Thom S. Rainer's Blog, page 199

Seven Common Mistakes Churches Make When They Have an Interim Pastor

“Interim” sounds like a pregnant pause anticipating something down the road.

So when you put the adjective in front of “pastor” or “church,” it just feels like less than ideal.

It does not have to be that way. The interim period between two pastors can be a time of great benefit for churches. It is for that reason I encourage churches not to make mistakes common during this interim time. Here are seven of them:

The church moves into a maintenance mode. To be sure, there are decisions and actions that need to be postponed until the new pastor gets on board. But neither the Great Commission nor the Great Commandment takes a vacation. There is still much work to be done.
The church allows the interim pastor to be a candidate for pastor. I know. I will get some pushback here. But I have seen so many disasters befall a church when the person in the interim pulpit gets favored status. The downside outweighs the benefits.
The process of finding a pastor becomes a “beauty contest.” Several candidates are paraded before the church or key groups in the church. Factions decide their favorite candidate. Tensions grow. Consider instead dealing with one or a very few candidates at a time.
The search process is handled poorly. To be fair, most church members and leaders have never been a part of a search process. They are doing the best they know how. Over the past several years, I have become a strong proponent of getting outside expertise and help. As William Vanderbloemen said on one of our podcasts, “The worst hire a church can make is the wrong hire.”
The church leaves personnel problems for the next pastor to handle. Don’t neglect making the tough decisions. If you delay these decisions, you are already setting up your next pastor to have problems and enemies at the onset.
The church fails to deal with sacred cows. Like the personnel issues noted above, don’t set up the next pastor for failure. If there are some sensitive issues to handle, do it during the interim period. Don’t wait.
The church fills key staff positions in the interim period. If at all possible, let the next pastor have an influential role in choosing staff members who will be a part of the leadership team. It is a much better alternative than moving forward and leaving the pastor with no say in one of the most important aspects of ministry.

Simply stated, the interim period is a time of opportunity, not just a time of waiting. Make the right decisions and the church will be stronger in the near term and for years to come.

Pray for Griggs Memorial Baptist Church

Location: Greenville, South Carolina

Pastor: Mitch Miller

Weekly Worship: 11:00 AM, Eastern

Fast Facts: Griggs Memorial Baptist Church has been serving the Poe Mill neighborhood of Greenville, SC, since 1936. Over the years the Mill village has changed, but Griggs continues to serve its neighbors, sharing the love of Jesus with all they meet. In the fall of 2015, pastor Mitch Miller was called to the church with only a handful of adults and kids still in attendance. A revitalization effort began at this time, and they recently saw nearly 90 for a Sunday morning service. While it is more than 80-years-old, they have had a large percentage of young people come in to help revitalize it while reaching their neighborhood. The church is truly multigenerational. Please pray for their recently launched campaign called “A Heart for Poe Mill.” The church is using posters and handouts to get this message out. Pray for Griggs Memorial as they seek to accomplish their mission of reaching their area and beyond for Jesus Christ. Finally, please pray for the church as they seek to raise funds to make some much needed building improvements.

Website: GriggsChurch.com

“Pray for . . .” is the Sunday blog series at ThomRainer.com. We encourage you to pray for these churches noted every Sunday. Please feel free to comment that you are praying as well.

If you would like to have your church featured in the “Pray for…” series, fill out this information form..

Notable Voices and the Week in Review: April 8, 2017

Earlier this week at ThomRainer.com:

Seven Ways to Deal with Gnats in Ministry
Pastoral Leadership, Prayer, and Church Health – Rainer on Leadership #316
Seven Habits of Long-tenured Pastors
Eight Considerations for Family Photo Stations at Churches on Holidays
The Importance of Church Facility Stewardship featuring Tim Cool – Rainer on Leadership #317

 

Four Surprises in Bible Publishing — Trevin Wax

The challenge of my new role has been the need to learn multiple disciplines at once, while also receiving a crash course in the basics of publishing God’s Word. From the logistical and mechanical side of Bible production, to the theological implications of translation choices, to the marketing of a translation—these have been at the forefront of my mind during these months of learning how to manage this business and ministry. Recently, someone asked me about the biggest surprises I’ve encountered in this role. Four surprises came to mind at once.

 

5 Bad Excuses for Not Giving to Your Church — Art Rainer

Consistently giving to your church is a big step in your financial health. It is also the first step. Many struggle with the idea of giving to their church. There is a barrier between them and the offering plate (or online giving site). Often the excuses for not giving are based on a misunderstanding of Scripture or a misunderstanding of their church. Here are five bad excuses for not giving to your church:

 

5 Lessons from Fallen Pastors — Eric Geiger

Pastors and ministry leaders are not above character implosion and wandering from the Lord. In time, their wandering manifests in a variety of self-destructive and disqualifying behaviors. In the last several years, I have thought a lot about “fallen pastors.” My role at LifeWay provides a painful view of the fallout. As pastors are removed from ministry, the implications on churches and families are far-reaching. Here are five lessons from a season of fallen pastors, a season that has, at times, felt epidemic.

 

10 Ways to Provide A Welcoming Environment for Your Guests this Easter — Juan Sanchez

On Easter Sunday, April 16, we will welcome many visitors to our worship gatherings. A lot of these guests will step into a church service for the first time. Many, I suspect, do not call themselves Christians. Guests notice and usually comment on how loving a fellowship is (or is not) by their willingness to welcome newcomers. If your church already welcomes guests well, then praise God for His work among you and continue to remind your members about the preciousness of others. The following are just 10 ways we can help guests feel welcome and at home each Sunday, but especially this coming Easter Sunday when so many will visit your church for the first, and possibly, last time.

 

9 Signs Your Church Is Stalling Out — Carey Nieuwhof

Often you might see a 3 year run, 5 year run or even 15 year run on incredible growth and realization of your mission, but there’s almost a universal stall out that happens unless you anticipate it and correct it. The reason this matters is the church has the most important mission on earth. No one should be more zealous to see people reached and the Kingdom expand than Christian leaders.

 

The Five Most Beneficial Apps for Worship Leaders — Chris Vacher

As a worship leader, over time, I’ve developed a great workflow using iPhone and iPad apps. What we are able do with apps as worship leaders today would have been unthinkable even five years ago. Tuners, metronomes, multitrack recording, service planning – all of it available literally in the palm of your hand thanks to your phone and some great developers. The tools we have at our disposal can help develop skill, can help our creative development, and can help us be more efficient with our time. Ultimately, our calling is to equip people in our church to live their lives as faithful followers of Jesus. Apps like these should help us as we work toward that goal.

 

The Importance of Church Facility Stewardship featuring Tim Cool – Rainer on Leadership #317

Podcast Episode #317

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Nearly every church has a facility. But not every church stewards their facility well. Tim Cool joins us to discuss facility stewardship and how churches can save money on their facilities in the long run.

Some highlights from today’s episode include:

Everything on earth has been entrusted by God to us to care for.
Stewardship in the church isn’t just about money.
The expenses needed to take care of a facility are not an optional thing, they are an inevitable thing.
We know facility issues will come up in the church, it’s prudent for us to plan for them.
Facilities won’t save souls. They are tools for us to use to see people saved and to disciple the saints.
Churches need four master plans—ones for ministry, finance, facility, and sustainability.
Church utility costs should average between $1 and $1.50 per square foot.
Effective facility usage can lead to more effective ministry because you’re able to put more resources into ministry.

About Tim Cool:

Tim Cool is founder of Cool Solutions Group, and has assisted nearly 400 churches, (equating to over 4 Million Sq Ft) throughout the United States with their facility needs. He has collaborated with churches in the areas of facility needs analysis, design coordination, pre-construction and construction management as well as life cycle planning/facility management. Cool Solutions Group is also the developer of eSPACE Facility Management software products including Event Scheduler, Event Registration, Work Order Management, Life Cycle Calculator and HVAC integration. Tim is also the author of three books, Why Church Buildings Matter: The Story of Your Space, Church Locality (co-authored with Jim Tomberlin) and Plan 4 It: The 4 Essential Master Plans For Every Church as well as a church Facility Management manual entitled Intentional Church Series: Facility Stewardship. Tim lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with his wife of 32 years, Lisa, and supports his triplet college students at Appalachian State University.

Episode Sponsors

The Timothy Track, from Midwestern Seminary, offers select residential M.Div. students placement in internship positions in a local church in the area. Now you can complement your studies with in-the-field ministry experience. In addition, all Timothy Track students will receive up to 12 credit hours for the internship and a 50% tuition scholarship for the first year.

Find out more at mbts.edu/TimothyTrack.

Vanderbloemen Search Group is the premier pastor search firm dedicated to helping churches and ministries build great teams. They’ve helped hundreds of churches just like yours find their church staff and are uniquely geared to help you discern who God is calling to lead your church.

Find out more about Vanderbloemen Search Group by visiting WeStaffTheChurch.com.

Feedback

If you have a question you would like answered on the show, fill out the form on the podcast page here at ThomRainer.com. If we use your question, you’ll receive a free copy of Who Moved My Pulpit?

Resources Mentioned in Today’s Podcast

CoolSolutionsGroup.com
Plan 4 It
espace.cool
Life Cycle Calculator

Eight Considerations for Family Photo Stations at Churches on Holidays

By Jonathan Howe

A recent trend that is really catching on around holidays in churches is the use of photo stations. Easter, Mother’s Day, and Christmas seem to be the top three times churches use these photo stations to capture pictures of families.

There are several benefits to these photo stations. They can create a fun atmosphere at the church, provide opportunities for families to get a shareable picture, and can help promote the church. But like anything else churches do related to events or promotion, there are some pitfalls to avoid. If your church decides to set up family photo stations for a holiday or event, take into consideration these eight items:

Use a hashtag. For those who choose to share the pics online, it’s nice to have a way to track them for your church. Your church may already have an Easter or Christmas hashtag you’re using for promotion, so use that. If not, maybe use something simple yet unique to your church. For example, #Easter2017 might be a bit vague.
Post the pics in an album on your church’s Facebook page. Use an iPad, iPhone, or digital camera on a tripod to take the pics and upload them into an album people can view on Facebook. They can tag themselves, download the pics, share them with friends, etc. You will likely see a greater engagement in your church’s Facebook page as a result. Simplicity of sharing and downloading is key when you host a family photo station. Finally, make sure everyone knows the pictures are being posted online. There may be a few families who might object to posting them. That’s perfectly normal. Just email those to them instead.
Set up multiple photo stations. This will keep lines down and keep kids from melting down while they wait. Identical stations with several volunteers will make things easier for families and your photographers.
Set up near the children’s area if possible. Families will be the ones who will most want to take a picture. Make the location of your photo station convenient for them. If you don’t have the room in this area, consider a larger foyer that gets traffic on a regular Sunday. Just try to avoid making the station tough to find or difficult to get to.
Announce it prior to the big day. Let families know to show up early for the photos. Also, if your congregation knows, you can use it as an incentive to get them to invite friends to the service.
Have volunteers engage those waiting in line. Get some of your most outgoing members to talk with families as they wait to take their picture. This can be an easy way to involve more members in ministry and is also a good way for members to get to know one another better.
Consider having visitors fill out connection cards while they wait. If your volunteers meet a guest, having them fill out a guest card while they wait is an easy way for you to get information for follow up.
Think wisely about the background and setup. It’s wise to incorporate your church website or your event hashtag into the background. That way when the photo is shared online, there is a reference point for your church. Also, when considering the design, it might be best to avoid handheld props. Those can slow things down, can break, and, with kids, can cause fights.

Has your church had or is it planning a family photo station for Easter? What would you add to this list?

Jonathan Howe serves as Director of Strategic Initiatives at LifeWay Christian Resources as well as the host and producer of Rainer on Leadership and SBC This Week. Jonathan writes weekly at ThomRainer.com on topics ranging from social media to websites and church communications. Connect with Jonathan on Twitter at @Jonathan_Howe.

Seven Habits of Long-tenured Pastors

They have been at their present church at least ten years, often much longer.

They have persevered. They have served multiple generations of the same families.

They have known the highs and lows of ministry. And they have not succumbed to the siren call of greener grass churches.

I have been following these long-tenured pastors for years. And I have seen consistently seven patterns, or habits, in their lives. To be sure, these habits are not unique to long-tenured pastors. But they do seem to be most consistent among those pastors who have been at one church for at least ten years.

They don’t skip a day in prayer and the ministry of the Word. They are truly Acts 6:4 pastors. They refuse to succumb to they tyranny of the urgent. They put prayer and Bible reading as a priority on their calendars, usually early in the morning. They are able to carry on because they are refueled every day.
They realize gnats are gnats. So they are able to look beyond the momentary critics and nuisances. See my earlier blog post of April 3, 2017.
They pray for wisdom. I have been both amazed and encouraged to discover how many longer-tenured pastors include the prayer of James 1:5 in their prayer lives.
They dream big. These pastors are not satisfied with the status quo. They truly believe they serve a God who has bigger plans than we can possibly imagine in our own strength.
They intentionally seek to see the green grass in their own churches. That helps them not to fall for the trap that the green grass is always at the next church.
They keep an outward focus. Pastors in a maintenance mode are either miserable pastors or pastors on their way out. Long-tenured pastors really take Paul’s admonition to Timothy seriously. They do the work of the evangelist (2 Timothy 4:5).
They take care of their families. They know their families are their first lines of ministry. In fact, they grasp clearly that they cannot lead their churches for the long haul unless they take care of their families (1 Timothy 3:5).

The longer-term pastor is a step in the right direction for greater health and more fruitful ministry.

Pastoral Leadership, Prayer, and Church Health – Rainer on Leadership #316

Podcast Episode #316

SUBSCRIBE: iTunes • RSS • Stitcher • TuneIn Radio • Google Play

I recently spoke at a church in central Arkansas. What I discovered was a prayer ministry entering its 15th year. Here are my takeaways from the experience.

Some highlights from today’s episode include:

Prayer should fuel every ministry in a church.
There tends to be less conflict when a church’s ministries are rooted in prayer.
Praying churches are typically unified churches.
Churches high on prayer and low on conflict often have long-term pastors.
Is an intentional prayer ministry the missing ingredient in many of our churches?
An intentional prayer ministry broadens what prayer is all about.

The eight points we discuss in this episode related to pastors and prayer are:

A unique story of one church
A missions minded congregation
Conversions resulted
Less conflict in the church
Requires tenacious leadership
Requires accountability
Results in long-term tenure
Is it what is missing in most of our churches?


Episode Sponsors

Vanderbloemen Search Group is the premier pastor search firm dedicated to helping churches and ministries build great teams. They’ve helped hundreds of churches just like yours find their church staff and are uniquely geared to help you discern who God is calling to lead your church.

Find out more about Vanderbloemen Search Group by visiting WeStaffTheChurch.com.

Midwestern Seminary, one of the fastest growing seminaries in North America, exists to train leaders For The Church. The local church is God’s “Plan A” for the proclamation of the gospel, and there is no Plan B. And this is Midwestern’s vision and heartbeat—equipping pastors and other ministry leaders who are called to expand God’s mission in the world through the local church. At Midwestern Seminary: they train leaders ‘For The Church.’

Visit them online at MBTS.edu and start your ministry training today.

Feedback

If you have a question you would like answered on the show, fill out the form on the podcast page here at ThomRainer.com. If we use your question, you’ll receive a free copy of Who Moved My Pulpit?

Resources Mentioned in Today’s Podcast

Valley Baptist Church – Searcy, AR

The Prayer Wall at Valley Baptist (names and phone numbers have been edited out of the photograph)

Seven Ways to Deal with Gnats in Ministry

I hate gnats.

I particularly hate the gnats called the no-see-ums or sandflies. They are present certain months of the year on the beach. Though almost invisible to the naked eye, they can pack a powerful sting.

All who serve in vocational ministry have gnats. They come with the call. They are the critics. They are those who always have a better way to do things. They are the ones who expect you to visit them regularly. They are the ones who always speak up in a business meeting, always negatively.

They won’t ever go away. So you can either leave ministry because of them, or you can deal with them. Here are seven ways you can deal with gnats.

Realize gnats are gnats. They are troublesome, at times demoralizing, but never fatal. Well, they are not fatal unless you treat them like the larger problem they are not.
Look beyond the gnat moments. If you are a pastor or church staff leader, you will have gnats. You will have those who seem to constantly bug you (pun intended). But the issue almost always goes away. You will look back on those gnat moments and wonder why you acted like it was a major crisis.
Focus on those things that really matter. If you focus on the gnats, they can take you down. If you focus on those things God has called you to do, you will forget about the gnats.
Pray for the gnat source. Jesus told us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44). We can do the same with our gnat sources.
Realize gnats are a cost of leading ministry. Some pastors and church staff move from church to church trying to get away from gnats. But they simply move from one nest of gnats to another. God called you to ministry. He didn’t promise it would be easy; and He didn’t promise He would remove the gnats of our ministry.
Find joy where joy is evident. I once coached a pastor who was gnat-obsessed. He couldn’t find joy in his ministry because he was too busy focusing on the small bites of the gnats. I coached another pastor who seemed to have the same level of gnat attacks. But he focused on the great things God was doing in his church. Do you want to guess which pastor is doing well in ministry today?
Seek a wise confidant. Perhaps you can find a wise mentor in ministry who has several gnat bites himself. If they have persevered in ministry and still have joy in their local churches, they can offer great perspectives for you who are experiencing gnats today.

In my younger years, I tried to make gnats go away. Now that I am older, and hopefully wiser, I realize gnats are a part of ministry.

We must not only accept a gnat-infested ministry, we must learn to accept the gnats, pray for the gnats, and love the gnats.

Then, and only then, can we know the true joy of serving in the local church.

Pray for First Baptist New Braunfels

Location: New Braunfels, Texas

Pastor: Brad McLean

Weekly Worship: 10:45 AM, Central

Fast Facts: Tragedy struck this congregation earlier in the week when a truck collided with the church’s bus and 13 members of the FBCNB senior choir went to be with the Lord. Pastor Brad McLean serves as a trustee at LifeWay and is friends with many of our employees. Please continue to pray for this church, the families of those involved in the accident, Pastor McLean and all of those affected by this week’s events.

Website: fbcnb.org

“Pray for . . .” is the Sunday blog series at ThomRainer.com. We encourage you to pray for these churches noted every Sunday. Please feel free to comment that you are praying as well.

If you would like to have your church featured in the “Pray for…” series, fill out this information form..

Notable Voices and the Week in Review: April 1, 2017

Earlier this week at ThomRainer.com:

Urgent Church: Nine Changes We Must Make Or Die
Introducing the Christian Standard Bible with Trevin Wax – Rainer on Leadership #314
Eight Unintended Consequences of Building a Church Facility Too Big
The Pros and Cons of Facebook for Pastors and Church Staff
Six Warning Signs That a Church Has a Problem with Entitlement Mentality – Rainer on Leadership #315

 

The 3 Best Times to Bring Needed Change to a Church — Karl Vaters

No, this isn’t easy. When the church is in an up season, no one wants to revisit problems. Especially if the ups are rare. But that’s when they can be dealt with the most easily and honestly. Just like a healthy body fights off diseases better than a sick one, a healthy church uses its seasons of greatest strength to fix its weaknesses.

 

4 Financial Reasons Why People Don’t Go to the Mission Field — Art Rainer

Unfortunately, some people who are willing to go to the nations, are held back because of financial reasons. Whether you are in this place because of poor decisions or not, they need to be addressed. Let’s look at four financial reasons why people don’t go to the mission field and what you can do about it.

 

3 Types of Problems Leaders Face — Eric Geiger

John Maxwell has noted, “There is a difference between problem solving and problem spotting.” While we need people around us to point out problems, we benefit for them being on the solution side of the problem and not merely ones who make it their mission to uncover problems for other people to solve. People who uncover problems without commitment to solve them are better consultants than employees.

 

Americans’ Perception of Pastors Is a Mixed Bag — Aaron Earls

In general, Americans are split on their attitudes toward pastors. Almost 3 in 10 (28 percent) have a negative opinion, with 19 percent saying “somewhat negative” and 9 percent saying “very negative.”

 

How to Build a Healthy Accountability Group — Josh Gilman

When most people think of accountability they are getting it wrong. They are thinking in wrong categories. They don’t have a complete understanding of what accountability is. They don’t know what it should look like when practiced.

 

No, You’re Not Welcome To Our New Church Launch! — Andy Prime

Not beating about the bush, let me give you this blog in a sentence: Thanks SO much for supporting our church plant. But unless you’re local to our area, please, please, please DON’T come to our church launch on Easter Sunday.