“A man who is to do much with men must love them and feel at home with them. An individual who has no geniality about him had better be an undertaker and bury the dead, for he will never succeed in influencing the living…A man must have a great heart, if he would have a …
In any task one must keep in view the ultimate end or purpose. This is true for pastoral ministry as well. In the final assignment for my pastoral ministry class I always ask students to state the ultimate aim of pastoral ministry. Richard Baxter provides a good answer to this question: “The ultimate end of …
Earlier this month I had the privilege of participating in the lecture series of the School of Christian Ministries at California Baptist University. I titled my address “Portrait of a Faithful Pastor.” Drawing from 2 Timothy 2 and other texts I argued that to be a faithful pastor a man must give himself to God, …
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No, not that Winston Churchill. I’m referring to the American novelist who was quite famous in the early 20th century. I listed his novel, The Inside of the Cup, as one of the most intriguing books I read in 2015. I had hoped to write something more extensive about the book, but as typical I …
Recently Thom Rainer posted a column titled, “FIFTEEN REASONS WHY YOUR PASTOR SHOULD NOT VISIT MUCH.” I first heard about it from a former student who recognized that this column argued the direct antithesis of what I teach in my pastoral ministry class and what I advocate for at this site. Thom has been helpful …
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Dickens is good to read for reminders of what all you have to be grateful for and for reminers of the plight of the working poor. The Chimes is not as good as A Christmas Carol, but has some similar themes and ideas (man shown his future, warned by ghosts). One of the more striking …
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Nathan Joyce, Union alum and pastor of Heartland Worship Center in Paducah, Kentucky, recently recorded this brief video on the value of Greek for preaching and pastoral ministry for my first year Greek class. In just about 90 seconds he makes the point so well, so I wanted to share it here as well. He …
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Recently I was asked to speak to a class in our Worship Leadership program on pastoral care issues, specifically hospital visitation and bereavement. The professor rightly wanted these students to be prepared to participate in this work of pastoral care. Below are my notes in bullet form for some key, basic thoughts on this realm …
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Hal Poe wrote a column with this title recently for our local paper, The Jackson Sun. It is well worth reading. Hal underscores the importance of pastoral oversight and care and the value of smaller congregations. Here is a piece of his warning about inherent issues of large, mass meetings: The mass meeting has always …
One key point I have sought to make here and elsewhere is that Paul models a pattern of ministry which is attuned to each individual in the church and not just to a corporate mass. He conceives of ministry as serving particular people not simply people in the abstract. I think his language bears this …