13 Nov 7 Tips For Ministry’s Nitty Gritty
Wouldn’t you love if your job as a pastor was only studying and preaching God’s Word and caring for people?
Life would be so much less complicated and you could focus all your energy on those things. But as your know, your role as a pastor requires much more of you than just that.
It is the nitty gritty decisions, policies, and administrative tasks that suck the life right out of you.
And I can take an educated guess and say that a lot of the things you have to do and decisions you have to make you were never trained in. Your professor in seminary never said anything about them, and you still aren’t sure how to properly handle them.
Things like casting vision effectively, incorporating new technology, hiring and firing staff, building a leadership pipeline, how to grow your church and how to remove man made growth barriers are difficult to handle.
The book Simply Strategic Stuff by Tony Morgan and Tim Stevens is completely dedicated to helping pastors know how to deal with the tough issues seminar didn’t prepare you for.
In the book they give us 99 tips and ideas to help you deal with all that “stuff”.
Here are just 7 of those tips!
1. All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go
Sure we all dream of the perfect church building. The lights, acoustics, musical instruments, theater seating. However if your new sexy church is going to cause financial issues that lead to stunted growth, you’d do better moving your church into an abandoned Kmart.
[ For more about church facilities & space barriers check out Church Locality ]
2. Give Me What I Need!
Ever get lost on a website looking for information? No matter where you click you can’t get back to the original page. Don’t let your church website be that page.
Always be updating the site with current info and make it EASY for visitors to find directions, service times, and what they can expect at your church.
3. Tell Us a Story
Stories resonate with people. They evoke emotion and as a result, people remember them. Why do you think Jesus told so many stories? Make stories a regular aspect of your church. Get creative.
4. When the Poop Hits the Fan
You might think nothing bad will ever come from your church.
You’re too focused on being like Jesus, right?
Wrong…it will happen and the best thing you can do is be prepared.
Make sure the community and the press know the reputation of the church long before anything happens. This could drastically avoid a crisis when something does happen.
5. Technology Takeover
We all do more and more online. Chat, work, shop, research, and even look for a church. News flash, everyone else does too.
Churches must be advancing their technological footprint otherwise they will become obsolete much sooner than later.
This means having a strong social media presence and proving ways to give online, sign up for classes or groups, and stream or watch sermon messages
[ Related Leadership Video – Social Media Guide For Churches ]
6. Give Me a Reason
I am not sure why, but too often we associate volunteers with tasks needing to be done. When this happens, our volunteers feel under appreciated and lack purpose.
To the guy who cleans the toilet, tell him how he created a positive experience for a 1st time guest that will give them one more reason to return.
Always show your volunteers WHY their job is important and HOW it making an impact!
[ Also be sure to check out our post on How Great Leaders Inspire Action In Others ]
7. Who’s Missing?
Your church can break down most people into three categories. The people who like to do, the people who can lead others, and those who can lead other leaders. Churches do a good job on the first two but fail to find people to fill the last role. If you don’t your church’s growth will be stunted.
This is just a few of the practices found in this book. For more, check out our Leadership Summary Video on Simply Strategic Stuff!
