The Pastor as Manager

A dialogue continues among researchers about the differences between managers and leaders. It is clear that there is overlap between the two roles. It is equally clear that some managers do not lead, and some leaders do not manage. A helpful (but ultimately inadequate) distinction is that managers deal with maintaining consistency in the here and now, while leaders work to change the future.

Pastors of congregations hold both roles (among many others). They lead. They manage. There is an overabundance of material that addresses the pastor as leader. Less research has been done about the pastor as manager. The managerial side of pastoring can be frantic on any given day – the pace can switch from comfortable to chaotic with one phone call. Most people understand and respect this aspect of ministry. What is less known is how fragmented daily activities are. Much pastoral management can occur in short conversations and activities – 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there. Quick, hopscotch exchanges are normative in daily management of the church.

The management role of a pastor surfaces in many different functions. Here are a few of my anecdotal observations:

Liaison. Pastors are the spokespeople and representatives for their churches in the community. They should work to make new contacts, connect with other leaders, and communicate a positive message on behalf of the congregation.

Mediator. While pastors should not be expected to handle every conflict within the church, they do handle sudden crises. Pastors that are good managers step in at appropriate times when disturbances occur between members or with outside people.

Juggler. Pastors are expected to lead many teams comprising of laity and staff. Planning appropriately requires pastors to juggle several meetings and exchanges with different people.

Observer. Pastors should monitor the health of the church. They track the pulse of the congregation. Part of this observer role requires weekly knowledge of relevant church metrics – how is involvement in small groups trending? How is the worship service attendance tracking? What are ministry teams doing?

Disseminator. Since pastors touch base with many different groups and segments of the church (probably more so than any other person), they are in the unique position of knowledge gatekeeper. Part of managing a congregation requires pastors to disseminate information acquired from one group to another group. They help connect people and tasks for more efficient ministry.

The list is not exhaustive. What other thoughts do you have?

A New Kind of Suburban Church

Almost half of the U.S. population lives in the suburbs. And sprawling suburbia is changing. The WSJ recently reported that the place where people grew up will change as they grow old. The suburbs are graying, and there is a movement to make them more compact.

While large tracts of single-family homes are not being demolished, struggling shopping centers and vacant land in the suburbs are being converted into dense, mixed-use neighborhoods. In short, the ‘burbs are getting a retrofit. The goal is a lifelong, walkable community – a small-town atmosphere, complete with town center – live, shop, work, and play without hopping in the car.

The movement is driven by the changing life demands of the Boomers. The senior population is expected to increase 36% between 2010 and 2020, driven mainly by the aging Boomer population. For example, today 1 out of 10 Atlanta area residents are over 60. In 2030, it will be 1 out of 5.

The Boomer generation was the first generation to live their entire lives in the suburbs. A good portion of them will stay as they age. An AARP survey cited in the WSJ article revealed that 85% of those over 50 want to remain in their communities. More than 30 million people over 55 currently reside in the suburbs, and that figure will continue to grow over time.

The retrofit trend is expensive and will not explode overnight (especially in the current economy). Every suburb will not get a makeover, but the trend will become more prevalent over the next several years. Church leaders need to be prepared for demographic shifts in their communities – diversity is spreading out and getting younger, downtowns are gentrifying, and the suburbs are getting grayer.

How should a local church reach the aging, suburban Boomer? The options are numerous: multi-site campuses in new suburban town centers, leasing storefront space, small groups meeting in recreation centers, and video venues, among many others. I’m not advocating an entire paradigm shift for suburban community outreach (though some churches could certainly use a paradigm shift). How churches reach out is less of an issue than will churches do anything intentional to reach this exploding part of the population.

Boomers will become the new “seniors.” How senior adult ministry was done with the previous generation, however, will not be as favorable with the Boomer generation. There is just as large a generation gap between the Boomers and the Greatest Generation as there is between Boomers and their children. Boomers are less likely to be attracted to group entertainment events. Boomers are more likely to have women who worked in professional positions. Boomers are more likely to have been divorced. Boomers are more educated than previous retirees. As ministry methods change with younger generations, so too they must change with older generations.

I’d like to hear your thoughts – do you know of any suburban churches making positive shifts to reach the aging Boomer population? Are there any churches that are making plans to reach out to new suburban town centers?

The Importance of Vision

During my transition to FBC Murray, I have the opportunity to worship with a few churches before making the move up to Kentucky. Today my wife and I worshiped with First Baptist Orlando. We thoroughly enjoyed our experience.

Every time I pass through Orlando, I cannot help but think of the grand vision of Walt Disney. The common sermon illustration sums it up:

When Epcot Center was finished in 1982, Walt Disney had already passed away. Disney executives asked Walt’s wife to cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony. When she was called up to the podium, one of the executives said to her, “Mrs. Disney, I wish Walt could have seen this.”

She replied, “He did.”

Vision is essential for something grand. Vision is critical for the church as well. God will work through and use anyone. But without visionary leaders and pastors, I imagine there would not be churches like First Orlando. I’ve compiled a few thoughts on vision below – it’s a somewhat amorphous subject. Leaders and researchers have numerous definitions, qualities, and necessities of vision. Feel free to chime in with your ideas and comments.

Vision does not happen without leaders. Leaders cast vision. Vision involves the future. But the process of creating a vision involves more than a single person at the top prognosticating about tomorrow’s events. Vision is about people. A leader’s vision enables a group of people to organize for common purposes and future goals. This vision is a collective and emotional effort guided by leaders in which possibility becomes reality. More than unrealistic dreams and empty ideals, vision helps rally people towards something tangible. Vision unifies – revealing how people link into something bigger than themselves.

Vision excites people about taking risks. It leads people into uncharted waters, compelling them to take a chance on the uncertain. There is no overwhelming fear of failure in a compelling vision, only the realization that failures produce more opportunities to learn and move towards the next exciting place.

Vision is grounded in absolutes. It is not a patchwork of conflicting principles. These principles keep the movement of people on track. Vision embraces and welcomes dissenting views, but never to the point of detriment for the common purpose and future goal. Leaders with vision stand firmly and move resolutely. They lead by example, demonstrating a personal commitment to the spoken vision.

Vision has a hook. Vision is worthless unless it grabs people and moves them into action. Casting vision means having a big hook. An exciting vision gets people asking, “What’s next? What’s the encore? Where are we going from here?”

Vision builds upon past successes, carrying the best of what was towards something greater. It never forgets the past, but helps propel people to places they did not think possible. Vision is always collaborative. It takes into account the voice of the people. A leader’s vision incorporates the best creative ideas. Vision reinvigorates passions and stirs people to movement for long term objectives, being less about tomorrow and more about the enduring.

By the way, the diagram at the top is the first map of the Internet. In 1982, 88 computers were connected. Who knew? Well, I guess some people did. Now they own their own islands

How Popular are House Churches?

It depends – according to new research conducted by the Barna Group. I’ve heard several opinions, anecdotes, and estimations on the popularity of house churches. While Barna’s study is by no means conclusive, it does help clarify some the guesswork about the number of house churches in the United States. Barna’s estimates range from a minimum of 4% of the adult population to a maximum of 33%. Of course, the wide range represents the varying definitions of “house church:”

When a question asks whether the survey respondent has “attended a worship service in someone’s home, known as a house church,” the results generally find about 10% of the adult population claims to have done so in the past month. This pattern holds true regardless of whether or not the question includes a disclaimer that the gathering “is not associated with a local, congregational type of church.” The numbers change relatively little if the time frame is expanded to the past year, registering about 13% of all adults.

A different approach is to ask people how often, if ever, they attend a religious service – not a “worship service” – in someone’s home or even in some other place that is independent of a congregational-form church. This more inclusive question typically finds that 22% to 24% of all adults claim to have had such an experience during a given month.

The most prolific response comes when adults are asked if they have “experienced God or expressed (their) faith in God in a house church or simple church meeting in the past month,” regardless of whether it is affiliated with some other church entity. This definition, certainly the broadest of the six variations tested, finds that one-third of adults claim to have been involved in such a gathering during the preceding month.

Over at his blog, Ed Stetzer offers further insight into the popularity of house churches. He references his previous research conducted while at the Center for Mission Research:

When we cross-tabulated the “small group” question with the “church attendance” question, we found that 50 out of 3,600 adults attend both a group of 20 or less and “rarely” or “never” attend a place of worship. If extrapolated, this is almost 1.4 percent of the American population and may represent the purest measure of those who are not involved in an organized church, synagogue, or mosque but still are involved in some alternative faith community like, in the Christian faith, a house church. That is about four million Americans– not a small number.

Even the smallest estimates reveal that house churches, at minimum, hold an important niche. Having never belonged to a house church, I’m curious to hear from someone who has. Feel free to comment with your thoughts.

10 Things to Know about Leading Young Adults

I recently did a breakout session at the Connect Conference in Charleston, SC (you can register here for the Shreveport, LA venue on September 24th and 25th). In preparing for the event, I looked over previous research, added a few anecdotal observations, and developed ten critical issues in leading young adults.

1. They desire integrity among leaders. Our research has shown that young adults don’t drop out of the church because of large-scale moral failures of leadership. But they’ve seen enough duplicity – they are attracted to leaders that stand firm and are people of principle.

2. They look for transparency in leaders. A lack of transparency at the top is frustrating to anyone who follows. The younger generation tends to follow transparent leaders over distant, detached leaders. And they want to know that they are not alone in their struggles. They want to hear the leader’s story, valuing personal impact over steps-to-success in a message.

3. They want leaders to be mentors. Mentoring to the younger generation comes in a more informal relationship. It’s not about the program or process; it’s more about the relationship.

4. They crave opportunities from leaders. Most young adults do not want to sit on the sidelines. In fact, a growing front door to the church is missions. A church without opportunity to serve is boring at best, disobedient at worst. Give young adults an opportunity to serve and watch them succeed with the mission.

5. They need leaders to shoot straight. With life. With biblical depth. Young adults do not come to church to wade in the shallows. They do not follow leaders that soft peddle. They desire leaders to shepherd them through the depths of Scripture and the valleys of life.

6. They are attracted to team leadership. The younger generation deplores autocratic leaders. Leaders that attract the younger generation show everyone how their ministry link is a critical one. These leaders reveal the big picture to everyone rather than keeping the vision black box locked. They equip the saints and empower the laity to join God on His mission.

7. They want to be corrected by leaders. One way to confuse the younger generation is to set expectations and then hold no one accountable. Much of the younger generation has a desire for strong spiritual guidance and the corresponding discipline when they stray.

8. They seek examples in leadership. Missional churches have missional pastors. Evangelistic churches have evangelistic church leaders. Churches that meet the needs of the community have leaders that champion the cause.

9. They need to hear a message of forgiveness from leaders. Many younger adults carry a burden of guilt. Many of them have no concept of true forgiveness. They need to hear leaders tell them plainly what the atonement of Christ means. They need to hear how the debt of sin has been cancelled.

10. They look for joyful leaders. Young adults gravitate towards a worship experience that represents the joy of Christ. They want to hear from leaders that live Philippians 4:4 - Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! They quickly recognize manufactured joy, but they value leaders with true joy.

Obviously, this list is not exhaustive (and much of it applies to other generations) – what other issues do you see as critical in leading the next generation?