Ministry Leadership

Discuss challenges and other topics that impact ministry leadership from all sides: elders, pastors, deacons, educators, church members, para-church leaders, etc.

Are Professional Teacher/Preachers/Theologians/Writers causing more harm than good?

I was just thinking about this the other night.

Has the increase of Christian media(i.e. TV, radio, books, conferences, etc.) affected how Churches in America function? Or more specifically, has the rise of Christian celebrities (i.e. Teachers, Preachers, Book Writers, Theologians) actually caused more harm than good?

With radio, TV, and bookstores now being used to promote certain Christians men and women, and to sometimes try to sell Christianity to a consumer-minded Church; how has this affected small, local congregations? Can individual congregations, who often times have few resources, and who have simple men and women serving in them, compete with large(corporation-like) ministries? Do people even need local Churches, when they can find so much knowledge online, and access to radio and video sermons on a daily basis? What about Churches in which the music is played on an organ, and songs are selected from hymnals? How can they compete with so-called Christian Artists?

Is all of this easy access to information/ answers actually an impediment to real theological/doctrinal discussion in local churches? When a question arise in Churches, or there is some type of disagreement regarding doctrine or church regulations, do men and women sit down with their Bibles and search through the Scriptures for answers, or have a theological discussion? Or do they take the easy way out, and search online for someone else's answer, or pick up a book that covers that topic?

An Elder/Pastor's Salary.

Why is it that Pastors/Elders always use 1 Timothy 5:17 to defend their right to get paid a good salary. But they never mention that "worthy of double honor" means that they are worthy to receive double the honor that the widow receives.

When was the last time that you ever heard of a widow in the church receiving a salary from the church???

Which area has brought the most or deepest conflict/disharmony to your church or ministry?

Moral behavior of leaders OR members
10% (2 votes)
Doctrinal issues
5% (1 vote)
Music or worship
14% (3 votes)
Personality issues
14% (3 votes)
Financial decisions/land/building purchase, remodeling
5% (1 vote)
Gossip
29% (6 votes)
Change of leadership
5% (1 vote)
Community change
5% (1 vote)
Church building relocation
0% (0 votes)
Several of the above
14% (3 votes)
Other
0% (0 votes)
Total votes: 21

Pastors, et. al. : Have you ever accepted a ministry position without a definite, clear sense of God's leading?

Looking for some practical ministry advice here. A church has extended a call to my husband come on as their pastor and we are in the middle of discerning the Lord's will. There is nothing apparently difficult about the situation but haven't yet felt a "spark" or anything to propel us forward other than he is currently underemployed working a secular job and is not currently using his gifting in the church. We've been praying that God would direct him to a pastorate in a certain geographic area and this opportunity has opened up. Still we're uncertain.

So my question is this (benefiting from your combined years of experience): when, how, why, what should be the compelling reasons to accept a call to a church? what would keep you from accepting?

John E. Ashbrook is now With God

Saw this at Dan Greenfield's place http://dangreenfield.wordpress.com/2011/12/20/pastor-john-e-ashbrook/

Although he is now gone, this man's sermons and writings should continue to be wonderfully helpful in pointing Christians to a Christ-centered life, and in helping pastors be Christ-pleasing pastors.

Requiescat in Pace, John Ashbrook.

Making Lemonade out of Lemons

In light of the Penn State scandal, how can we as churches ensure that this will not happen in our own congregations? I know that a very similar situation occurred in the church I grew up in. ... From my travels, I've seen numerous similar situations. This is not meant to be a blame game and pointing fingers. I would like to see this topic discuss constructive ways to prevent these scandals from occurring.

Christmas is on Sunday this year. What is your church doing?

We have a special program and are doing MORE than we usually do most Sundays
3% (1 vote)
We are maintaining our normal schedule
10% (3 votes)
We are having a service (or more), but paring down our schedule
77% (23 votes)
We have cancelled our services that day
10% (3 votes)
We have not decided
0% (0 votes)
We are doing something DIFFERENT (e.g., meeting offsite, shorter praise time, etc.) but still something
0% (0 votes)
Other
0% (0 votes)
Bah humbug. We're ignoring the whole thing.
0% (0 votes)
Total votes: 30

Check Your Guns At the Door

Jim Elliff has some good thoughts for frequent bloggers and commenters:

Christian Communications: Check Your Guns At the Door,

Do you believe pastors are specially called to ministry and that call carries with it some level of authority?

Yes, true pastors are generally called specially to the ministry and a level of authority is included in that call
53% (8 votes)
Yes, but pastors have no more authority than lay elders
20% (3 votes)
No, pastors are not specifically called but do have more authority than a lay elder
7% (1 vote)
No, pastors not called and have no more authority than lay elders
7% (1 vote)
Other
13% (2 votes)
Total votes: 15