Here are the final positives
5.
There is more likelihood that a minister will show self-control and
discretion
Royer
points out that if a man intends to stick around for some time to
come
he
will be very cautious as he mingles with the people in any of the
very many possible relations, he will guard his tongue, watch his
acts, even his facial expressions, lest he leave a deleterious
impression upon the hearts of the people whom he has been
commissioned to bless.
Motives
are also sanctified to some extent. Anyone can be impressed by a new
minister, it is the man who stays year after year whose inner life is
exposed and really begins to make an impact.
Royer
again, “A man of doubtful character and questionable motives may
manage to remain in almost any pastorate for a few years, but if he
is wrong at heart the fact will make itself manifest. He must ring
true if he hopes to prolong his labours through the years in one
place.”
6.
The impact of
personal disappointment is diminished
This
is a point that a writer called Richard Dreselhaus makes. Let me
simply quote him
It
is virtually impossible for me to recall a time in 45 years of
pastoral ministry when I was not battling disappointment, a sense of
falling short, of letting people down, of failing to reach goals or
achieve objectives.
When
pastors stop the clock at any of these moments, the disappointment
seems crippling. But when pastors focus instead on months, years, and
decades, the hurts of the moments are swept away by the passing of
time.
Let
me personalize it a bit. Repeatedly I have reviewed the stats for a
given Sunday and felt the cause was hopeless; but, when I saw that
single Sunday against the backdrop of decades of ministry, the
picture began to change.
When
evaluating goal achievement at the end of the year, it is tempting to
ignore the progress of the decade and focus only on the shortcomings
of a given year. The long pull matters. It is winning the war that
eclipses the isolated battles that may be lost or won along the way.
One
benefit of hindsight is that the valleys are lifted and crooked
places are made straight. The criteria used for measuring ministerial
effectiveness become increasingly more accurate and reliable. The
perplexities of a given moment are diminished and minimized by the
trustworthy verdict of passing time. … I argue for the long-term
pastorate. I grieve when I see the premature resignation of a gifted
minister. I want to shout: “Hold on. Hang in there. What is a day
or two, a month or two, or even a year or two in light of a 40- to
50-year lifetime call to ministry?”
I
also am a realist. Sometimes the Lord’s assignment is short.
Sometimes a pastor has no control over things that happen. There is a
right time to conclude an assignment. ... Leaving can be as much a
step of obedience as staying. The fact remains, many pastors leave
their assignment prematurely and by doing so miss the incredible
opportunities longevity can bring.
7. Long range goals are possible
Royer
observes that it
is foolish to take a one size fits all approach to a pastorate.
Successful methods in one place are rarely equally useful in another.
“Vicinities and congregations differ of necessity, and the elements
which differentiate one congregation from another may require years
to master and control. It is also true that the same community and
pastorate change vastly.”
He
also says that it is only the long term pastor who “can
secure unity of purpose in a congregation”. Many churches suffer
from the arrival of a series of young men all with their own ideas.
In Childs Hill the pattern from the fifties to the seventies was (to
caricature) – a fundamentalist, followed by a Lloyd-Jones man,
followed by an activist, followed by a Charismatic. Because these men
only stayed between four and seven years they had an impact but no
really lasting impact. Meanwhile the church got pulled in this
direction and that to no great purpose.
8. You have the
opportunity to see a generation rise
This
may not apply quite where a congregation finds it hard to keep its
young people but it is still a joy, for example, to know that someone
I dedicated as a child is now on the mission field herself in France,
a mother of three. Beasley-Murray says
It
is a wonderful privilege, for instance, to be involved with families
over a period of time and to see those children brought for a service
of dedication later confess their own faith in baptism; and then at a
later stage to be involved in their marriage and even in the
dedication of their children.
9.
You have an opportunity to see the teaching take root
Royer
says of the minister “unless
his ministry extends over a number of years, he will leave them much
as he found them in their way of thinking, believing, and doing.”
Dreselhaus
and others say
that if you look at the work of the Barna Group, you will find that
the median number of years pastors have served in their present
assignment is four. (According
to Jerry Scruggs, with forced terminations on the increase, the
median tenure for Southern Baptist pastors is barely three years;
'The Flexible Leader',
Search
Winter 1991, 30). Other
stats suggest maximum effectiveness does not occur until around the
seventh year. (Others note that growth often occurs between five and
ten years in). “The point is irresistibly clear:” Dreselhaus says
“most pastors leave before they achieve their maximum impact in
ministry.”
10.
You have the opportunity to see the impact of a full ministry
It
is not good for a church to keep changing its minister. Every time a
change comes too soon the full impact of a ministry is not seen.
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