By Mike Glenn I love roller coasters. I love big, tall, fast-rolling, twisting behemoths that scare you so badly that you can’t stop laughing. I want to be in the first car. I want to dangle over the top of the highest hill of steel, hesitate just long enough to confirm that this time you’re going to die, and then dive into a twisting, breath-sucking ride of hilarious terror. I love sliding back into the loading barn with my hair blown back, waving my hands over my head, and trying to catch my breath.
Excellent advice. Being a pastor is not an easy position to be in. I pray each day for pastor in general. Seeing first hand the “ roller coaster ride” . Pastors live in a glass house. Especially now with conspiracy theorists in their congregations , those pastors have to walk a very thin line
Thanks for this post. A couple of things come to mind as I’m reading this. First, churches have WAY to high of expectations for and on pastors. Most churches, almost any size, looks at big churches and say “we want to be like that - you need to get us there.” A quick perusal of senior pastor job descriptions on any church staffing website will bear out as much. They want us to do everything all the time (I’ve been a senior pastor for 20+ years) and expect us to do well. The local church is 1/3 responsible here. Another 1/3 belongs to seminary students/prospective pastors. Because of pressure - both peer and from local churches that are hiring - buy into the mythology of the importance of being a big “personality.” They model themselves after pastors in the media (yes - I’m going to put some blame on them - stay tuned) who have big personalities and are soft-of full of themselves. There is a belief that this is the way to grow a church. These, often young, people (both men and women, though I believe that the overwhelming percentage of these individuals are men) are fooled by the false premise that all that glitters is gold. I find seminaries are still trying to teach the fundamentals of pastoring (counseling, discipleship, missions) but are getting pressured (financially and by contemporary leadership culture) to be more. Not that seminaries can’t do a better job, they can. I just look at the changes in curriculum over the past 20 years and they are desperately trying to stay “relevant.” I think the last 1/3 belongs to Christian pop-culture with “Christian” main stream media being a huge part of this. Publications like Christianity Today and Outreach magazine have glorified (purposely or not) the mythology of the hip pastor and false church growth models. They bear some responsibility as well. I get it - gotta move product - but there is damage that goes with that which CT has not taken responsibility for (this includes promoting writers and pastors who were and are misogynistic and racist). I have yet to see CT or others take deep responsibility for their part in pushing and making money off this kind of mythology.
So there is a lot of blame to go around. I, as one pastor, have a great church that has a great love for me and my family. I feel badly for those who do not. This is a tough job - but one that I believe in and love.
Excellent advice. Being a pastor is not an easy position to be in. I pray each day for pastor in general. Seeing first hand the “ roller coaster ride” . Pastors live in a glass house. Especially now with conspiracy theorists in their congregations , those pastors have to walk a very thin line
Thanks for this post. A couple of things come to mind as I’m reading this. First, churches have WAY to high of expectations for and on pastors. Most churches, almost any size, looks at big churches and say “we want to be like that - you need to get us there.” A quick perusal of senior pastor job descriptions on any church staffing website will bear out as much. They want us to do everything all the time (I’ve been a senior pastor for 20+ years) and expect us to do well. The local church is 1/3 responsible here. Another 1/3 belongs to seminary students/prospective pastors. Because of pressure - both peer and from local churches that are hiring - buy into the mythology of the importance of being a big “personality.” They model themselves after pastors in the media (yes - I’m going to put some blame on them - stay tuned) who have big personalities and are soft-of full of themselves. There is a belief that this is the way to grow a church. These, often young, people (both men and women, though I believe that the overwhelming percentage of these individuals are men) are fooled by the false premise that all that glitters is gold. I find seminaries are still trying to teach the fundamentals of pastoring (counseling, discipleship, missions) but are getting pressured (financially and by contemporary leadership culture) to be more. Not that seminaries can’t do a better job, they can. I just look at the changes in curriculum over the past 20 years and they are desperately trying to stay “relevant.” I think the last 1/3 belongs to Christian pop-culture with “Christian” main stream media being a huge part of this. Publications like Christianity Today and Outreach magazine have glorified (purposely or not) the mythology of the hip pastor and false church growth models. They bear some responsibility as well. I get it - gotta move product - but there is damage that goes with that which CT has not taken responsibility for (this includes promoting writers and pastors who were and are misogynistic and racist). I have yet to see CT or others take deep responsibility for their part in pushing and making money off this kind of mythology.
So there is a lot of blame to go around. I, as one pastor, have a great church that has a great love for me and my family. I feel badly for those who do not. This is a tough job - but one that I believe in and love.
I needed this today. Thank you.
Thanks for this. What an inspiration on many levels, but I especially enjoyed the information about the Rowan Glenn Center for Special Needs. Thanks.