future with excitement instead of despair. We also have a plan to get from where we were to where we need to be. We have accomplished much but have a ways to go. Our next step is to get our transition team together and begin looking at some of the issues that hamper ministry. This will be a challenge as we will look at some of the traditions and reactionary measures our church has taken in the past. One of the things we address at http://www.ministrytogether.com is leadership. Some churches will say they want a strong leader but in reality they want someone who is going to come in and keep the status quo when it comes to traditions and policies. Also, some senior pastors will say they are strong leaders but when it comes to addressing the past traditions and status quo, they either do not want to fight the Battle or they do not have the skills needed to do it. Our website uses the 54 point matching system to bring churches and pastors together with like skills and desires. Some churches will not allow change therefore they need to be matched with pastors who are willing to live and minister in that environment. My leadership skills and other skill sets have made it possible for our church to address the hard issues and come out stronger. We are not there yet but I am very thankful for a church that really wants change. That combination makes the road ahead much easier. At the end of that road lakeview will be much healthier and I will be able to again enjoy retirement...That is a great outcome.....Preacherman

Pastor Search # 11 The Wounded Warriors

While searching on a church website recently I saw a link for "Injured Ministers". This link offered support and help for those men and women who have been wounded by churches. This caught my attention because I have so many friends who are carrying baggage caused by very difficult pastorates and sometimes ungodly church members. I was pleased to find this help and encourage more support to assist those who are hurting. I especially am thinking about a couple of my peers who have left the ministry because of unpleasant and very hurtful situations. Their wounds are still open and will take years to heal and they may never get back in the pulpit. I believe we as encouragers and our denominations have failed these good servants of God by not offering more support in their times of struggles.

There is a lot of support for churches dealing with open wounds. I wrote last time about the "Intentional Interim Program" that addresses and heals the wounds caused by all kinds of things. This and other programs offered to Churches can do wonders in a short period of time. A church can go from a crippled body to a vibrant growing church. This is encouraged and supported by many denominational leaders.

Where is the support for the wounded warriors? The men and women who have put their lives and families on the line only to have them crushed. Why isn't there more intentional support for these people? My own children were hurt so badly in one of our pastorates that they wanted to speak personally with any church committee that invited me to an interview. They wanted to be sure we were never hurt like that again. Often the children are the fallout. Pastors and wives will move on, baggage and all, and will do their best to serve again. Many times children will say if that is the way Christians treat each other they want no part of it. This is a sad commentary on how we treat the wounded. We are blessed that our children are both still serving in their churches.

At http://www.ministrytogether.com we try to address issues related to pastor/church relations. We discuss leadership styles, conflict resolution and many other questions that will help to match a prospective pastor with a church that has like styles. This can eliminate the conflict that arises when a pastor has one style and the church has expectations that are just the opposite.

To my friends who are hurting I want you to know that I have just said a prayer for you by name. I pray that your pain will ease, your needs are met and that you will be used in a mightier way in the Kingdom. And to the countless PKs who ask the question,, "Why do Christians act that way" I must confess that I really do not have an answer for you that is not trite. All I can say is we are all sinners with a very strong sin nature and sometimes that nature wins out. God help us to be aware of the hurts that we can cause to the innocent and God help us as denominations and as caring brothers and sisters to reach a hand out to the wounded and help them heal..........Preacherman

Pastor Search #10 Intentional Interim

Last spring I planted potatoes in our garden. This is a new garden space provided to us by a kind neighbor. He plowed it for us and told us to treat it like it was ours. I got my tiller and went to work preparing the ground for the potato seed. Occasionally I would find a sprig of johnson grass sticking its head through the plowed ground and I ignored it thinking it wouldn't be a problem. The rains came and my seed began to sprout and soon I had some good looking potato plants. In addition to the potato plants I had johnson grass growing. I ignored it again thinking it could be managed. It was too late to spray weed killer so I just ignored it and thought the potato plants would outgrow the johnson grass and smother it out. Not so!! I soon had johnson grass that was five feet tall smothering out the potato plants. Well, it took about seven hours of work in the extreme heat in order to pull each bed of grass out by the roots. When that was done the potato plants were visible and it seemed that the johnson grass was conquered. There was a problem with that thinking. Deep beneath the surface were johnson grass roots that would spring up after a shower and I would have to pull them up again. I will dig potatoes tomorrow if the weather permits and we will enjoy the fruit of our labor. This would not have turned out nearly as well had I not spent the time and pain to pull up the johnson grass by its roots and stay on top of it until it was all gone. That plot will now be ready to plant anything I want for next year and we will not have to worry about the pesky johnson grass.

Our church is looking at an Intentional Interim position to help us refocus and redifine who we are. We have allowed some johnson grass to grow untouched for a few years and now it must be dealt with in order to pave the way for our next pastor. I believe most churches could benefit from an Intentional Interim position. Working alongside the Transitional Team he can force (pulling by the roots) the church to define what has brought us to this point, determine who we are, declare our market by demographic studies and other methods and delight in our new vision.

Unfortunately, most churches keep the problems buried under the surface and never really address them. The church family does not know who they really are, so they can be easily changed when a new pastor comes and preaches the latest and greatest. Often the source of power in the church is so in control that their only goal is to retain control. As one person said recently, "we just need a preacher to preach for us and let the few people who have made the decisions for years run things. That has worked fine for twenty years." This church has never faced its past to determine what has brought them to the point of needing an Intentional Interim. Like most things in life, power is a good thing and a bad thing. When applied properly power can be wonderful. I love to push on the gas pedal and feel the power of my engine pulling my car. Our heating and air service technician was replacing a capacitor on our furnace and touched the contacts with his pliers and sparks flew scaring us all. In that case power was bad. He had failed to flip the breaker. Churches are like that. So many people wanting to be in control. The Intentional Interim will be able to help channel the power in the right areas and sometimes, like the furnace guy, will see the sparks fly because he crosses the wrong people.

It is imperative that churches adress the issues before calling a new pastor. After the Transitional Team has determined who we are and what direction we should go, the church can then find a person that will be a fit. At http://www.ministrytogether.com we provide a 54 point matching system to match prospective churches with prospective pastors who have the same theological beliefs and skills so that they will be able to smoothly go forward with the vision of the church. Too many pastors today have to spend their time pulling johnson grass and never get to harvest the potatoes.....I believe strongly in the Intentional Interim position.
Preacherman

Pastor Search # 9

"Why Aren't We Happy"

I am writing this from the ninth floor of Seawatch in Myrtle Beach, SC. This week should be perfect. We are here with our son, daughter in law, three and a half year old grandson and our daughter in law's parents. What can get any better than spending a few days at the beach with family, especially grandchildren. The problem is that I am inside. I am looking at the sea from behind a glass patio door. The reason is the temperature. It is cold!!! Who ever heard of having to wear heavy coats when you go to the beach. It just isn't right.

I have seen this play out in too many churches. You go a long time without a pastor. You go through the process of finding "God's Man". Your long awaited day finally arrives. You are excited, ready to go forward, enjoy the new chapter and all of a sudden you realize that it is not turning out like you had planned.

Sometimes it is because the committee may have overlooked some very important information. Too many times the church family is in such a hurry to fill the position that they put pressure on the committee to hurry up and call a pastor. When this happens the results will not be what you want. The warm body may not be a fit for the church.

Sometimes it is because the committee did not get the information needed to make the right fit for the church. We all have been guilty of sending the "sugar stick" sermon DVD to the committee. One sermon will not give a good picture of the pastor's style, personality or theological depth. It is important to use all tools available to get the greatest information in order to make the best decision for the church and the prospective pastor. One of the best things a committee can do is say to a prospect after going through the process, "We are sorry but right now our church is not a good fit for you". It is better to acknowledge that up front rather than wait until the pastor has accepted the position and moved on the field.

At http://www.ministrytogether.com we use a 54 point matching system to address these problems. Our matching questions deal with theological, contemporary, education and many other issues that will match the prospective church and pastor. When the senior pastor position is entered into our system the questions are answered according to the needs and beliefs of the church. The prospective pastors answer the same questions and the database finds and matches them to each other. It works very well and the outcome is a senior pastor or staff person that is matched to the particular church.

If we had chosen a different date for our trip to the beach or if we had checked the weather forecast in December when it was booked we may have had a different outcome. We might be walking on the beach with our grandson rather than cuddled on the couch looking out the window watching the waves.....Preacherman

Pastor Search # 8 - "Not Perfect But Good Find"

Today as I put the wagon back together I found one of the bolt heads had some paint on it. This bolt is essential in order for the wagon to move forward and be effective. I had two choices. I could get a new bolt. I thought about that but the trouble of driving the fifteen minutes each way to the hardware store was too much for me today. The other choice was to take a piece of sandpaper and try to get rid of the paint. I found that this worked very well and soon all of the bolts looked sparkling new and the wagon is ready for many trips with the grandchildren.

Sometimes our search for a pastor brings the same types of issues. We find someone who is qualified, willing and ready to go. But when questioned and analyzed there is just something that isn't right. In my case I always want someone who is bald. Other people want certain schools, specific track records, etc.

So the question is "What do we do with those candidates who are not completely perfect for the position"? We have two choices. We can move on to someone else and try to find just the right person. Or we can realize that we will never find the perfect match and look for areas of compromise. There are some things that should never be compromised. Maybe another blog post will be a venue to discuss those. You all know the important ones. Whether a person has a full head of hair or went to a certain school should never stand in the way of calling a pastor.

At http://www.ministrytogether.com we use a 54 point matching system to match churches with pastors. Even though we ask some very in-depth questions we realize that very few times there will be a 100% match. We have categorized the matches into three groups: 85% or better matches are excellent matches. They may be bald but otherwise meet all the matching criteria. 50% to 84% matches have some good matching points but may need some sandpaper in certain areas (compromise). Below 50% match indicates you should look at someone else.

There were a few times in my ministry of 45 years where I needed a little sandpaper. I am so thankful that those churches took a chance on me. We had wonderful ministries, people came to know the Lord better, I grew as a pastor and the Kingdom received glory from it. So, if you are looking for a pastor don't be afraid to do a little sanding. You just might find a great pastor....Later...........Preacherman

Pastor Search # 7

Getting Rid Of The Rust

I am in the middle of a very interesting project for Christmas. We bought a thirty year old Radio Flyer wagon for my grandson and I have been restoring it for one of his Christmas presents. I have found out some very interesting things about the restoration process. First, you have to get rid of all the rust before you can make it look good. That takes some hard decisions. I had to have the entire wagon sandblasted in order to get all of the old gone before I could start on the new. The second thing I had to do was put a good primer on before I could paint. Without the primer the final product would not have looked as good. Thirdly, I found that there are some things from the past that I could not keep. I was unable to get the exact Radio Flyer decals and some of the bolts are slightly different. So, although the wagon will look new and will have the foundation of the past it will be somewhat different from what it originally was.

Search committees need to realize that some churches are like the wagon. The foundation is extremely solid but some of the surface needs to be repaired. This may mean taking more time than most members want in order for the sandblasting to take place. Sometimes people need to leave in order for the church to be able to go forward. Some churches try to hold on to the past so much that they fail to see the wonderful finished product they could be. Those churches usually are not completely up front with their prospects. They will say things like, “Everything is great in our church family”. “We don’t have any problems”. That is true if they want to stay the same as they were. Where this becomes a problem is when the new pastor comes onboard and wants to follow God into the future and all the rust from the past begins to show up. They resist anything that will make them look different from what they have always been. That is tragic because the new pastor must either try to scale off a little of the rust at a time and pay the price or he gives up entirely and either leaves or settles for less than what God would have him be. It is possible for a church to hold on to some great foundations and still change for the future. I have never been in favor of what I call “Throwing out the baby with the bath water”. There are some things from the past that are great and we need to hold on to them. What is not good is when we stand in the way of doing different things because we have never done them before.

The greatest thing for search committees is to just be honest. Discuss the rust. Consider the fix even when it requires a lot of effort and time. The look on my grandson’s face Christmas morning will make all the time and work worthwhile. The end results of an honest approach to calling your next pastor will be as rewarding and worthwhile to your committee and your church. At http://www.ministrytogether.com we use a matching matrix to bring churches and prospects together that are suited for each other. When they each fill out the questionnaire they will deal with some of the rust we have been talking about……….I can’t wait til Christmas morning…I plan to take pictures…….Preacherman