A Christmas Wish List for Pastors
I am a pastoral coach. I have the joy of pastoring young pastors every day, all day, pastors of all kinds: lead pastors, church planters, staff pastors, missionary pastors, and even pastors of pastors. I love what I am called to do with my life because I love pastors, and I love and greatly respect every one whose journey I am privileged to share. Many years of pastoring have taught me much about myself and...
It’s Time to Bring the Missionaries Home
When I left pastoral ministry to become a missionary, a few pastoral colleagues told me I’d “left the ministry.” Their thinking was that pastoring is “real” ministry, while missions is less than ministry. It’s difficult to believe people can think like this, but some do. But even my denomination unknowingly reinforces this idea. For decades now, its annual directory of credential holders has been titled “Ministers and Missionaries.” For my fifteen years as a local...
Interviewing With a Pastoral Search Committee
So the pulpit search committee has contacted you, Pastor, and wants to sit down for a formal interview. How do you do to prepare for the meeting? Every pastoral candidate is prepared to answer questions, but are you prepared to ask them? Neglecting this critical aspect of the interview process is a recipe for disaster. It leaves you without crucial information as you seek to make a Holy Spirit-led decision. You would never buy a...
Missional Community: Reports From the Front Lines – Part Two
This is the second of a two-part October series. October is Pastor Appreciation Month, so it seems fitting to celebrate all of the quality ministers who make up this coaching community and make it what it is: the mutual investment ministry that is Journey Pastoral Coaching. Journey Pastoral Coaching is a missional community. We are not a community whose members live and work together in the same locale. But we are a community and we...
Missional Community: Reports From the Front Lines Part I
Journey Pastoral Coaching is a missional community. No, we are not a community whose members live and work together in the same locale. But we are definitely a community and we definitely work together in a shared mission. We are missional community doing life and ministry together. Every month at Journey, we ask our members to complete what we call an “Insight Question.” This is an opportunity for Journey members to coach the coach, helping...
Legacy
Twice a year at Journey Pastoral Coaching, we leave our usual individual call format to convene small group conversations on subjects of significance for ministers. At the beginning of this year, we reflected on the life and death of third-century martyr Perpetua, asking ourselves what her sacrifice, and the sacrifice of tens of thousands of Christians in the Roman Empire, have to say to us today. Just what is it to be a living martyr...
Extremists In the Church of Jesus Christ
“If we preach the whole counsel of God, we shall be accused of extremism, not only by the world but also by a professing Church that cannot endure sound doctrine.” Vance Havner Christian doctrine, the propositional teaching of Scripture, is under attack. Many in the Church today are teaching that doctrine is less rather than more important. "Yes," they say, "Doctrine has its place, but it's getting in the way of the work of the Church."...
A Plea to Hurting Pastors
“Many pastors confide to me that they are merely surviving. They feel incompetent to do what they are expected to do week after week. . . For many, the thought of thriving in ministry is a distant, unachievable dream. And yet, I know the Lord has called every pastor and ministry leader to experience the joy of thriving in ministry!” Jimmy Dodd, Survive or Thrive Our pastoral coaching ministry for young ministers receives inquiries every week: ...
With a World of Millions to Reach, Jesus Mentored Twelve.
There are those who regard mentoring as only personal or ministry development. Others see it as a hand-holding exercise. During His earthly ministry, Jesus was not of either camp. He saw mentorship as much more. Personal and ministry related? Of course. Developmental? Absolutely. But more importantly, He saw mentoring as global in its reach, eternal in its impact. The New Testament makes it clear in breath and blood that Jesus established mentorship as His primary...© [2015] — Journey Pastoral Coaching