Thom S. Rainer's Blog, page 255

8 Reasons Some Pastors Aren’t Ready to Lead through Revitalization

By Chuck Lawless

I believe in church planting, and I also believe in church revitalization. We need to do both if we want to reach North America. I’m particularly interested in revitalization because of the people and property resources available for kingdom work, but I’m not convinced every pastor is ready to lead through a revitalization effort. Here’s why:

Revitalization requires a long-term vision for a church. It demands that leaders see into the future, seeing what they’ve never seen: a church genuinely reaching non-believers and discipling new believers. Some leaders simply struggle seeing anything beyond their current situation.
It requires facing reality. This struggle is especially true if the revitalization pastor is the same one who has led the church into plateau or decline. When a call for revitalization is also a recognition of a bad trajectory, that’s hard to face.
It demands patience. Revitalization is never an overnight process. For leaders who want results yesterday (and who serve in denominations that seems to reward results), the wait required for church turnaround can be too much.
It requires prayer. More than one study has shown that pastors pray less than they want, and likely much less than their church might assume. Revitalization, though, often demands a miraculous move of God – and that requires consistent prayer. The pastor who begins to crank up his prayer life only during revitalization isn’t likely to maintain that prayer pace.
It might require asking for help. Many denominations and private consultants are focusing on revitalization – but some pastors are unwilling to ask for help. Doing so, they think, is an admission of failure. (By the way, I encourage these same pastors to look at video-based resources like Dr. Rainer’s resources at ChurchAnswers.com and RevitalizedChurches.com).
It requires “stick-to-it-ness.” Revitalization often means casting a new vision, getting members on board, overcoming obstacles, and working toward change. That’s a lot of effort with seemingly several opportunities to just “bow out gracefully.” Sometimes it’s just easier to leave than to try to redirect a church that’s already been difficult to lead.
It might mean hurting people you love. Churches in need of revitalization are often marked by sacred cows, inefficient systems, and an inward focus. Dealing with those issues always means dealing with people, and they’re usually good people. Some pastors would rather plow around these issues – but that approach seldom fixes the problem.
It requires taking a risk. Let’s face it: some revitalization attempts don’t work. It’s possible a pastor will throw himself fully into this task, only to learn that his efforts make little difference. If this fear invades and dominates a pastor’s mind, he’s probably not ready to lead a revitalizing effort.

So, should a pastor facing these concerns choose not to lead a revitalization? Perhaps, but not necessarily. He may simply need to recognize his tendencies, admit them, ask God to re-direct him when his thinking goes in the wrong direction, and build a team around him that helps to keep him focused. He may not be ready now, but he can get ready with the right support.

Be sure to check out Dr. Lawless’ daily blog posts at www.chucklawless.com. Chuck Lawless currently serves as Professor of Evangelism and Missions and Dean of Graduate Studies at Southeastern Seminary. You can connect with Dr. Lawless on both Twitter and Facebook.

The post 8 Reasons Some Pastors Aren’t Ready to Lead through Revitalization appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

The Most Common Reason Pastors Give When They Leave a Church

This blog and our podcast have been a blessing to me because of the readers and listeners. I learn so much from your comments on the site, on social media, and in emails. For example, hundreds of you have shared with us your decision-making process when you leave a church. Though there are many different reasons given, these pastors did share one reason much more frequently than any others:

The most common reason pastors leave a church is: from their perspective they have taken the church as far as they can.

But what does that mean? What are the specific areas where a pastor sees such limitations? I have asked that question on numbers of occasions. Here are the most common responses:

“The church has grown as much it will under my leadership.” Commonly, a pastor will lead a church to some growth, but that growth stops after a season. Not understanding why the growth has stopped, the pastor concludes that it is a personal leadership problem.
“I am just not a good fit for this church.” A recent example of which I am aware is where a pastor was significantly culturally different from the church he served as pastor. He deemed those cultural differences to mean he could not lead the church further.
“I’m spending most of my time putting out fires.” In this example, conflict is the problem, and the pastor does not have the solution. Hence, the pastor concludes a departure is in order.
“The church has grown too large for my leadership skills.” I have been surprised to hear from a number of pastors who think their respective churches outgrew them. One pastor, for example, was comfortable leading a church of 150 in attendance. But, four years later, the church had an attendance of 375. He did not think he could lead an organization of that size.
“The church needs to relocate, and I’m not the person to lead them.” That same reason is often used when the church needs to build facilities or become a multi-site church.

Many times, pastors are sincere when they believe the church has outgrown them. But I also believe pastors and other staff can grow and learn. Not all of them need to conclude they can’t take the church further.

I am encouraged by how many pastors and staff persons have joined our Church Answers training and development. It is one way they are saying: “I can grow, and I want to grow.” For that reason, we will keep the subscription open a few more days.

Let me know what you think of this main reason pastors and church staff leave their church? Is it always legitimate? Are there more underlying and unspoken reasons? Let me hear from you.

The post The Most Common Reason Pastors Give When They Leave a Church appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Moving Out of Maintenance Mode – Rainer on Leadership #163

Podcast Episode #163

SUBSCRIBE: iTunes • RSS • Stitcher • TuneIn Radio

On Friday’s podcast episode, we discussed signs that you are leading or pastoring in maintenance mode. Today, we give seven ways to overcome and to break out of maintenance mode. Finally, don’t miss the discussion about the 180 Test.

Some highlights from today’s episode include:

There are a lot of pastors and staff who are in maintenance mode and want to break out.
The most powerful thing you can do to break out of maintenance mode is to pray.
If you are outwardly focused in your leadership of the church, the congregation will likely follow.
You have to be intentional about developing a mentorship that is outwardly focused.
Show me an evangelistic church, and I’ll show you an evangelistic pastor.
A church will drift inwardly until there is intentionality to move outwardly.
Take the 180 Test: Commit to do outwardly-focused ministry for at least three hours a week for a month.

The seven ways to move out of maintenance mode are:

Pray about it
Be truthful
Seek allies
Develop a mentorship
Be an example
Be repetitive
Take the 180 Test

Episode Sponsors

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is a dynamic community of learners who are serious about ministry preparation biblical studies theological reflection and cultural engagement. Their faculty are gifted men and women who minister as much through research and writing as through local church involvement but their primary ministry is teaching and caring for students. Find out more about TEDS at Divinity.TIU.edu.

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 I Will.

Resources

ChuckLawless.com
ChurchAnswers.com

The post Moving Out of Maintenance Mode – Rainer on Leadership #163 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Eight Reasons Many Pastors Lack Confidence

I am confident because of who I am in Christ. But if someone expected me to perform open-heart surgery tomorrow, I wouldn’t be confident . . . even if I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express the previous night. I would be totally lacking in confidence because I would not be equipped to handle the task before me. Indeed, I would be scared to death.

Many pastors and church staff are lacking confidence to do their ministry. While seminaries and Bible colleges do an excellent job in preparing many of them for some of the most important facets of pastoral ministry, too many pastors are still ill equipped to do the daily functions of their work.

As we have spoken with hundreds, if not thousands, of pastors and church staff, we have found specific reasons why many of these leaders are lacking in confidence, and are even fearful to carry out their responsibilities. Here are eight of the most common reasons.

They are not trained in many of the business-related tasks of leading a church. Some don’t understand church financial statements. Others struggle to lead a church in a building program. Some don’t know how to lead a meeting. While church members should certainly fill these voids, pastors and church staff still need a basic knowledge of these areas.
They are not trained or equipped to lead. How much of leadership is natural ability and how much is learned? While no one has conclusively answered this question, we can say that most of us can become better leaders with training. But many of our pastors and church staff have no formal leadership training. A smaller church may have a budget of $150,000, but the pastor has no organizational leadership skills. Can you imagine being tasked to lead a $150,000 small business with no skills to do so?
They do not know what to do when the church hits a barrier. Leaders of churches will always hit barriers in attendance, stewardship, leadership development and others. But too many church leaders do not understand some of the basic approaches to overcoming barriers.
They have been burned. Countless numbers of church leaders have been burned after they made a decision. Some have been criticized relentlessly. Some have been fired. These leaders are reticent to lead because of the pain they have incurred.
There are some church members who should not be in places of leadership at the church. A pastor shared the story about a chairman of the church’s finance committee. That chairman was a constant critic of the pastor, even to the point of trying to oust the pastor. The pastor would later learn the finance committee chairman never gave a penny to the church, and even questioned his own commitment to Christ. Leaders in businesses typically have the authority to move out poor performers. That is not the case for most pastors.
They have many “bosses.” Regardless of church polity, many church members think the pastor and church staff work for them. It takes unique leadership skills to deal with this reality.
They did not ask the right questions on the front end. Before they accepted the position, many pastors and staff did not have any idea about the realities of the church they now serve. They thus feel ill equipped to lead in their context.
They are unable to get support from their churches for ongoing training. Too many churches think training ends at seminary or Bible college for their pastors and staff. Many of these leaders are in desperate need of ongoing training and development.

The purpose of my blog, podcast, and (beginning October 1) periscope has been to provide additional training and information for church leaders. I have been so encouraged by the responses to them. We currently have about 8 million annual blog views and about 900,000 annual podcast downloads. Thank you!

We began providing Church Answers a few months ago to help church leaders with these eight issues and more. Church Answers takes the ongoing training to a deeper level at modest cost to the church. Due to the demand, we are opening the monthly subscription to Church Answers for a few days. Consider signing up today. Many of you cannot afford not to have this ongoing leadership development.

Also, let me hear from you about these eight issues I named above.

The post Eight Reasons Many Pastors Lack Confidence appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Pray for Foundation Church Fredericksburg

Location: Fredericksburg, Virginia

Pastor: Bobby Oliveri & Jonathan Davis

Weekly Worship: 10:00 AM, Eastern

Fast Facts: Foundation Church is a brand new church in downtown Fredericksburg, Virginia, which is home to the University of Mary Washington. Foundation Church exists to display the glory of God to the people of the city through preaching of God’s word and the demonstration of Christ’s love to the community. They believe that when a community comes in contact with the proclaimed word of God, sincerely and clearly demonstrated by the people of God, the heart is quickened with a desire to know more and to go deeper. Foundation Church currently meets above an old music store in downtown and covenanted together just two weeks ago on September 13. Please pray for their ministry to the University of Mary Washington and the 28,000 residents of the downtown area, and for our continued community service to the various local shops around the city. Also pray that they would continue to grow in quantity and in quality, and for the members to continue to be sacrificial and loving to their downtown neighbors.

Website: FoundationFXBG.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..

The post Pray for Foundation Church Fredericksburg appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Notable Voices: September 26, 2015

Five Keys to Avoiding Conflict with Church Members — Church Answers

In this video, I cover five keys to avoiding conflict with church members and introduce a new level of our Church Answers program. For more information or to subscribe, click here.

 

You Are Wasting Your Weekly Staff Meeting if… — Eric Geiger

Staff meetings can be extremely helpful and informative when used correctly. When they are not, they waste everyone’s time. Don’t waste your staff meeting.

 

How Social Media Can Hurt Your Church — Darrel Girardier

LiAs it is with church websites, a bad church social media presence can be worse than no presence at all. Darrel provides five ways that your church can avoid a harmful social media presence.

 

Why Most Sermons Fail in the First 5 Minutes — Nicholas McDonald

Nicholas shares three things to avoid and three things to do in the first five minutes to help your listeners better engage with your sermon.

 

How Do I Define Success as a Pastor? — Mike Leake

In a recent interview, David Platt was asked how he defines a successful missionary. His answer was “faithfulness.” Mike echoes that response in his definition of a successful pastor.

 

20 Common Ways We Make Bad Decisions — Daily Infographic

Leaders have to make decisions. Don’t let these influence you to make poor decisions.

 

The post Notable Voices: September 26, 2015 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Ten Signs You’re Leading in Maintenance Mode – Rainer on Leadership #162

Podcast Episode #162

SUBSCRIBE: iTunes • RSS • Stitcher • TuneIn Radio

On today’s episode, we discuss a recent post on signs that you are leading or pastoring in maintenance mode. In our next episode we will discuss ways to overcome this.

Some highlights from today’s episode include:

The church is not only built for those who are there but for those who are not there as well.
One of the primary roles of a pastor is to equip the saints for the work of ministry.
Mentoring is a great form of equipping.
Pastoral care should be done throughout the congregation.
If you are too caught up in maintenance mode in your church, you’ll end up neglecting your family.
A lack of joy is a lead indicator that you are pastoring in maintenance mode.

The tens signs you’re leading in maintenance mode are:

The pastor is not equipping others.
Pastoral care of members is increasing.
The pastor does not take time to connect with non-members and non-Christians.
The pastor deals with members’ complaints at an increasing rate. 
The pastor worries more about the next phone call, conversation, or email. 
The pastor experiences greater family interference time.
The pastor is reticent to take vacation time or days off.
The pastor is reticent to take new initiatives.
The pastor has no vision for the future. 
The pastor has lost the joy of ministry.

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.

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is a dynamic community of learners who are serious about ministry preparation biblical studies theological reflection and cultural engagement. Their faculty are gifted men and women who minister as much through research and writing as through local church involvement but their primary ministry is teaching and caring for students. Find out more about TEDS at Divinity.TIU.edu.

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 I Will.

Resources

Surprising Insights from the Unchurched

The post Ten Signs You’re Leading in Maintenance Mode – Rainer on Leadership #162 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

10 Reasons to Send a Weekly Email to Your Church or Group

By Chuck Lawless

When I serve as an interim pastor, I always commit to sending the church at least a weekly email. I started taking that step because my interims usually include only Sunday events, and I wanted to communicate with the church during the week. I’ve been surprised by how much a 2-3 paragraph weekly email can help you stay connected with a congregation.

For that reason, I would follow that same pattern if I were pastoring full-time. In fact, I would also do the same with my small group members if I were leading a small group. A simple word that typically requires no more 15 minutes to compose will allow you to do things like:

Explain concepts – Perhaps you didn’t quite hit a homerun with your last lesson or sermon. If so, use the email to help your folks understand better.
Encourage members – Sometimes an unexpected “thank you” or “I’m grateful to the Lord for these workers” or “Let’s express thanksgiving for _________” can propel workers into the future with increased enthusiasm.
Edify believers – Build them up with a brief devotion or powerful quote. Give a brief explanation of a biblical text or a Christian doctrine. Keep it short, relevant, and memorable.
Evangelize guests and members – Regularly reminding readers of the simple gospel is never a bad step. Trust God to use it to change a heart.
Exhort the congregation – Use the email to challenge members to have a gospel conversation with their neighbors, give to a missions offering, or pray for a particular church need. More specifically, an occasional “Be holy as God is holy” would not hurt our members.
Enjoy a laugh together – I think about stories I might have included in such an email. The little boy who dove with enthusiasm into the baptistery. The church member who came to the potluck dinner ready to eat; in fact, on the roof of his car was the bucket of chicken he had just purchased and failed to put in his car. The little guy (a 6 year old) who escaped during the service and started playing the organ while I was preaching. A little laughter is seldom a bad thing.
Exalt Christ – Why not send an occasional email that speaks only about Christ – that directs your readers to the majestic Son of God who is the center of the gospel?
Establish the church’s vision – Many strong church leaders argue that a healthy church needs to hear the church’s vision at least once a month. If so, a regular email that elaborates on the vision meets that goal.
Excite members about the upcoming lesson or sermon – Send something that engages the readers in such a way that they can’t wait to hear the sermon. Hint at the topic. Briefly discuss why the sermon or lesson will matter. Encourage members to read the Bible text ahead of time
Extend your ministry – This reason really covers all of the above. A simple, brief, clear email can reach hundreds or thousands of people via “sends” and “re-sends.” From your office you can touch more hearts in a few minutes than you likely do in person.

What other reasons would you add?

Be sure to check out Dr. Lawless’ daily blog posts at www.chucklawless.com. Chuck Lawless currently serves as Professor of Evangelism and Missions and Dean of Graduate Studies at Southeastern Seminary. You can connect with Dr. Lawless on both Twitter and Facebook.

The post 10 Reasons to Send a Weekly Email to Your Church or Group appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Eight Traits of Outstanding Church Staff Members

The stories are tragic but too common. Different members of a church staff unite in opposition to other staff. An executive pastor goes behind the back of the pastor and undermines the leadership of that pastor. The lead pastor of a church rarely communicates with the other church staff. The different members of the church staff operate in silos instead of cooperating synergistically. A lead pastor fires a staff member without any due process or compassion.

Those are but a few examples of a divided church staff. The result is always harmful to the church they are called to serve. Sometimes the negative impact of the division takes years to overcome. Sometimes it lingers the entire history of the church.

This article is for individual church staff: senior pastors, lead pastors, executive pastors, and numerous others serving in such areas as children, students, discipleship, worship, small groups, and pastoral care, to name a few.

These eight characteristics are for you as you relate to the other staff at your church, regardless of how they respond or reciprocate. The most godly and influential staff members I have known share these eight traits.

They pray for other staff members individually. In their private prayer time, effective staff members pray for the others who serve on the team. They pray for those who support them. And they pray for those who oppose them and even antagonize them.
They seek to build up the ministries of the other staff members. In public and private, the best church staff members say great things about the other ministries. They seek to work with the other areas of ministry instead of competing with them.
They communicate openly. They have no hidden agendas. They are not duplicitous in their public words versus their words said in private. They make certain everyone else understands fully what is taking place in their ministries and why.
They express disagreements with other staff face to face. They are not cowards who spread venom behind the backs of other staff. If they have a disagreement with another staff person, they go to that person directly in a spirit of humility, honesty, and love.
They seek to serve. They will show up at a ministry led by another staff person to help and demonstrate support. They will ask other staff how they can help them. I know the story of a discipleship pastor who brought a meal to the worship pastor during the busy Easter season just to let him know he appreciated him.
They execute the tasks they are given. When one church staff member does not execute the tasks for which he or she is responsible, the entire staff is demoralized. There is a sense that some are working and others are not. It makes the entire staff ministry look weak or incompetent to church members. Often, other staff members have to pick up the slack.
They defend other staff members to church members. Every church staff member receives criticisms on a regular basis from church members. But the best staff members will not allow a church member to denigrate other staff to him or her. The outstanding staff members will defend their fellow team member or, at the very least, direct the church member to speak directly with the person who is the subject of the criticism.
They support and encourage the families of other staff. Families of church staff need support and encouragement. For sure, they often get enough of the negative feedback. Support and encouragement is especially powerful when it comes from another church staff member. Few things unify a church staff and, thus, a church as much as intentional encouragement of the families of church staff.

Jesus said in John 13:35, “By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Unity and love are incredibly important for Christian witness. Unity and love are imperative for church staff who serve together.

Let me hear from you.

The post Eight Traits of Outstanding Church Staff Members appeared first on ThomRainer.com.

Nine Relational Evangelism Ideas That Work – Rainer on Leadership #161

Podcast Episode #161

SUBSCRIBE: iTunes • RSS • Stitcher • TuneIn Radio

We hear from churches all over the country about how God is working in their churches and how they are seeing people come to new life in Christ. So on today’s episode, we discuss nine relational evangelism ideas that are working in churches.

Some highlights from today’s episode include:

The easiest way to connect with a non-Christian is over a meal.
I do not understand why we do not pray for evangelistic opportunities more.
We have to be intentional about developing relationships with non-Christians.
Non-Christians are more open to coming to a Christmas Eve service than any other time of the year.
If you’re not doing a Christmas Eve service, you’re missing a great opportunity.
Align your church programs to intentionally create evangelistic opportunities.

The nine relational evangelism ideas that work are:

Partner with a Christian student group on a local college campus and host a late night coffee/study session during finals week
Encourage members to have a meal a week with an unchurched family
Frequent the same coffeeshop/restaurant and develop relationships
Go to the same non-Christian barber/stylist
Pray for opportunities each day to develop relationship with non-Christians
Join an organization to connect with non-Christians
Develop meaningful relationships with your non-Christian co-workers
Gift Christmas gifts (like baked goods) to your neighbors
Teach in an ESL class

Episode Sponsors

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is a dynamic community of learners who are serious about ministry preparation biblical studies theological reflection and cultural engagement. Their faculty are gifted men and women who minister as much through research and writing as through local church involvement but their primary ministry is teaching and caring for students. Find out more about TEDS at Divinity.TIU.edu.

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 I Will.

Resources

The Master Plan of Evangelism
Tony Merida on Church Planting, Bivocational Pastors, & Orphan Care

The post Nine Relational Evangelism Ideas That Work – Rainer on Leadership #161 appeared first on ThomRainer.com.