Major League Baseball and churches have something in common – they both have a Farm System to raise up future players.
MLB teams have a minor league team to raise up talent – if someone isn’t quite ready for the big league they spend time on the smaller team to prep for the big time
Big churches often get their ministers from smaller churches or put another way – smaller churches give preachers early experience that eventually they move up to a bigger and bigger church.
There is a better way – will discuss in a minute but first…
Think about your church experience
You probably grew up in a church where the preacher, lead minister changed every few years. The average length of stay for a minister is around 4 years. That’s just the time you start getting effective!
We built a system that encourages turnover. Here is how it works.
First, the minister’s perspective…then the church’s perspective
You want to be a preacher – go to school…preach at a little country church while getting your degree…or just study and hold off on paid ministry until you finish your degree…get married…look for that first job!
You end up at a small church. Where:
- They will be patient with you and your inexperience
- They don’t pay well
- They will probably give you a house/parsonage so they church doesn’t have to pay you as much
- Which means you aren’t building equity and getting paid very littl
It is not sustainable…something has to change.
What do you do?
With 3 years of experience and now a baby…you apply for a larger church. And you get the job! You moved UP!
You stay at the new church for a few years. Your family is growing but your pay isn’t keeping up with your growing family or cost of living…so you apply at a bigger church.
Get the idea?
That’s the minister’s side…now the church’s side.
The church isn’t growing its own leaders from within so it has to hire ministers from the outside. And since ministers move every 4-7 years…the turnover and need for a new leader happens fairly often. Since there is no one to hire from within because they weren’t creating leaders from within they look out. They put out an ad…an ad Jesus and Paul wouldn’t qualify for.
Little to nothing about spiritual maturity…nothing about spiritual disciplines…just need sound doctrine and be our evangelist – so that someone is paid to get out there! The wife is often expected to give her time more than others in the church when she isn’t the one getting paid. The kids are expected to act differently than their peers (and they sometimes resent this).
The hire is made. The move is made. In another few years – we will do it again!
And all the while you got someone who:
- Doesn’t really know the church
- Takes a few years to get to know the people
- Takes a few years to learn the ropes and get traction
- Just in time to leave for the next one
And here is the million dollar question – where oh where does any of this come from the BIBLE?
People moving from place to place to be hired by churches to do the work the people should be doing?
It isn’t in the Bible. And that doesn’t mean it is sinful, it just means don’t be afraid to change it.
Results are:
- Ill equipped volunteer leaders
- No leadership pipeline for the future because we can just hire them out
- People not doing their part because they give on Sunday for the preacher to do that for them
Until there is no one left in the hiring pipeline because no one wants to do this rigamarole anymore. And that’s where things stand today.
What is the better way?
Take ownership of the process and raise up leaders from within who:
- Know the community
- Know the congregation
- Don’t have to move their kids
This requires doing things you are currently doing because if you were doing them you would have a pipeline in place already!
- Mentoring
- Training skills
- Teaching the scriptures
- Encouraging sharing of faith
- Sharing testimonies
- Committed to prayer and praying for mission
- Etc
If you need help getting started – have a new website for you – Home Church Resources! This site is something I built to get the training going to raise up leaders from within!
If you want to hear more of this message, you can watch the video below!
