 Paul’s words here hit home for anyone who carries the weight of shepherding multiple churches. This isn't a theoretical concern—it's a gritty, soul-deep, all-consuming burden. Not because we’re saviors, but because we care. Deeply. And when you're an Associational Leader, you're not just a bystander; you're on the front lines.
The Role Few See But Many Rely On Let’s be clear: no one signs up to be an Associational Mission Strategist or Director of Missions because it’s easy. We do it because we're called to contend for healthy churches. That means:
It’s messy, misunderstood, underappreciated work. And it’s holy ground. We Are Not the Savior—Jesus Is The good news? You don’t have to die for the church. Jesus already did. Your role isn’t to be crucified—your role is to be faithful. Faithful to show up. Faithful to speak truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). Faithful to challenge complacency (Titus 2:15). Faithful to encourage the faint-hearted (1 Thessalonians 5:14). Faithful to rebuke when necessary (2 Timothy 4:2). Faithful to call them back to the mission (Matthew 28:19-20). You’re Not Alone in the Pressure If Paul felt the weight of the churches daily, you can bet we’re going to feel it too. It’s part of the calling. But here’s the key: you can’t carry this pressure alone. “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” — 2 Corinthians 12:9 This pressure we carry is a privilege, but it’s also a reminder: we need His power. We need His Spirit. We need His Word. And we need each other. Let’s not fool ourselves into thinking grit alone will sustain us. We need grace. Daily. Hourly. Moment by moment. Stay the Course—God Sees To every Associational Leader driving across counties, walking into conflict-heavy rooms, challenging churches stuck in the past, cheering for bivocational pastors, and giving another yes when your tank is low: God sees you. “God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him as you have helped His people.” — Hebrews 6:10 He sees your labor. He hears your prayers. He honors your faithfulness. So, What Now?
You’re not alone. You’re not crazy. You’re not wasting your time. Keep showing up. Keep telling the truth. Keep pointing churches to Jesus and His mission. And remember: the church doesn’t rest on your shoulders. It rests on His.
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 “Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.” — Colossians 1:28–29
Pastors often bear deep and quiet wounds—delivered not by unbelievers or secular culture, but by controllers inside the church: bullies who manipulate, gatekeepers who withhold permission, and influencers who use history, money, or fear to halt gospel advancement. They may hide behind phrases like “We’ve never done it that way,” or “Others are concerned,” but their intent is clear—control, not Christ. Some pastors try to reason with these strongholds. They wait, hope, appease, avoid, and pray it will change. But over time, the roots of dysfunction grow deeper. Silence is misinterpreted as submission. Nice becomes naive. And the result? The mission is stifled. The flock is confused. The pastor is discouraged. And the body remains immature. Warning with Wisdom: Paul’s words in Colossians 1 are a call to bold, biblical shepherding. Maturity in Christ comes through proclaiming the gospel, warning everyone, and teaching with wisdom. This isn’t optional. It’s essential. Warning, when done wisely and lovingly, is not unkind—it’s Christlike. Jesus never coddled the religious bullies of his day. He confronted them, exposed their motives, and made it clear: the Kingdom would not be held hostage by those protecting their platform over God's purposes. Too often, churches have confused being nice with being Christian. But Christ was not crucified for his niceness—he was crucified for proclaiming truth, confronting sin, and disrupting the religious status quo. Pastors must do the same. Gospel compassion includes courage. Bullies Grow When Unchallenged: Bullies and gatekeepers don’t disappear on their own. In fact, when left unchallenged, they often become more emboldened. Their tenure becomes tradition. Their preferences become policy. Their threats become sacred cows. In Not Being Nice for the Sake of the Gospel, Bill Easum recounts example after example of churches and staff held hostage by one or two dysfunctional members. In each case, the leaders knew the person was harming the mission—but feared doing what was necessary to confront them. So they remained quiet. And the church remained stuck. Jesus never advocated such passivity. When the Temple was turned into a marketplace, Jesus didn’t call a meeting. He overturned tables. Not out of rage, but out of love. He saw that worship was being stolen from the people who needed it most. So he drove the thieves out. In churches today, the “thieves” often aren’t selling doves, but they’re selling comfort, familiarity, and control—at the cost of spiritual freedom and growth. Confront and Disempower for the Sake of the Gospel: The answer isn’t to play nice with the unreasonable. It’s to confront them biblically and remove their functional power. Matthew 18 provides a pathway: private confrontation, followed by witnesses, and finally, church-wide correction. If the individual refuses to repent, Jesus says to treat them as an outsider. This isn’t harsh—it’s holy. We must care more about their soul and the church’s mission than about preserving appearances. To be clear: confronting does not mean cruelty. But it does require courage. The gospel calls us to speak the truth in love, not to sidestep it in fear. Every time a leader chooses clarity over comfort, the church takes one step closer to health. Leaders Must Lead: If you're a pastor in this situation, it may be time to stop waiting for the bully to have a change of heart. You were not called to appease manipulators. You were called to proclaim Christ, warning and teaching with all wisdom, that you might present the church mature in Christ. That means being willing to confront the hard-hearted, call out the manipulative, and refuse to give spiritual authority to those who’ve long abused it. This is not about being unkind—it’s about being uncompromising when it comes to the freedom of God’s people. We don’t confront because we’re angry—we confront because we love Jesus and his Bride. Moving Forward: Church renewal is rarely possible until someone leaves—or loses their grip. The path to revitalization almost always passes through painful confrontation. But the reward is worth it: a church free to grow, a people unshackled from fear, and a pastor no longer under the thumb of intimidation. So preach Christ. Warn with wisdom. Call out dysfunction. And remember—you’re not alone. Christ is with you. And the power that raised him from the dead is the same power that can break the grip of every bully in the pew. Stand firm, pastor. Be clear. Be Christlike. Be courageous.  There’s a lot of hype getting slung around the interwebs targeting pastors. It shows up on social media feeds, it finds its way into our inboxes.
Stuff like… “Tired of empty pews? Get our marketing plan!” “Unlock the secrets that can take your church from 200 - 22,000!” “Get _______ program and discover how to increase your guests by ____%” “Learn from proven church growth experts that can help you take your church from _____ to ____” 99.9% of the time the solutions being offered have more to do with marketing, organizational and human/social psychology or crowd manipulation than pastoring and discipling people and sharing Jesus. One offer actually said this: (our exponential growth) …didn’t happen just because the people in our church were more spiritual…. What made it possible is (insert the plan, video series, steps, handbook they are selling: read man made stuff) Spiritual snake oil. All of it. Does all that make you tired? Is it discouraging? It is to me. I'll be honest. It makes me mad. The church growth industry has become a way to make some nice scratch on the side for the retired gurus or a new source of income for those needing an exit ramp from their ministry because they are burned out from building what they are telling you to build with their formulas for numerical success. I get it, people who have a proven track record of putting butts in seats can come to believe that attracting a crowd is an evidence of God’s blessing - maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. Crowds aren’t the point, Christ is. Seems like Jesus drew crowds too, he also noted that sometimes the people showed up not for who he was, but were there for the hype. There is a better way brother Pastor. Preach. Pray. Love. Stay Your crowds may not grow to the point you’ll be invited to share your ministry plan on a national platform. You may have to be bi-vocational or co-vocational to feed your family. You may never be podcast famous. You may be exhausted, resourced challenged, and struggle with envy wishing for greener ministry pastures. It's hard, but that's okay, you're not supposed to do ministry in your own power, wisdom or with some man made plan you bought from a dude who is selling strategy. Tend the field God has assigned you, do it to the best of your ability, let the scriptures be your guide and God be the definer of your success. Questions for Reflection
 This article was written by Bill Easum, long time Pastor and Church consultant. It can be found on the web in other places.
Throughout all of my consulting ministry, I have seen a disturbing pattern ... most established churches are held hostage by one or two bullies. Some individual or small group of individuals are usually extremely opposed to the church making any radical change, even if it means the change would give the church a chance to thrive once again. I keep hearing pastors say, "If I tried that, I'd lose my job!" Courageous pastors often ask, "What do I do when one person intimidates the church so much that it is not willing to try something new?" My response is always, "Either convert them, neutralize them, kick them out, or kill them. The Body can not live with cancer." To which someone usually cries, "That's not very Christian!" My response describes much of the wisdom of both the Old Testament and Jesus. Maturing Christians love so deeply that they will do anything, even not being nice, "for the sake of the Gospel. Jesus was so compassionate toward others that he could not remain quiet when he saw people holding other people in bondage. The Old Testament story of the wilderness wanderings contains a remarkable account of how Moses responded to a group of people who insisted on keeping the Hebrews bondage to the past .1 A group of people led by Korah came to Moses asking him to relinquish leadership because they wanted to take the Hebrews back to Egypt. Moses responded by falling on his face prostrate before them in prayer. Then he got up and slew all of them. Not very nice, but necessary if they were going to get to Canaan. Moses knew that freedom with God was better than slavery with Pharaoh. The same is true today... freedom to grow in grace is always better than enslavement to the status quo. Almost every struggling church has at least one dysfunctional bully who goes out of the way to be a big fish in a small pond. Often, that is the primary reason the church is struggling. This person gets his/her sense of self-worth by keeping the church so intimidated, either by their actions or their money, that very little can happen without that person's approval. The sad thing is most of the leaders know that this person is a stumbling block to the church's' future and they will not do anything about it. The church leaders ignore the bully thinking that is the Christian thing to do, and in so doing, assist in the stunted growth or death of the congregation. For example, I was working with a staff in a large church. The first day I met with the staff the tension was so high I could cut the air with a knife. The staff hardly said a word to one another. The next day when we met the staff laughed and cut up together as if they were one big happy family. As I looked around the table, the only apparent difference was that one staff person was not present. I asked the staff if they sensed the difference I was feeling. They knew exactly what I meant. Finally one of them blurted out, "Jim is not here today. Staff meetings are always better when he's not here." It turned out that Jim was a dysfunctional bully who ran to the personnel committee every time he didn't get his way. Because of him several competent staff members had been fired. To make matters worse, the staff knew that Jim seldom contributed anything to the health and vitality of the church. I asked the staff if they had confronted Jim with how they felt. Their response was typical for church folks. "That would not be the Christian thing to do. It would hurt him deeply. After all, the church is all he has." Sure, it's all that he has; no one else would put up with him. Who is the most dysfunctional, Jim or the staff? A church not far from me told its Bishop that it wanted a young pastor. It wasn't long before they got one. One of the first things the young pastor did was ask the Board to change the appearance of the church newspaper. The Board unanimously voted to do so. Four months later, I noticed the newspaper was switched back to its old form. I called the pastor to ask why. His response is a classic. "Most of the Board were present the night we voted. However, one man was out of the country. When he returned to find that a decision had been made in his absence, he demanded that the chairperson immediately call another meeting. At the second meeting, the Board voted unanimously to rescind their previous decision about the newspaper." When I asked why, he replied: "This man always pays off any deficit at the end of year and he wanted the vote changed. The Board was afraid to buck him." The future of that church was held hostage to a bully. I'm convinced that one of the main sins of the established church is that we have taught ourselves to be nice instead of being Christian. In spite of aspiring to be a disciple of Jesus, we teach that the essence of Christianity is to be nice. Where do we get such a notion? Certainly not from the actions of Jesus. One of the hallmarks of Jesus's ministry was his constant attack on the status quo. He challenged it every time he could. He even went out of his way to upset the religious bullies of his time. He called them "white sepulchers" and by doing so attacked the very heart of their priesthood based on purity.2 Jesus loved church leaders too much to allow them remain such small persons. When Peter showed his displeasure over the impending death of his Lord, Jesus said to him "Get behind me Satan."3 Jesus loved his disciples too much to let them miss one of the more important lessons of servanthood. Jesus, the man who said, "be compassionate as God is compassionate,"4 had no desire to be nice because ...being nice has nothing to do with being Christian. Being nice is often nothing more than a lack of compassion for people. Let's explore what this means. At one point, in a holy rage, Jesus entered the Temple with a large, metal-tipped whip and drove out the money changers. As he did, he quipped, "It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but you have made it a den of thieves."5 If we discover why Jesus responded to religious bullies this way, we will also discover why so many church leaders refuse to follow his example. When Jesus cleansed the temple he was in the Court of the Gentiles. This was the only part of the temple where gentiles were allowed to worship. What ticked Jesus off was that the religious leaders were using the only place gentiles could worship God as the place to sell their wares. What was to be a place of spiritual discovery and worship for the gentiles, was turned into an economic opportunity for the religious leaders. (Sound familiar?) The focus of the religious leaders was on themselves, not the spiritual vitality of the gentiles. So he drove them out. Therefore, thieves are those who do religious things for their own purpose. So when we are doing things that only benefit those within the church, we become a den of thieves. When we say that we want it this way because it has always been this way, we are a den of thieves. We when focus on only the needs of our members, we are robbing the community of a chance to join us in our journey of faith. Such action is intolerable for people of compassion and love. Church leaders are robbing people of their spiritual birthright when they allow dysfunctional people to sell their petty wares in the house of God rather than to proclaim release from bondage. We really need to get clear on this problem and do something about. If we really love people, and if we really want them to experience the love of God, then we will not ever allow the bully to rob others of their spiritual birthright. Anyone who knows how family systems work, knows that the worst thing one can do with dysfunctional people is to give them more attention by giving into their every whim. Instead, tough love has to be applied. The compassionate thing to do is to hold them accountable for their self-centered actions for in doing so they may begin the journey with God. Jesus shows us what to do with people who do not want to grow spiritually. In training his disciples how to spread the word of God's love, he told the disciples to "shake off the dust of your feet" when they encountered people who did not receive them graciously.6 Jesus loved people too much to let anything slow down the process of setting people free from their bondage whatever it is. People who would rather be nice than Christian do not love enough. They do not have enough compassion. Instead, they are afraid of hurting someone or of being hurt. Remember, fear is the opposite of love. "Perfect love casts out all fear."7 If we really cared about people, we would not allow anyone to bully others into submission, instead we would want every person to feel free enough to express their hopes and dreams, to stretch their wings, and to reach their God-given potential. If we really loved people, we would not base our decisions on whether or not people would like us for those decisions. Being nice or being liked is never a goal for followers of Jesus. What does being nice accomplish in the church?
One of the basic lessons I'm learning as a consultant is that before renewal begins in a church or denomination, it is normal that someone has to leave or be denied. Almost every time a dying church attempts to thrive once again, someone tries to bully the leadership out of the attempt. And almost every time, if a turn around is to take place, such persons are lost along the way because they are no longer allowed to get their way. When they can't get their way, they leave. Not even Jesus got through the journey with all of their disciples. Why should we expect too? This does not mean that we should set out to intimate the bully or to kick people out of the church. It does mean that we care enough about the future of our church not to allow anyone to stifle its ability to liberate people from bondage or victimization. It means that we care enough about the bully that we will not allow the bully to intimate the church because we know the spiritual vitality of both the bully and the church is at stake. Matthew 18 gives us a formula for dealing with the dysfunctional bully. First, an individual privately confronts the person with what he/she is doing and asks the person to stop. If this doesn't achieve positive results, two or more people are to confront the person. If this does not resolve the matter, the person is to be brought before the entire church. Listen again to the not- so-nice words of Jesus. "And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican." In other words, withdraw from that person's presence, or in our case rem ove that person from office! Never, ever, allow such a person to dictate the direction of the church.8 The next time someone in your church attempts to intimidate or bully the church out of taking a positive step forward, go to God in prayer, and then get out the metal-tipped whip and drive that person out of the church....of course in love.9 ______________ 1 Numbers 16
 Pastors, thank you.
Your presence in the hospital room following a great tragedy brought comfort. You spoke truth through challenging words across the restaurant table - waking us up from our spiritual stupor. You walked with couples through infertility, infidelity and disconnection, you pointed them to Jesus and led them in prayer and confession. You’ve missed gatherings, parties, events, and sacrificed your weekends to pray and prepare for our Lord’s day gatherings. You’ve dedicated our children, married our young adults, baptized new believers and buried our older friends. You led us to pursue the lost, communicate the gospel. You challenged us to meet the needs of the orphan, alien, and widow. You patiently endured congregational criticisms and whisper campaigns. You’ve lost friends, staff and have endured seasons of loneliness while remaining faithful to our congregation. You stayed in this place to be our shepherd when you could have gone elsewhere. You’ve navigated several election seasons, always leading us with grace and truth - emphasizing, one Lord, one faith, one baptism. You feel the weight of caring for the flock - 24/7. Your tear stained face and fervent prayers may not be known but they are felt. You don’t work for the applause of people - though you often wonder if your prayers, labor and ministry are helping us follow Jesus. They are. Thank you Pastor, thank you.  Let the one who is taught the word share all his good things with the teacher. Galatians 6:6 October brings with it many things, cooler temperatures, Fall colors, the outbreaking of jackets, sweaters and flannel shirts. I love this time of year, if I could craft the weather of heaven I would suggest Fall be the eternal season.
With this time of year comes a month in which, those who make up the group that determine what we celebrate in any given month, suggest we express our appreciation for our Pastors. Truthfully, this is a month most pastors kind of dread. Most don’t fully receive words or actions that make them feel appreciated. On the main, the Pastors in your church don’t do what they do for applause or adulation. Truthfully, consider their work. The teaching and preaching of God’s word, the work of discipling, caring, challenging and exhorting you to Christlikeness. This means some of what they will say to you and the entire congregation will be corrective or confrontive. Paul declares this in Colossians 1:28-29. The word warning conveys the idea of exerting pressure on someone’s mind through reasonable and logical appeals. Faithful Pastors proclaim Jesus, warn and teach from God’s word. I appreciate a good warning now and then. My guess is that you do as well, yet there are some warnings which are hard to welcome or receive with joy and thankfulness.
Few have likely ever said to their Pastor, after he shared a message like or similar to the ones above great personal appreciation. Does your Pastor preach the entire counsel of God’s word? Does he challenge you to say no to sin and examine your life before God and his Word, aided by the Spirit? If he does then it’s time to say thanks. Sharing all good things doesn’t just mean a note and gift card to a chain restaurant, a plate of cookies or a gift card to his favorite bookstore. Sharing all good things includes expressing thanks for sermons that challenge, leadership that seeks your maturity and mobilization of teh church for Gospel advance. Are your Pastors faithfully leading you and your church toward Christian maturity and missional advance? Then express your sincere gratitude, be descriptive, tell them how thankful you are that they speak the truth in love and lead well.  In working with Pastors and Churches I’ve come to understand the relationship between a Shepherd and some of his flock sometimes can be fraught with challenge. In most cases it’s not the entirety of the congregation, often it’s just a handful of prominent or influential folk who exert their will and opinion over the congregation.
Let me say this-sometimes it is appropriate to inquire about a Pastor’s tenure. If he’s lost vision, if he’s lazy and negligent, if he is derelict or deficient in his biblical duties, a congregation and its leaders are right to bring pointed conversations about the relationship between pastor and people and his employ. More often transition scenarios play like a scratchy old vinyl record, the tune familiar, the static painful to the ear. A Pastor, who has done no moral wrong, who has faithfully - according to his gifting and ability - sought to lead and pastor his people is forced out. Beware the danger of such a move - the church may not ever fully recover from a wrongful forced termination. Dear Church Member/Leader, before you inquire about your Pastor’s tenure, before you think of raising the subject with others I have ten questions to ask you - please sit with and answer them. If this article has found you too late, if the Pastor is still occupying the office, stop seeking his dismissal, perhaps reverse course and make sure you’ve walked through these inquiries personally. Have you earnestly prayed for him? Not always but often I’ve discovered congregants are quick to criticize but slow to pray for their Shepherds. A Pastor has a difficult job, his influence and work are 100% relational, he can’t force, coerce or demand you be obedient, submissive to the Lordship of Christ, he has to teach the scriptures and appeal to you to die to self, pick up your cross daily and follow Jesus. He’s asking you to do something your flesh hates-be sure you’re not pushing him out because you’re convicted of sin or disobedience. Have you pursued Christlikeness? Dear church member, do you know that you are personally responsible for your own spiritual maturity? Are you humbly and actively pursuing Jesus and surrendering more and more of your life to his Lordship? Are you demonstrating the fruit of the Spirit? Are you demonstrating Christian love? Have you laid down your preferences? Sometimes I feel like my head is about to explode when I hear church members and attenders freely voice their opinions and preferences regarding worship styles, sermon styles, programming preferences with a critical spirit. If we’re not careful we may find ourselves spending more time talking about what we like or don’t like rather than about the greatness of the Gospel and the magnificent goodness of Jesus. Have you contended for unity? A hallmark of the early church was their unity in the midst of their diversity. Jews, Gentiles, Political Activists and former Government Agents shared meals, ministry assignments and fellowshipped at the feet of Jesus. Unity doesn’t come easily-it has to be pursued and guarded. Unity in the church must be based on Jesus and the mission he gave to the church. Are you working for unity? Are you living on mission? Often, those among us who are bored or disengaged from missional work can develop critical spirits and can find themselves on the offensive against Pastors. Have you confronted and rebuked fellow congregants? Our spiritual journey is not a solo adventure. We are called to bear one another’s burdens, encourage and exhort one another and even offer and receive rebukes from each other. Sadly, we’ve lost the ability to give and receive firm and strong words of warning and exhortation to each other. Perhaps your words of warning and correction are misdirected toward the Shepherd and should be rightly exercised within the body, or perhaps directed towards self. Maybe, someone needs to rebuke your actions, words and attitudes-would you be ready to receive it? Have you given double honor? Pastors don’t choose their vocation to become rich, neither did they hope to be impoverished or struggle week after week and month after month to make ends meet. Some pastors by choice work a second vocation, some by necessity. I’ve seen churches with thousands in reserves, deposited at the bank whose pastors struggle to meet their families basic needs. Frankly, that reality is to your shame - if your church can afford to pay more but simply decides not to do so. Adding your criticism to low pay is demoralizing, disheartening and defeating to your Shepherd. Have you encouraged him specifically? The Sunday greeting line where Pastor and People connect typically involves the exchange of niceties and bits of information-this common exchange resounds regularly; “Nice sermon Pastor.” The preacher’s regular work in teaching/preaching is an exhausting endeavor. He wonders; “Is this hitting home? Is this connecting? Is the Lord using this to draw all of us closer to him?” One way to measure is the feedback loop-what are people saying? “Nice sermon” is like saying fine when someone asks how you are doing-not extremely helpful. Instead, share something specifically that impacted you from the morning message. Better yet, offer the best feedback of all by applying God’s word in your life in a way that leads to transformed living-and bear verbal witness to the changes the Spirit is working in your life. Have you compared him to other Preachers? Your pastor preaches like he preaches - he won’t, can’t and shouldn’t compare to or be like another preacher. Even a preacher you admire from a podcast or the television, or even one in your home town area. You can always find someone who, in your opinion, says or does something better. But remember this, we are called to be Christians committed to a local congregation, not consumers of Christian services. Are you working to build up the church? I want to say this as clearly as possible - God is the one who builds his church. If your church grows it’s because God is making that happen. Let me also say this - he does that through us as Christians who belong to that specific congregation. The Pastor, like us, plays a part in what God does to grow a church. As we invite others, share the gospel, disciple people and engage in mercy ministries God may use those efforts to grow our local church numerically - he also may not grow our numbers as we would like. I do know this - putting the entirety of the burden to grow the church on a single Pastor is wrong. Perhaps your church isn’t growing because you’re not playing your part. Have you considered leaving with integrity? It could be time for you to leave the church you’re attending rather than asking the Pastor to leave. Maybe you need some time in a new setting to grow in a different way. Perhaps God wants to use your gifts elsewhere where they are needed. Maybe, he’s calling you away to show you that the church served by your Pastor isn’t as bad as you might think. Maybe you are the one who needs to leave - if you do, please do so with as much integrity and good will as you can muster. Love everyone as you say goodbye, bless them and then be off to your new church adventure. QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION
 Those seeking to catalyze change in a church or organization know that receiving criticism and efforts to sabotage those changes is not only possible, it's probable. Preparing your mind, heart and spirit for that reality is one thing, enduring and leading forward progress in-spite of them is quite another.
Brother Pastor, Church Leader, Staff member - preparing for the battle before the first salvos are exchanged is not only good advice, it is essential. Consider the challenges Nehemiah faced, follow his example, trust God and lead forward. SABOTAGE STRATEGY 1 - PUBLIC AND OPEN CRITICISM Critics gonna criticize, often, perhaps loudly, maybe publicly, definitely to those willing to give an ear to their negative vocalizations. In part criticism is a good sign (as long as your not being mean, foolish or exercising poor leadership.) You can expect people to get angry, mock, question and criticize. RESPONSE: Stay at the work SABOTAGE STRATEGY 2 - PLOTTING CONFLICT It is sad, but it happens. People antagonistic to changes at a church may exercise bylaw loopholes to gather a crowd (who haven't a clue about what's going on at the church by the way) to vote down initiatives, vote out a pastor and cause chaos. You'd think what with the absence of visitors, baptisms and members sharing the gospel they'd have more important work to do - but no, plotting to keep the church dying and declining-that's the important priority. RESPONSE: Pray and set up guards SABOTAGE STRATEGY 3 - ENEMEY INFILTRATION Not everyone who is with you is for the vision God has given. I've been surprised by betrayals, spies, moles and leakers who took information, manipulated it to their own ends. These close insiders mischaracterize vision, leaders motives and look for ways to kill progress and take out leaders. I wish it weren't so, but sometimes it is. RESPONSE: Equip everyone with the truth so that they can defend SABOTAGE STRATEGY 4 - REQUESTING A "MEETING" Let me give you some trusted insight, borne out over a couple of decades of ministry experience. If a recently vocal negative critic wants to "meet" to talk things out, if they aren't leading with repentance, if they have spread gossip and rumors like wildfire, sewn dissension among the congregation and their invitation to convene a conversation isn't absolutely soaked with apologetic humility - don't meet. RESPONSE: Focus on your important work SABOTAGE STRATEGY 5 - THE ANONYMOUS LETTER Our seminary and bible professors told us this would happen, the stories prepared our minds cognitively but nothing prepares our hearts for suffering but actually suffering. Typically we hear about such letters only after others have received them. What do the authors intend? Perhaps it's to blanket the congregation with criticism, it could be to plant seeds which would sprout additional opponents. Such letters are meant to strike a blow to the leader, eliminating their voice, silencing them to address the matters raised in the document. RESPONSE: Speak the truth, pray. SABOTAGE STRATEGY 6 - INTIMIDATION Some critics and their allies attempt to strike a leaders heart with fear. Using hyperbole, exaggeration and over statement they claim things are worse than they actually are, that circumstances are perilous, that the future is dire. Their advice - hide, run, play it safe, back down, stop. RESPONSE: Discern the source, pray. SABOTAGE STRATEGY 7 - SIDE CHANNEL CRITICISM When leaders are undaunted, when all the strategies employed to get them to stop, change course, lose heart or quit a Saboteur in a last ditch effort to have their way may "flood the zone" with a wide spread last ditch attempt to discredit the work, the leader behind the work and build a coalition of like minded critics among the influential, the common public and the entire community. RESPONSE: Disregard Questions for Reflection 1. What sabotage strategies are you dealing with right now? 2. What can you learn from the example of Nehemiah? How can you mirror his response? 3. What help do you need to stay on course - pursuing the vision God has given?  Resistance to change: any word, threat or act designed to derail, delay, intimidate or upend forward progress toward the accomplishment of God’s revealed vision.
You’ve likely heard the quip; “A pastor believes he’s going to change the world, but almost gets fired when he changes the bulletin.” Sadly, as I can attest, it’s true. There are few things as sacred to a declining and dying church as the bulletin. In our discussion about leading change we’ve walked through the left side of the equation and are now dealing squarely with the single element on the right: resistance to change. Here’s the truth, we love change until we don’t. Usually we welcome change for others, changes that we’ve been considering or desiring but we may put up a hard stop when change has our address on its label. The older we grow chronologically the more change resistant we are likely to be. I don’t like changing my passwords, I’m not necessarily a fan of iOS updates and I might fly into a (I need my readers to see) rage if you change the numbers on the value meals at my local fast food spot. I like life how I like it. Every change I encounter reminds me, I’m one more day closer to glory. Change is the Only Constant The world and our culture are constantly in flux. Improvements, regression, good ideas followed by bad, followed by corrective actions-it’s always been like this. You’re kidding yourself if you don't agree. Yet, there is one constant - God. He is, as the song goes, Age to Age the same. He never falters, fails, stumbles or slumbers. Yet, he is always on the move, working, raising up leaders, reaching new people, revealing himself (with consistency and fidelity) to new people throughout all generations. Everything changes, but God. Because this is true it demonstrates WHY we need Him, long for Him and why He is the Rock. Change Represents Loss When we encounter something, like it and benefit from it we develop a desire and expectation that it will provide us a trusted experience or outcome with each successive encounter. As I mentioned above-we like what we like and want it over and over. So changing that experience, removing that constant represents a loss to us. Last I checked, no one likes to lose. Change Creates Conflict It is not difficult to draw the line between loss and conflict. Stop by the preschool room and watch what happens when one child takes something away from a classmate. The range of emotions, expressions and perhaps even physical retribution are easily predictable. Same with every adult you know. Create a change in the one thing or a few things they really really like, enjoy, value, desire - you’ll get a response. Change Perspectives with Vision Most change we foist on people, organizations and churches is designed to improve the state of things, to enhance the culture, operations and enable us to meet shared objectives or mission. Leaders are always seeking to improve efficiency and effectiveness. If you’re a leader you intuitively see that, it’s the reason behind the change you are making, leading or suggesting. Others don’t see what you see - at least not in the beginning. Help them. Casting a clear vision ahead of changes is vital to overcoming the resistance to change. Vision is the why behind the what, it’s the foundational element that helps change the cultural chemistry of your church, organization or team. When people resist, go back to the vision. Is it clear, is it consistent with God’s call, are there initial first steps that can be taken toward its accomplishment? Questions for Reflection 1. Are you pro-change or change-resistant? Why? 2. When did you lead change that was accepted? Rejected? What was different or the same about each? 3. Can you cast a clear vision for the change you are proposing right now?  I’ve talked with a lot of churches facing uncertain futures who are looking for quick fixes. They have a lot of ideas, so do the consultants who proffer their wisdom for a price. Rarely have I seen one or two adjustments or strategies turn around a church which has been decades in decline. IT’S NOT JUST ONE THING - IT’S MANY When you begin unpacking the history of a church long in decline you’ll likely discover a plethora of decisions, challenges, mistakes and even embedded and never confronted sins that have conspired to erode spiritual vitality. Mix in division and conflict, season with spiritual apathy and you’ll understand why the soup is spoiled so to speak. A church like this needs more than a demographic report and a hospitality strategy-they need spiritual renewal. CONTROLLERS GONNA CONTROL If I had five dollars for every dysfunctional church story I’ve heard, involving a church bully, gate-keeper, an interfering former pastor, a long term secretary and cranky old patriarch/matriarch wreaking havoc and controlling the church, I’d be a pretty wealthy person. Instead, I’m sad and honestly a bit indignant. There is a strong correlation between controllers creating chaos and conflict and the efforts to bring renewal to a church. SPIRITUAL RENEWAL FIRST - STRATEGY SECOND An honest reading of the letters to the seven churches in the book of Revelation shows us that some churches can look great on the outside (lots of churchy activity, correct doctrine, abhorrence for false teaching etc.) yet have hearts that are spiritually askew. Only a full repentant return to Christ will bring back spiritual vitality and blessing. THE SOLUTION THAT ISN’T - LET’S CALL A NEW PASTOR Hear this, every church needs a godly, called, qualified and committed Pastor. Especially the unhealthy congregations-they need a shepherd who will care and lead the flock as an under-shepherd of the Chief Shepherd - Jesus. But, many of these unhealthy churches call a Pastor and put the full weight of the church's success upon his back. Who’s gonna reach new people? The New Pastor is, because he’ll visit, preach amazing sermons and he’s younger than us-he alone will attract all our young neighbors. (ignore the fact that we don’t pay him enough to be full time or live in the same community where our church is located, and that we only really want him to reach certain people from the neighborhood) Who’s gonna help our church thrive? The New Pastor is, with his fresh ideas, innovation, and his new degree from one of our seminaries! (disregard the fact that we’ll resist every new idea, that we’ll make a mountain out of every molehill, we’ll guard our preferences to the death-even those which aren’t grounded in scripture) Who’s gonna help the church grow? The New Pastor is, with his boundless energy and great personality! (overlook that we’ll burden him with outdated committee structures, endless frustrating meetings and our refusal to change, that we'll subject every initiative he suggests to a whole church vote, we’ll question every suggestion, offer our criticism rather than our prayers, support and service) Who’s gonna grow this church? The New Pastor is! (disregard the fact that scripture is clear-Jesus is the one who builds his church-as we obey and submit to His leadership through his undershepherds.) ONE PASTOR CANNOT STOP DECADES LONG DECLINE - ALONE When I hear church members and leaders advocate for the “New Pastor” solution I think of the scene below, from the movie Superman. Accelerated decline, imminent danger, certain demise if nothing changes. That’s the reality, that’s what will happen if nothing changes, it's also what will happen when church members, who called and voted for the New Pastor, resist, attack, build coalitions against, gossip about and launch an offensive against the one they pinned their renewal hopes upon. YOUR PASTOR ISN’T SUPERMAN - HE CAN’T SAVE THE CHURCH - JESUS CAN Let me reiterate one more time - you need a godly, called and qualified Pastor. You (dear church member) also need a heart ready to repent, follow Jesus and your Pastor. A pastor can’t save a church because he can’t save you - he can point you to Jesus, he can preach the scriptures, he can appeal to you to lay down your life as an act of worship - but he can’t force you. Jesus saved you, he can save the church, but first you’ll have to grow sorrowful over your sin, repent, surrender and submit - and I know that isn’t easy, it’s just the only way. |
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