Transitions and New Perspectives

I haven't posted anything to this blog for over two years because my life has been in transition during that time. I left my position as Sr. Pastor of a church after 6 years of attempting to turn it around and, after 33 years of shepherding congregations in my denomination, sensed God's direction to move into a new field. I am currently working as a regional director of development in the college where I did my undergraduate study. This blog post is a little of my spiritual journey during time of transition. In the coming weeks and months I hope to give a little post pastoral perspective on the challenges of being a minister in a rapidly changing secular culture.

One of the greatest battles that pastors continually face is discouragement. Over the years I found ways to deal with it, including prayer, reading, study, pastoral conferences (which sometimes only added to my discouragement), and counseling. In recent years my discouragement reached new levels to the point where my effectiveness as a leader had slowly declined, and the church and I both realized that we needed a change. I hoped for an appointment in another church, because that was what I had trained to do and what I had done effectively for the majority of my career. Unfortunately I was unable to find another church that would call me to shepherd them.

On a networking trip to my denomination's General Conference I had a conversation with the president of the college I now serve. She encouraged me to apply for an open position they had posted in the development office, but I balked because that was not what I was seeking at the time, and I did not see myself as a "fundraiser." After returning from the conference I began reading a book on fundraising that had recently been sent to me by my wife's former boss, the VP for Advancement in another institution. As I read it I immediately sensed that I was indeed wired for that kind of work, and that it was an extension of my pastoral calling. My whole pastoral ministry had a mega-theme of stewardship as I had encouraged people to invest their lives in things that truly mattered for the kingdom of God. With this change to development work I would be doing that still, only on a one-to-one basis. So not ready for retirement, I took the leap in faith.


Surprise - God knew what he was doing all along! I have found a new lease on my life, thoroughly enjoying this new chapter. I get to meet a lot of interesting people who have done some amazing things with their talents and education and encourage them to invest some of their resources in the education and shaping of the next generation of "scholar servants" who are going to impact the world for Christ.

Now, a year out of pastoral leadership, I have a new and fresh appreciation and understanding of the challenges facing today's pastors. I hope to share some of these in the coming editions of this blog.
Blessings!