“Why are you pastoring a small church?” How often have you received that question? Probably not many times, if at all. And the reason you haven’t is that people are kinder than that. They believe that the answer shines a negative light on you, so they would not set you up with a question like that. Have you ever asked yourself that question, Pastor? Perhaps you haven’t for the same reason most people wouldn’t ask you. Maybe you believe the answer, truth be told, would not be complimentary to you. So you avoid it, you don’t think about that question, or others like it:
You might think that the answers to those questions are as follows:
We are going to talk this week, on episode 73 of the 200churches Podcast, to Karl Vaters from NewSmallChurch.com about an article he wrote titled: The Surprising Reason 80% of Churches Will Never Break the 200 Barrier. Karl has a great take on this, but admittedly one that not everyone will agree with. We will engage Karl on the gridiron of ideas, of motivation, and of thinking that will either propel us in ministry, or restrain us from successful ministry. In this week’s episode we are going to delve into some touchy, sensitive areas for us pastors. Areas that are sometimes too close for comfort. But hey, we all think about these things! We all, as small church pastors, have to deal with the doubts and discouragements, the fears and the frustrations of not seeing continual upward motion. So we are going to talk turkey with a friend named Karl! It will be a good episode, and if we have anything to do with it, an encouraging episode! ONE MORE THING Now, as Columbo used to say, “Uh, just one more thing…” Just think about this – when us pastors are thinking about the size of our churches, concerned about how much others like us, or whether or not we will be able to pull off a multisite in the next two years – what do you think the majority of our people are thinking about? Yeah, that’s right… NOT that! They’re living their lives, probably loving their church and pastor, and just trying to live for Jesus. So the next time we get a little too introspective about our ministry, let’s not forget about the people we shepherd, and how much they need our love, support, encouragement, and spiritual care and feeding. The best way to get out of a slump sometimes is simply to engage people, serving them, loving them, and meeting their needs. It can be really simple, like what my father once said to me, “Jeffrey, the best antidote for inaction is… action! Now get moving!” Yeah. Why didn’t I think of that? Thanks Dad! We will catch up with YOU on Wednesday! Have a wonderful week. Comments are closed.
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