Number 147

  "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he."
Proverbs 23:7

What’s your perception of your ministry? What's your perception or understanding of your leadership role in your church?

 

As the writer of Proverbs indicated, what one thinks in their heart is one of the greatest factors relating to the fulfillment of one's calling to ministry. Those who perceive their primary role as preacher will emphasize preaching and proclamation of the Word of God over every other ministry role.

 

Those pastors who see their primary ministry role in counseling, teaching, equipping, administrating--or any other of the many possible ministry roles and combinations thereof--will emphasize and direct their efforts toward their perceived primary ministry role. It follows, then, that the specific primarily ministry role (or combination of roles) which pastors choose and implement for their ministry will be the standard by which they will evaluate their own effectiveness and faithfulness in God's ministry.

 

Importance of Role Perception

 

In "A New Decade Demands A New Breed Of Manager," (Management Review, 1990, 79(8), pp.20-24), researchers Harari and Mukai, in consultation with researcher Nicholas Imparato, demonstrated that the real difference in the performance of effective and ineffective managers was not experience, education and motivation.

 

If it's not experience, education and motivation that makes the real difference in effective managerial performance, then what does? The accuracy of their understanding of their managerial role. The following formula  illustrates this finding:

Pastors who perceive and recognize that God's calling for them is to be in a change-agent ministry recognize the following "Twenty Marks..." as important bases for effective change agent ministry.

1) They Embrace Ministry Enhancing Change.

Instead of trying to make the organization ‘settle down’, instead of seeking predictability, order and stability, pastors must promote a Biblical vision of continued embracement of change.

2) They Recognize That Turbulence Is A Fact Of Ministry.

Pastor change agents recognize that though change is fearful, change also presents opportunities for increased faith, increased growth, and increased transformation. Most important for both pastor and people, however, is that change leads to an increased experience and trusting expectation of God's leading as He wills.

3) They Focus On External Realities.

They are not myopically focused only on their congregation and the internal impact of ministry. Instead, they continue to draw the focus of the people toward the external reality of God's calling beyond their "safe" territory.

4) They Recognize The Necessity To Exercise The Influential Power Of God In Their Ministry.

God will cause people to respond in congregations. Yet, He has chosen to do it through ministers. Since this is His calling, it is imperative that pastors recognize that they do wield influence. Their respect--or lack of it--does impact the ministry.

5) They Continually Seek A Broadening Of The Power And Leadership Base.

The more congregations rely on the same leaders to carry out the "same ole same ole" year after year, the greater the potential that they are either becoming dysfunctional, becoming increasingly dysfunctional, or entrenched in dysfunction.

6) They Passionately Call God's People To Make A Positive Ministry Difference.

Calling people to make a positive difference is where God's renewing power gains its strongest and most powerful foothold in even the most dysfunctional, conflicted and dying congregation! Some existing leaders, of course, may be threatened by those whom God raises to make a difference. Nevertheless, renewal and God-pleasing change often comes fastest from the newest leaders.

Continue to minister to the seasoned leaders, continually reaffirming to them--and everyone--their key ministry directive: to make a positive difference in the church according to God's calling. When they do make a positive difference, celebrate it in every way possible! After all, it is a wonderful affirmation that God is really at work in His church.

7) They Delegate And Develop Other Experts In The Organization.

As more people desire to make a difference, the change-agent pastor will find that more and more of the auxiliary functions of ministry can be delegated. Gifts of worship, music, teaching, leading, helping will start to present themselves eager to be used.

Change-Agent pastors delegate both the task and the responsibility, maintain an pastoral coaching style that will facilitate maximum flexibility, maintain necessarily levels of accountability (i.e. not legalistic!), and maximize opportunities for learning and development to encourage appropriate ministry perceptions in all who assist in the work of ministry.

8) They Let Leaders--And Potential Leaders--Lead.

The translation here is simple: Get out of the way!!! Let them go...and watch with prayer. God will bring transformation you could never have ever imagined--or done--yourself. Remember: sometimes the things you dislike most may be the most necessary and powerful action of God for your ministry. Be patient with "failures," encouraging with "successes", and always waiting on God's purpose for the results.

9) They Share Information And Insight.

While on my ministry internship, I learned the importance of what I call the "Golden Rule of Communication." It's based on Jesus' words in John 15:15,

"I no longer call you 'servants,' because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you 'friends' , for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you." (NIV)

If you want servants (Greek "douloi" i.e. "slaves"), keep them in the dark. If you want "friends", keep them informed...and insist that it be reciprocated. After all, the communication described in John 15:15 is a two-way street! Practice it!

10) They Address Fear With The Confidence Of God.

Instead of using intimidation, rudeness, indirectness, abruptness, broken promises, rushing to judgment, and a general sense of communicating that these are the most demanding days, effective ministers maintain a high sense of urgency and high standards for God's ministry.

Their top priority is to reduce--in themselves and in their organizations--the fear of challenging the process in order to aspire to God's great vision. Though they experience fear, they are able to overcome the crippling effects with an unshakable courageous confidence in God's leading.

11) They Are Comfortable Working With Individuals Whose Ideas And Values Are Different From Their Own.

They recognize that part of their pastoral role was to defuse people’s more common personal fears about confrontation, loss of influence, and being left behind with attitudes of faith, trust, and God's empowerment for them.

12) They Recognize The Subtle Signs Of Impending Conflict.

Pastoral change agents not only know how to implement change, but they also are aware of the signs of impending conflict. Most importantly, they know how to deal with such signs in a timely and appropriate manner.

The manner in which they deal with troubled leaders, individual and/or organizational fears, and their own personal conduct of ministry character are just some of the important keys to leading a congregation into--and through--inevitable conflicts of congregational life. (For more on this topic see  Ministry Health articles Five Principles Of Change [#42] and John Simpson's excellent article, Subtle Signs Of Impending Conflict [#37]).

13) Their Door--And Ministries--Are Open.

Instead of guarding secrets and "scrubbing’ financial data, pastoral change agents keep no secrets. This not only enhances their credibility, reduces fear, anxiety and distrust, but also sets the stage to develop a congregational culture in which everyone has both the information to make decisions and to take risks. Special incentives and rewards are offered to those who attempt these risks.

Open-door policies, supportive feedback, and training are also exercised by pastors seeing themselves as change agent as part of their commitment to reduce fears that might enervate or proliferate in the church to otherwise thwart the realization of God's will in the congregation.

14) They Balance The Nature And Pace Of Change.

Not all changes are equal. Nor do all changes happen with equal effectiveness or in equivalent time patterns. Effective pastor change agents differentiate between high and low-impact change and intervention strategies. They recognize that effective   restructuring is not a mere manipulation and re-shuffling of superficial forms.

Instead, when the need for a new layer or style of ministry is needed, effective pastoral change agents will call for such a comprehensive evaluation and planning process which will support the significant changes in a planned, reasoned and timely manner.

15) They Communicate A Sense Of Continuity With The Past...And Hopeful Future.

Effective change agents frame the proposed changes in terms of a continuity and sharing with the people of faith. "A Great Heritage, A Great Future" is an outstanding motto for the pastoral change agent. The goal is not to reject the past. Instead, its a matter of separating the present ministry from the past without clinging to it.

Effective pastoral change agents are able to explain past without rationalizing and justifying past errors to encourage a victim mentality and to describe a vision for the future consistent with the hope, plan and power of God.

16) They Demonstrate Emotional And Spiritual Maturity.

Effective pastoral change agents project a God-inspired urgency, passion, composure and confidence. Confident in nothing less than the awesome action of God in their midst, they do not shy away from working with anyone or doing anything that was required to get the job done. They don't whine or complain; they just move forward in God's power.

17) They Consistently Maintain Their Ministerial Prerogative.

Even during trauma and stress, effective change agent pastors are able to maintain their composure and confidence in their calling to lead the flock. Even in the worst of times--and during times of extreme personal weakness, self-doubt, and fear--they are willing and able to draw on the strength of their God-given calling for public ministry.

Furthermore they recognize, live and are sustained by the certainty that God's calling is not based on the "bottom line." It's based on faithfulness of leading God's people through the process of transformation to the "bottom line" which He alone has determined.

18) They Are Able To Maintain A Consistent Non-Anxious Presence.

To transcend the personal effects of the stress in the exercise of public ministry is perhaps one of the most important skills of the pastoral change agent. One uncontrolled outburst, one display of uncontrollable anger can be a very, very difficult thing from which to recover. In all circumstances, God's calling to ministers is, as it was to Moses at Meribah, to trust him and honor Him as "holy in the sight of the...community" (cf. Number 20:12).

Privately, pastoral change agents do everything necessary--including psychotherapy and medication--to deal with the effects of stress in their lives before it overwhelms, overtakes, and potentially destroys them and their most treasured and necessarily relationships (e.g. spouse, family, confidants, congregational leaders, denominational officials, et al).

Finally, pastoral change agents pay close attention to the maintenance of necessarily coping relationships, coping mechanisms and their spiritual connected-ness with God. (cf. Ministry Health article #14, Five Types of Coping Relationships).

19) They Present And Hold High The "Big Picture."

Perhaps the most singular important leading insight in Rick Warren's, The Purpose-Driven Church, is that leaders repeatedly and redundantly set the vision of the ministry before the people.  As ineffective leaders can not put together a practical, coherent "big picture" for themselves, they certainly can not do it for organizations, either.

20) They Stand Unmoved.

In a recent phone call to a highly-influential retired denominational leader and pastor of one a church which became one of the largest in his denomination during a tenure, I mentioned, "the new pastor appears to be quite good." "He is," the individual responded. "When he stands for something he stays with it."

Pastors content that the ministry merely "make budget" tend to lack consistency and continuity needed for leading an effective change agent ministry. Susceptible to fads, opportunism and expediency,  they may tout the "program of the month," or follow the current "political winds" or the whims of the most influential leader(s) of the moment.

Effective pastoral change agents, however, define themselves and their ministry in terms of one or two identified ideals…and they are tough, persistent, and consistent in promoting those ideals. They know there is a cost for their conviction. They know that the hard decisions are the painful ones. Yet they stand unmoved in the confidence and grace of God by which they are enable to stand, and stand firm.

21) They Celebrate Their Calling...Daily

Pastoral change agents, regardless of the way in which the Word of God works in their midst, daily celebrate the joy of being in God's service. They understand that the work of change is really God's whether they experience amazing feats, unprecedented happiness or setbacks and discouragement, they nevertheless always know there is joy in ministry.

They are certain that God builds His church. They know deep in their soul that their calling to ministry goes beyond the immediate visible results of what they do and experience--it's what they are down to the "bottom of their toes." To recognize this is to celebrate, with extreme joy, God's action of grace to have chosen them--specifically them--for the ministry in which they serve as God has called.