Keith Knight

While this seems like a thorough, thoughtful process to consider as one contemplates leaving a particular church position or even the pastoral ministry, it's very important to consider 'what's next'?

If you feel called from the ministry, what do you feel called to?

I'm involved in executive searches for Christian non-profits across Canada. We find well-qualified Christian leaders to fill those positions.

Consequently, I receive weekly emails from Christian leaders who are looking to leave their existing positions for something else. Increasingly, especially during and just after COVID, I would receive an email a week from a pastor who longed to leave his/her leadership position in a church for something within the broader non-profit sector. Most of those emails had a recurring refrain: "With the amount of anger and division in my congregation, get me out of here."

That invariably led to a number of Zoom calls or one-on-one conversations to determine just what the next chapter in their ministry career looks like. I'd usually have him/her send me a resume along with a cover letter outlining what their ideal job looks like.  In some cases, I'd encourage taking an online Birkman Analysis that very accurately describes one's character and gifts. In a few cases, I'd encourage taking a two- or three-day LifePlan, a very thorough analysis of one's gifts and passions designed to map out the next decade or two of career goals.

I've seen too many pastors who finally got out of a tense situation with their congregation or council, to simply breathe a deep sigh of relief but then become paralyzed by the lack of any plan for their next career.

So, before you 'jump ship', either willingly or by force, consider what's next for you. Seek out career counselors to help you map out your next chapter. This needs to be a prayerful process ...  as does any transition from one career to another. 

If God has given you the nudge to leave your current pastoral position, prayerfully discern what God may be nudging you towards.

Is pastoral ministry a job or a calling? And what's the difference?

In my current role as an executive search recruiter within the Christian non-profit community, I am not only involved in finding CEOs, CFOs and Executive Directors for non-profits, I regularly meet with Christian leaders who are looking for new leadership opportunities.

And whether they're looking for a role as CEO, CFO or human resources, or as senior pastor for a church, it invariably begins with this question: "Do you feel a nudge from God to apply?" In other words, do you feel called to this position?

Increasingly, and alarmingly, I meet with pastors -- across all denominations -- who are looking to get out of pastoral ministry and into a leadership role with a Christian non-profit. The reason is a recurring refrain: "Given the amount of anger in my congregation --during and since COVID -- I've had enough." Those conversations invariably begin with a conversation about 'calling'. Did they feel called into the ministry when they first entered seminary and do they now feel called out of the ministry?

Answers vary. Some entered the ministry out of reaction to some specific event in their lives, like the loss of a child. Some saw the ministry as a noble profession where he/she can exercise one's leadership gifts. Many truly felt that nudge from God to enter the ministry.

Several, after careful self-examination, admitted that they were running away from their calling because they wanted something less stressful, more rewarding. Kinda like Jonah.

The end result also varies. Some pursue other leadership opportunities within a non-profit ministry ... and they thrive. Some make a difficult decision to stay within the ministry. "Just find me something else." So we connect them to a church that is looking for a senior pastor or executive pastor. After an extensive interview process, it appears to be a good fit.

This is always, always a prayerful process. When it comes to working with pastors in transition -- whether its within a church setting or a non-profit setting -- we spend time in prayer, we encourage the pastor and spouse to spend considerable time in prayer, formal interviews are also bathed in prayer.

So, is pastoral ministry a job or a calling? I certainly hope that it's more than a job. In fact, I hope that every leadership position within any Christian organization -- whether it's the local church or World Renew, Compassion, Alpha or Focus on the Family -- is considered a calling. If God isn't evident during that time of transition, then wait.

If you view your pastoral role as a job -- where you get to exercise your leadership gifts, sprinkled with preaching, and a good salary ... without a daily awareness of God's presence -- get out. Your church deserves better than that.

Thanks, Martin. I would never consider it a dereliction of responsibility if/ when a pastor leaves the leadership role in the church for some other role. If I left that impression, then that's my error.

We are called. Period. Some are called to serve as pastor, some are called to another vocation where their gifts are being used.

And you're right; individuals no longer tend to spend their entire careers in one vocation or with one employer. The days of a pastor .. or any employee .. devoting a lifetime of service in one church or with one employer are over.

If a pastor reaches the conclusion that he/she no longer feels called to serve a church then they must consider other career options to which they feel called.

To digress slightly, in a former role as stated clerk of a classis where we dealt with several Article 17 separations, there were clear instances where it simply wasn't a good fit. In many cases that fault lay with a search committee that didn't clearly articulate the church's vision/mission/structure when extending a call. And in an equal number of cases, the minister failed to probe deeper into a church's culture and theological perspective before accepting a call.  But that's an entirely different discussion.

I must confess that I liked Rob's article, with the focus on what it means to be a pastor. His gender reference didn't occur to me.

I'd love to see two subsequent articles: "What's so hard about being a male pastor?" and "What's so hard about being a female pastor?" My hunch is that, while there are similarities in the role of being a pastor, male and female pastors also face very different issues and very different approaches to their roles.

I'm involved in executive level searches for Christian non-profits -- mainly across Canada. That increasingly involves finding senior pastors or executive pastors for churches.

On the flip side of that coin, I probably receive a resume a week from a pastor -- from all evangelical denominations -- who is looking to leave his congregation -- and the ministry -- for a position with a Christian non-profit. They cite the level of anger within their congregation and it's generally associated with church division over COVID restrictions. There have also, lately, been pastors who are leaving over synodical or general assembly decisions.

Being a pastor is a 'higher calling'. When we have that initial discussion, I ask them if they feel 'called out' of the ministry and 'called into' a new executive role with a Christian non-profit.

As many churches and denominations face a mass exodus of members over the past two or three years, there is also a serious exodus of highly qualified pastors who have simply had enough. That begs at least a few questions: What are church councils and congregations doing to keep their pastors? What are church councils and congregations doing to encourage young men and women to enter seminary?

Then there's this one, Bryan.

If you're a leader, show leadership. Dare to speak out. Dare to risk being shot down.

I once served as chair of council, consisting of a group of highly qualified leaders in business. In their day jobs, they made major decisions every day. But get them in a room with fellow elders and they clam up. It's as though they left their decision-making abilities at the door ... for fear of making a wrong decision.

I agree; clear communication is important: communication among staff, with staff, with the congregation. It should be carried out with respect and humility. It should not be carried out with fear and trembling.

If you have been given authority -- whether that's over major decisions or over the Sunday school teaching schedule -- exercise it. And don't be afraid of a discussion or a contrary viewpoint.

Chaplaincy and spiritual care has become an integral part of the marketplace -- where people work. Increasingly, a wide range of businesses, industry and organizations are hiring chaplains or engaging the services such as Marketplace Chaplains (in the US) and Marketplace Care Canada where employees receive one-on-one spiritual and  emotional care. Help is usually just a text message away.

During this COVID season -- however long it lasts -- employees are dealing with a wide range of issues such as suicidal thoughts, loss of employment, crushing debt. Employers, recognizing the need to be stewards of their employees, are increasingly providing marketplace care teams as a valuable benefit to their employees.

While the denomination has traditionally viewed chaplaincy in specific areas such as the armed forces, prisons or hospitals, there is considerable merit in engaging the services of these other Christian organizations. The Kingdom of God is most certainly in the marketplace.

While I applaud the mentoring program for newly-ordained pastors, I also hope that there are set standards in place to qualify as a mentor. One of the greatest gifts that a mentor can provide the mentee is to help the mentee discover his/her gifts and to develop them. Mentors are not supposed to create clones of themselves.

One of the best organizations I know -- and they're strong across North America and globally -- is MentorLink. Their focus is on training mentors to become mentors.

Not all mentors are alike and not all circumstances are alike.  I regularly receive inquiries from Christian college/university graduates who ask me to appoint a mentor for them. It takes a bit of digging to determine if they want a mentor to help them with their spiritual life, their business career path, their character development, etc.

Likewise, I imagine that newly minted pastors need mentors to deal with a variety of aspects of church life: time management, listening skills, financial management, sermon preparation, personal devotional life, balancing home and church, developing thick skin, knowing when to say 'no', and knowing when to leave.

I agree, Bethany.  I wrote the piece; I didn't choose the artwork ... but it is in bad taste.

I have been engaged in a number of wonderful, creative discussions over the past two weeks on the 'nature of church' as we emerge from COVID. 

What will the church look like organizationally. We have all done things over the past year that we didn’t imagine we could do: virtual services, virtual small group meetings, virtual offerings. 

We are being forced to confront our ecclesiology. We have devoted most of the past year 'attending' worship services online. It's frankly been kinda comfortable, worshipping from the couch. My hunch is that church attendance will be way down once we return to full membership participation in a service. Can you be a fully devoted follower of Christ without  physically attending a church service? 

I know of churches -- admittedly larger ones -- hiring Worship Experience Directors, overseeing the 'delivery' of worship services in physical buildings on Sundays as well as overseeing a plethora of services online, reaching 10s of thousands of people globally.

Then there is a church that has recently hired an Online Pastor, not only delivering the weekly sermon but also overseeing online marriage courses, Alpha, and a 24-hour prayer line with dozens of volunteers.

A church that had planned to launch their fifth church campus a year ago, recently declared that their new Online Church was their fifth campus, reaching many thousands more than they had dared to dream with a physical building in a geographic location.

Any church that is counting on returning to the status quo is either dreaming or it is content to focus internally, preparing for a numeric death.

How do we do mission trips?  What does a multi-site church look like?

It's relatively easy to  find a pastor who will simply 'fill the pulpit' on Sundays. Similarly, it's relatively easy for a pastor who is looking for another church to find one that will 'do'.

The CRC isn't as homogeneous as it once was. Congregational cultures vary, even within the same classis or city. Pastors, too, come from varying backgrounds, perspectives, seminaries or Bible colleges. 

So why aren't churches and pastors going to the experts? Sam Hamstra and Chapter Next, based in the Chicago area, is the perfect example of a highly qualified person who meets with church councils and congregations to determine their character, their theological perspective, and their political leanings, and then creates a church profile that is a true reflection of what the church is. And then they match that congregation to a pastor with the exact qualifications that the church needs.

Their track record proves their success. And, no, I'm not on their payroll or in any way connected to Chapter Next. Their reputation precedes them.

There is a similar organization in Canada. Nelson/Kraft works exclusively with Christian non-profits -- from organizations to churches -- to find the ideal match between the organization and the leader -- whether that's a CEO or a pastor.

Back to the church. We know too many churches and pastors that are mismatched. That's the result of a search committee that didn't conduct due diligence and a pastor who just didn't know how to ask the right questions.

We need vibrant congregations to move ministry forward. Invest in the professionals who know how to bring about that 'match made in heaven'.