- Have an active prayer life.
- Cherish and spend time with your family.
- Honor tradition, but do not worship it. After serving a congregation for a while, you may tweak or adapt traditions.
- A church’s ministry is like an iceberg: 90 percent of it goes on beneath the scenes. But the unseen part is what supports the other 10 percent.
- Be willing to do any task that needs to be done. Just because you may hold a theological degree does not mean you cannot join a group in picking up the litter from a nearby highway.
- Be as careful how you say something as in what you say.
- God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason: spend twice as much time listening as speaking.
- We are not called to be successful but to be faithful.
- The local church is not yours. It is Christ’s, and you and everyone else are privileged to serve it.
- Your absence is often noticed more than your presence.
- Only make promises you can keep. If you say to a hospitalized person: “I’ll see you tomorrow,” you need to appear tomorrow.
- It is always better to be kind than to insist that you are right.
- The customer (the person in the pew) is not always right. But, usually, instead of pointing out their faults, lead people in such a way that they discover for themselves the error of their ways. Gentleness and discretion go a long way.
- Ministry is more about planting seeds than about reaping harvests.
- When particular thoughts on themes come to mind for upcoming sermons, such as hope, forgiveness, and so forth, place them in folders dedicated to these themes.
- Prepare the best you can and leave the rest to God. Never underestimate the power of the Holy Spirit.
- There will always be some people whom you can never satisfy.
- Practice what you preach as best you can.
- Read not only the Bible and theology but other topics as well.
- Take time for personal rest.
- Keep confidences.
- You are never as bad, or as good, as some say you are.
- Honesty is an indispensible quality.
- Establish boundaries, including time limits.
- Compliment others when they merit it.
- Do not be afraid to admit that there are often “better” Christians than you are, and that some are sitting in your pews. It keeps you humble, another essential quality for a minister.
- Respect where each person is along his or her faith journey.
- Just being there in times of crisis is more important than saying the right things.
- Doing the compassionate thing is almost always more important than doing the sensible thing.
- Exemplify forgiveness.
- Spend quality time with colleagues.
- Folks generally respond more to love than to knowledge.
- Do not expect everyone to agree with you.
- Always speak with kindness to everyone.
- It has been said, “In essentials unity, in nonessentials liberty; in all things love.”
- Know that God works in each person in His own way.
- Participate in community events.
- Cultivate good, healthy friendships whenever and wherever you are able.
- God, not the congregation, is your boss. But God may be speaking through your congregation.
- Offer grace, express gratitude, and be generous.
Pastor's Pastor
Forty tips from 40 years of ministry
Practical pointers from an experienced minister.
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