What kind of pastor are you

What that entails can look different for each congregation, but at the end of the day your pastor should be doing the ministry that they have been prepared for through calling and training. So, what kind of pastor does your church really want? If you are a congregation in search, or even just a congregation trying to figure out where it wants to go, take the time to ask yourself this question.

And then, if necessary, adjust expectations. If you do, you will free your pastor to do the ministry God has equipped them to do best. And, more importantly, you will see the people of your church stepping up to do the ministry God has equipped them to do as well.

Originally posted at Heath's blog. I fully agree with Rev. I am currently on a committee at my church where we are searching for a new Senior Pastor. In reading your post,, I find myself thinking that you seem to be intent on defending pastoral mediocrity. You mention a variety of duties that many churches look for their next pastor to perform - things like pastoral care of the less-than-healthy members of the congregation, stewardship guidance, pulpit dynamism, church building and overall leadership - then you debunk each of them - labeling them as either unnecessary or roles lay people should assume.

In our committee meetings, we have asked ourselves why it is important that our next pastor be capable of helping us grow our church, and the answer we have arrived is that because such growth would bring more people closer to Christ.

The original Disciples spent three years in training with the Messiah before they launched their Apostolic ministry. Even the Apostle Paul who was already a respected Rabbi took more than 10 years of preparation after his conversion on the Damascus Road before he embarked on his first missionary journey.

Our shared mission deserves more than the lure of fast-tracked mediocrity. Why do you have to go to school to be a pastor? Secondly, "fight the battle well" 1 Tim. Paul is talking, of course, about fighting for the gospel, which is not the reason a lot of us are bloodied.

In order to defend the gospel, Paul says we will need both hands: "hold on to the faith and a good conscience. He puts it another way later: "Fight the good fight of faith. Sometimes lies and sometimes lures. Sometimes we're besieged and other times ambushed. Some battles are around us and often the toughest are within. Finally, be grace givers. The Great Grace is when we lift high the "trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" 1 Tim But it is also grace when we do the other things these letters teach us: when we choose leaders wisely and treat our fellow believers with the respect due fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers, when we are content with what we have, when we ourselves pursue godliness, and when we are always ready to "preach the Word," even when we're not in the pulpit.

I've written before about a man in my former church named Jim. He was a gangly, grinning, retired blue-collar worker with the goofiest sense of humor I ever encountered. He had come to Christ in his 60s and, oh, how he loved Jesus. His official ministry was usher and he was born to do it. What especially endeared Jim to the church was that every Sunday, when the service was over, he would be waiting by the rear doors for the children. His jacket pockets bulged with Smarties, little rolls of candy, and every child got one.

He loved them so much that when he gave out that candy it could break your heart to watch. And we all watched. Grace isn't candy, I know, but that is a wonderful picture for pastors. Grace isn't always about sin. Some oppose them altogether. Some people refuse to be labeled perhaps a personality thing ; others love it ditto. If you are a preacher, you preach. And you will show in your preaching in more ways than just your physical presence.

Your personality will be a grid through which the message passes multiple times in preparation and delivery. Some personalities are strong on issues of duty. They are serious and diligent, responsible and dependable. They tend to promote tradition, work hard and work steadily. I imagine that this type of person will be sure to follow a preparation process carefully and as a teacher of preaching, I feel encouraged that someone might! I feel like I spend a lot of time affirming preparation on this site, but the picture is not all rosy here.