Please Send Resume` To.....

The process that any Church goes through to find a new Minister is always interesting to me. The Church that I met and married my wife at is currently looking for a new Pastor. Unlike the movement I am apart of her former Church is a mainline denomination. Instead of the candidate approaching the Church it is the Church looking at different candidates who have opened up their Resumes so that they can be considered by Churches who are looking. Instead seeking you become one who is hopefully sought.

Maybe you think to yourself that this is a good process, but personally I think that its frustrating. It is definitely more time consuming. The same problems exist with this process that do with the Christian Church tradition. It is a lot of effort on both parties taking the time to review each others profiles to determine if an interview will even happen. The problem is that Appleton Baptist Church (not the real name) is looking for someone to fit into a current system that has been in place for a good while. Sure there will be a little freedom, but there are major hurdles to jump to move forward at Appleton. I know this because the former Pastor was a mentor to me as a young Christian.

I had thought about sending a letter to one of the guys on the Search Committee just to give them some insights from a Pastor's perspective, but I realized it was none of my business. The reason that I thought of sending them a letter was out of the love that I have for Appleton. You see, they are like many churches in America; they are stuck in the rut of sameness. Appleton could be looking to move forward, but looking to maintain and that breaks this preachers heart.

Can you imagine what would happen if a Church advertisement said; Appleton Baptist Church, healthy congregation with a few minor problems, Looking for a Pastor with good speaking skills and a shepherd's heart to take a good size Church from going through the motions to where it needs to be. Willing to let someone try new and innovative ideas on a regular basis even if new programs fail. We need someone to help us reach out more and help us to stop being comfortable. We desire someone to challenge us to reach out and help implement new evangelistic ministries. What responses do you think that they would get? I think people like me in the Christian Church would be willing to jump across lines (almost) to have that type of opportunity. I praise God that I am in a Church where I can do new and innovative things and if they fail try other programs or ministries. But the Church in America is not like this! That is what breaks my heart. In all of our Churches we must stop accepting comfort and learn that there is an agenda given to us by God. That agenda is about growth, holiness, and most definitely about reaching the lost consistently. I made a decision a few months ago to get out of my comfort zone. One of my new ministries has already failed and one is succeeding. I don't know what the future holds, but I do know I want to reach the lost of this community. It's time to get out of the office a bit more and into the world with our life giving message.