Monday Morning Insights

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    What’s Next?  Ever Been There?

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    i don't cry. typical emotionally constipated male and all that. i've been visiting the big-church-down-the-street <doesn't every town have a big-church-down-the-street?> & the last 3 times i was there, i cried during the sermon. he's a good preacher but it's been more than that. it's been refreshing to hear from God even when i'm confused and even angry w/ God.



    in case u missed it, i'm tired & trying 2 hold on

    Have you ever been there? "Nameless Youth Pastor" transparently writes how each of us probably feels at least once during ministry. Some of you are there now. Others have just come through a time of questioning what's next... questioning your calling... questioning God. Emotions run high. If answers could just be black and white.



    But many times they aren't. David Hansen writes in his book "The Art of Pastoring: Ministry Without All the Answers": Sometimes my head gets filled with static. My problems are shouting, flaunting themselves above my faith. Self-pity orders my emotions around like a sergeant. My talents scatter before the cacophonous taunts of the enemy: depression. Years ago I forced myself to work through these times. Eventually I learned that when these feelings come, I must stop trying to work, stop listening to the noise in my head and start paying attention to God. What I inevitably find when I pay attention to God during these times is that he is there, ready to listen. I need to drop everything and pray.



    Knowing what's next is never easy. And many times, it's not until you finally make the next step that everything finally makes sense. (And sometimes it NEVER makes sense!)



    Let's share some of our stories... Have you ever felt like the "Nameless Youth Pastor"? What did you do next? What advice would you have for others who are going through this process?  As we support one another we provide a valuable service to those "nameless youth pastors" out there who are just searching and wanting to do God's will...


    Last week, I came across a blog entry at "Nameless Youth Pastors"… take a quick read (this is how it was written… so please excuse all the typos and small caps!):  watz next? i don’t know where to start. i’v considered leaving uth min all together & i still want to jump back in… i’m tired. tired of resumes. tired of churches not knowing themselves. tired of my own failures. tired of pastors being pawns of powerful people. tired of praying 4 guidance. tired of waiting. tired of crying.


    ministry future


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    Comments

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    1. R on Mon, November 15, 2004

      I can relate with the nameless youth pastor today. I know God has called me, He has confirmed it several times, but I can’t seem to find a place to serve. At times it gets very frustrating and exhausting. When I am down and discouraged, I stop and pray. It does not always help the discouragement, but I give to the Father any way. He will make all things clear in His time not mine.

    2. Larry on Mon, November 15, 2004

      Seems like some blog-convergence happening here. Manipulators. Courage. Time to Leave.


      The sermon I have yet to preach: “I’m Tired of Being Driven,” whether it’s purpose, prayer, worship, disciplines, ... ad nauseum.



      At least this guy knows when to stop.That’s more than most of us!

      He starts with honesty and self-awareness. That’s better than most of us!


      The shock at the lack of respondents by the first “Manipulator” respondent is rather suggestive. Every church/ministry/mission has them. Maybe we are just to tired to confront them.


      To tired for Courage? I can’t help but wonder if courage isn’t easier when you have “back-up” resources (royalties, or a spouse with full-time employment… for me it was the latter). Trusting God is easier talked than walked.

       

      I think he is right. It is about calling. And not just for youth pastors. Lamenting prophets are not alone.


      But, what do I know. It’s Monday morning.

       

    3. Craig on Mon, November 15, 2004

      I feel for the nameless youth pastor, I have been there.  I would suggest first and foremost get with your accountability partner, what you don’t have one?  There in is your problem.  Frustration in the ministry is going to happen.  Someone doesn’t pray to recieve Christ, a sheep passes away, a sheep bits you, a sheep won’t follow, the list goes on.  I have found that having someone to talk to who knows my heart for God and Ministry is essential to my survival.  I know you spiritual guys are enjoying this, you probably are pointing folks back to the Bible.  You forget that the Bible for many of us is our life, but sometimes we need flesh to help us see the truths of the Bible.  Please don’t discount the value of a brother in Christ who cares deeply for your ministry.  The unfortunate thing is that most of those who quit ministry never allow someone into there life to help them. We think we can go it alone.  How do I know?  Just last week a local youth pastor took his life.  I reached out to him on many occassions,his reply, “I’ll get back to you.”  He never did, I only wished I could have done more!  The truth is he wouldn’t let me.  Read Hebrews 10:25, it encourages us to never leave the fellowship alone, even as the day grows darker. This past week, my daughter and I watched The Lord of the Rings, The King Returns.  In the middle of the movie I was reminded how our world is slowly moving toward the return of our Lord.  Mordolf (spelling?) was looking out over the plan with one of the little people.  The little person asked if the end was near.  I paraphrase the comment, “the end is only the beginning!”  My friend you and I are living in dark days!  The end is near, as it nears the importance of uniting with brothers and sisters in Christ is paramount to survival.  In Ephesians 6 Paul encourages us to put on the armor of God so that we might stand, you will not find anywhere that we are told to fight, but only to stand.  It then tells of the pieces of the armor, the belt of truth, the breast plate, the boots, the helmet, the sword, and the sheild of faith.  The sheilds in those days were made to lock together enabling an army to form an impenatrible sheild.  There in is the secret to survival, brothers locking our hearts together in Christ, protecting one another from the enemy.  May God bless you and all those who are considering today as their last day of minstry.  Don’t give up, Don’t give in, Don’t quit!  Someone is praying for you today.

    4. Rich on Mon, November 15, 2004

      I am in exactly the same spot - and sick of it all!  I left my last church 9 months ago (along with the entire staff, except the pastor, all on the same day), and I have had countless interviews, sent countless resumes, answered countless questionaires.  I have been in the “top 5” or “top 3” only to never get the job countless times.  I don’t know what to do or what’s next.  Thankfully I have found a way to make a living during this time.  It’s not much, but it pays the bills.  It’s only money, though.  Not what I’m supposed to be doing.  So here I am - after 13 years of great student ministry, sitting in my house all day selling on ebay, planning my next move to diabolically take over the entire earth.  And trying to figure out how to pay the student loan and the mortgage.  At least I still have my great physique and sense of humor.

    5. Don McNeeley on Mon, November 15, 2004

      Wow, do I relate to this email.  Currently, I am searching out what God has called me to in ministry.  At times I feel He desires me to be a pastor, other times I feel He desires me to be a teacher.  Sometimes I just do not feel anything.  Always searching and discussing with my wife can really get you down not just on yourself, but your wife, life in general, etc.  The call is real, that I know, it is just the implementation of the call that is so unknown at this time.

    6. L Stacy on Mon, November 15, 2004

      Give in one day and one day only! After the one day of retreat. Return to duty.God’s Grace is sufficient. You will not go under during that one day of retreat. You will become stronger and energized.

    7. Michael (NOT the Archangel!) on Mon, November 15, 2004

      I am currently undergoing the second extended period of unemployment in a 21 yr ministry career.  I am just 2 mths short of the 18 mths I endured 15 yrs ago.  I am just as penniless now, as I was then, but much more indebted now than I was then.  I smile when I read George Barna’s recent poll that suggests that most persons in the marketplace for a pastorate would not choose a small church, because the majority of my 200+ applications have been to small churches.  The negative or non-responses have been just short of alarming.  What is worse, is the apathy and indifference of my ministy colleagues, especially those of my denomination and my own city: it is a rude and brutal awakening.  Ministry colleagues are perhaps, the worst candidates for giving encouragement to a pastoral soul in difficult times.

      Nameless Youth Pastor, all will be well.  WAITING on God is no big deal.  The frustrations of waiting would not cause most of uscommit apostasy or suicide, anyway!  What I have learned, though, is that it is the QUALITY of waiting that matters: shall we wait in agitation and seething anger at God, or shall we wait in QUIETNESS and JOY?  I have tried both, and have decided that the latter is BETTER.  I have no idea when my “night” shall end, and, frankly, there is a sense in which I care not whether it is sooner or later, but I know that when it ends, all will still be well with me, and I shall be place JUST where He who has called me wants me.  YES, at the heart of this is the CALL - the call, formulated before we were formed in our mothers’ wombs.

       

      It is in times like this that we learn the PRACTICE of faith, which goes beyond the mere PRONOUNCEMENT of faith.  All will be well, Nameless Youth Pastor!  All IS well!

       

    8. LC on Mon, November 15, 2004

      There are hundreds, likely thousands sitting in the similar seat.  I left a church a year ago because it was an unhealthy staff environment ... only to be followed by the Sr. Pastor.  I am also in the process of searching ... I have been turned down but also turned down opportunities, only because we’re not interested in “doing church”.  In our journeys to find a church, we have seen many that are a disgrace to God and should have closed the doors because they are “doing conscience-satisfying church” ... and the pastor is there to ensure the safety net of a regular pay check.  The philosophy here is ... “no church is better than bad church”  but I add ... that is still no excuse for not intentionally finding some kind of a healthy community of believers.  The concept of going down the street to the “big church”  (or even little) is fine ... but sometimes (not always) it seems so much healthier because it is from the seat of the pew instead of the seat at the leadership and/or board.  I was inspired just this week by the story of Rachel Scott told by her father (the girl shot at Columbine).  It brings it all back to the surface ... the basics ... her simple philosophy of loving and caring for another and that starts a chain reaction.  She had bottom-line intentions of making a difference at whatever cost ... she clearly indicated that her whole life in her diary and life-style and words.  Oh to have lived even 5 of her 17 years.  Push all the “church” crap to the side ... overlook the “people” crap ... and embrace the examples of Jesus Christ.  That’s what I need to do.

    9. JT on Mon, November 15, 2004

      Faith in the one calling is the issue I have had to deal with most.  Do I really trust Him who has called me to serve His Bride?  It is not about me…It is not about you…It is not about us…It is about the One worthy of the calling!  I am the first to admit I am unable to fulfill the call placed on my life.  Yet, the Father has proven to me over and over, if I will step out of the boat, He will give me water walking lessons.  I must first get out of the boat!  My Boat!  It is hard to suck up the pride and the arrogance and the piety and step out there with only the Father supporting you.  It can be done.  It is being done.  It is time that more fully devoted followers step out of their boat and everyone else’s boat and walk with Jesus with bold faith that is scary and tests every fiber of your being and marriage and relationships and ministry and philosophy and ...  The church today is in desperate need of many of you who feel tired and worn to step up to the edge of the boat and show the way out of the boat into the freedom “in Christ”  Many of you who read these are right where God wants you to be to change your world…trust and obey…obedience is better than sacrifice…He has called you…HE has called on you…I’VE GOT YOUR BACK…GO AHEAD JUMP OUT THERE…THE VIEW FROM HERE IS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!

    10. H.L.H on Mon, November 15, 2004

      As I read the article this morning I too was struck by how my life corresponds to the youth pastor.


      I too left a church begin pressured to conform.  It made my heart cry for all who are living in a very disappointing vocation. 


      However there is hope for the modern church.  My family stumbled into such a church recently.  It is poor.  It is weak. But it has committed itself to reaching our community.  We joined and are inviting others into the flock.  I haven’t received a position or any employment that can support life, but I see God at work around me.

      There are healthy churches. And there are churches that pulled away from the brink of extinction.

       

    11. Bob on Mon, November 15, 2004

      As a pastor I have found myself at times wandering around in the wildnerness of too much informational demands as well as suggestions on “how to do” ministry.  The stress of it all almost become too much.  However I know that the wilderness can be a beneficial surrounding as God works best in the solitude of times ... at least for me.  In the pressures of life and ministry a person can become displaced in “hearing” the voice of God.  As a minister I was “handling” God’s Word, but I had come to a point of not “hearing” the Word of God.  There is a big difference.  At times I sense I am in the famine Amos spoke of ... a famine of hearing the words of the Lord (Amos 8:11).  I am striving to adapt my times with God in how I read the Word, where I read the Word, and even why I read the Word.  It helps me in the dryness of my own wilderness walk.  I see more and more that those in ministry are struggling.  I want to think this is not the way God would have it to be for us ... but then again there is so much superficial pretense in the ministry today to be “successful” ... maybe the down and out wilderness walks are the mode to which God can gain our attention.  A great read (older book) is “Liberating Ministry from the Success Syndrone.” (Kent Huges ... I think).  Let us be encouraged to grab the Word and cry out as the Psalmist does in 61, “When my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” (vs.2b)

    12. Erik on Mon, November 15, 2004

      All of you, just resign your ministry, go home, get on your knees, pray, and go out and get a real job.  The ministry was never meant to be a full-time family-supporting job.  You get caught up in ridiculous things like “how good is my praise band compared to ...” and “what kind of windows would Jesus want in the new sanctuary” and so on.  I was once at a church where they actually employed some one whose job it was to hire and fire.  I’ve seen five-page employee evaluations.  This is insane.  Jesus was a penniless beggar who had nothing but the deepest contempt for religious “leaders”.  If you really want to make a difference, quit preaching to the choir.  Reach out to people on the job, on the streets, and don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.  When it’s all said and done, the way you lived your day-to-day life is what you’ll be judged on (Matthew 25).

    13. justin on Mon, November 15, 2004

      I stepped out of youth ministry recently.  I left a “big church down the street” to start a church because of all of the same things that are being posted.  The pastor that I work with is a man of real faith.  I am the assoc pastor and I work with college students.  It is a very exciting ministry to be a part of and I know that I will be the pastor in a year or so.  The refreshing thing about it is that without a doubt, the congregation is FREE!  They are free from the power struggles, free from the political garbage and that makes for a spirit filled experience.  When I walked away from my ministry with teens, I left the only salary my wife and I had, I walked away from the medical insurance and all the stability that the established congregation brought.  I beleive there is more to church than family centered control freak mentalities and the awesome thing is that God has blessed us more than I ever imagined.  I do work another job, and that can be difficult to keep up with all the responsibilities of a new church, but God is faithful.  My wife and I are living in a brand new home, we are financially blessed and on top of it I am at a church that I love and my staffmates are all people that I love and that are amazingly gifted. Our youth pastor was my intern for a couple of years with my other church and our worship leader was the youth worship leader at my former church and We are so close, because of the whole experience.

      I guess what I am saying to my youth ministry compadres out there that are struggling, remember the words that God spoke to Joshua-“Be strong and courageous…Be very strong and courageous.”  Maybe a church plant is not the thing for you and the ministry God has for you, but don’t forget the God that called into this thing is the same one that parted the sea, rained down manna, healed the blind, and brought back the dead, He will deliver you.


      Justin Hill


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    14. Melissa on Mon, November 15, 2004

      WOW! This article hits me exactly where I am. I am brand new to the ministry. I graduated in December of 02 with a MA in Christian Ed. Looked for a job in Children’s Ministry for 18 months finally landing one in May of 04. It was part time and I loved every minute of it. I was finally doing what God had equipped me to do. Then the shocker….I was laid off. This has been my only ministry position and the ones I have applied to since don’t want me because I don’t have enough experience. Where do I get it then? I have 3 internships and one part time position under my belt that’s it. I am really frustrated and seriously considering leaving ministry all together. If no one will hire me what is the point in staying around in a career that no one wants me? I want to know what’s next..should I bail out while I am ahead?

    15. Jeff on Mon, November 15, 2004

      Erik, thanks for your unconvincing, irratational and absolutely ignorant observation.


      Are you married? If you are, get a divorce because just as Jesus was penniless he was also single.


      Do you own a home? If you do, sell it or better yet give it away and live off of what you can get from others because Jesus didn’t own a home, have children, own a car or even in the slightest bit say we shouldn’t. So when you start spouting off about what you obviously know nothing about you confirm in others what they may have thought about you to begin with.


      I understand what pastors go through since I am one. I went from pastoring a church with enormous growth in all areas (average growth in one year went from 211 to 265 and was climbing) but because there was a group of people didn’t like the fact that they didn’t know everyone anymore, then that was all they could take and I lost my job. I was making $57,000 per year and now I’m making $20,000 per year and working 4 different jobs trying to make ends meet. I’ve put in over 200 applications/resumes and Walmart won’t even hire me. I’ve got 4 kids and a wife that I’m tired of watching go to bed night after night crying because we don’t have enough to make it and chuches won’t respond to even say they received my resume.

      Today I’m filing for bankruptcy and it’s a great day indeed.

       

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