Continuing from yesterday’s article, I’d like to humbly offer the best advice I can to a pastor who is struggling whether to press forward with their ministry or quit.
My recommendation is that the pastor prayerfully make that decision in the next month. Below are three principles to keep in mind in the process of this weighty decision-making.
How Do You Define Success?
May I caution us here to make sure we are defining success properly. In the well-known book, The Insanity of God, Nik Ripken recounts how he was for many years in the midst of war-torn Somaliland in the early 1990s, in which people were dying of hunger and Christians were persecuted. He left there without much outward success. In his book he offers this advice: Success in ministry is not a matter of results, but obedience.
So when I talk about “success in ministry,” I tread carefully. Let’s assume for now that we decide the success of a church is based on these two criteria: 1. People growing in faith, and 2. People coming to God asking Him to be their personal savior.
With that in mind, let me offer the following advice.
If You Continue, Know This: You Have Blindspots.
Oh the affliction of a blind spot. When we see repeated failure, many attribute it to the will of God. This is possible of course, but blaming God when we are not willing to face our blind spots head-on is most often an excuse. Is there something you are not being, or something you are not doing? Maybe there are 10 or 50 things you are missing. These are your blindspots.
As leaders, we must face the music when our leadership is not generating progress, and we must face it with courage. While this is a difficult realization to acknowledge and a daunting challenge to resolve, we must consider the work of addressing our blind spots. Since by definition we are blind to them, meaning that we do not know what they are, we often must seek help (more on this in the next article).
If You Quit, Know This: Even the Very Best Leaders Do Not Lead Well in Every Situation.
Churchill was arguably one of the best leaders of the last century. However, he led poorly and was voted out after WWII. No one can lead successfully in every leadership position. When we don’t lead well in one situation, it does not mean we are a bad leader or a bad person. However, when we don’t quit when we should, we demonstrate leadership immaturity. If our leadership is not working, it simply means that in this situation, we don’t yet have the set of skills required to lead well. Knowing this, when I say that one of your choices is to quit, don’t feel horrible about that. Don’t feel bad at all. Yes, you have to mourn the dream, but you must believe that God’s sovereignty is at hand. He knows you and will take care of you.
Lead with courage. Likewise, when the time is right, stop leading with courage.
Don’t Worship the Ministry You Created.
I co-founded TotalCare. This is where almost 20 years ago, I first practiced medicine, discovered leadership, and began ministry. This is where I started doing missions world-wide. Because of TotalCare I had many doors opened. A few years ago, we were facing closure due to a law that insurance companies were using against us. Thankfully, we made it through this time and were able to keep our doors open. However, during the darkest days, I faced the possibility of my dream ending. So I prayed, and the Lord led me to this thought: Do not worship TotalCare, worship Me. My goal is to serve God. I will not worship anything I created, even if it was God-ordained.
We must be okay with plenty and okay with nothing. We must be okay when it’s just us and God. Our success and sense of self-worth must be attached to our communion with Him, not the impact of a ministry or success of an organization.
When God wills for us to have success, so be it. If failure and closure is imminent, and we have done all we can to survive, then so be it. Either way, we are heaven-bound, so we must have joy and contentment with whatever happens. We must practice our faith in hard times, like Romans 8 tell us, and all things will work out for the best for those who love the Lord.
There Is a Life-Cycle to Every Church and Organization.
As your question alluded to, and as Ecclesiastes 3 tell us, there is season for life and death. There is a life cycle for every church and every organization. While a handful of churches have lasted for centuries, the vast majority do not. It is the same for most ministries and organizations. While this is not encouraging, and it can be very painful, we should celebrate the good that the ministry accomplished while it survived. I do not say this to suggest that the ministry should end, but only to bring additional perspective.
Tomorrow’s article will dive deep, specifically into the choices at hand: keep going or stop.
How can I support you more as a Christian leader and entrepreneur?
Comment