Episode #36 - Making Decisions When The Path Is Not Clear
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The guys take some time to talk about the difficult decisions we are facing as Replanters/Pastors in reopening the church. If you’re weighing all the options, if you are frustrated and concerned, the guys will give you some encouragement.
Are you a Pastor struggling with the many competing voices regarding how you should lead and what you should do about reopening the church?
Here’s a diagram that was super helpful to the guys which was first seen by us on Craig’s social media. The origin of the graphic is original to another source (if you know-let us know) but h/t Craig Tuck
Q: How do we make decisions when the path isn’t clear?
What are my legal requirements? Romans 13 is a good guide for us in thinking through what is required by us.
Pray and ask for wisdom: James 1:5
Survey your people-find out where they are.
Be discerning about the sources you listen to for advice/counsel.
Take it one day at a time: James 4:13-16
Choose your sources wisely: avoid inflammatory and divisive voices.
Take care of yourself (rest, renewal, silence, solitude, reading God’s word, taking a break from ministry)
Involve others in the decision making process to enlarge your understanding of the issues you are facing.
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Need help with your website? Check out the official Sponsor of the Replant Bootcamp OneEighty.Church they can help you build a custom site within your budget.
The present pandemic has changed the rules of engagement for everyone – especially the church and outreach. The guys break down some of their thoughts on outreach in the time of Covid 19.
Q: What does outreach look like in the time of social distancing?
We have to acknowledge that there are new rules of personal engagement. Going digital is an easy way to connect with people who have questions and concerns. Encourage, support and coach your members to start an online prayer gathering or bible study for their friends or family.
Taking regular walks in the neighborhood and interacting with people at a safe distance – focusing on how you might pray for or encourage them specifically.
Offering a drive-up prayer table at your local church.
Reaching out to neighbors through door hangers which offer practical and prayer support as well as inviting them to listen to services online.
Practical ministry through safe giveaways: supplies, clothes, food.
Offering your church facilities as a place of refuge, service.
Sports practice: soccer fields, baseball, softball, basketball etc.
Your parking lot: kids learning to ride their bikes, social distance circle up meetings
Developing a greater social media footprint of engagement: Jimbo has been doing Coffee meetings every morning at 7am on Facebook. (He has now shifted to 1x a week on Monday morning)
One thing to keep in mind is that people are not looking for “polished” and “professional”, they are looking for things that are authentic.
Think outside the box, use what you have and pray for God to lead your church to connect with people.
Need a church website? Checkout our great partners at oneeighty.digital
Episode #34 - Lessons from the Loss of Another Pastor
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Bob and JimBo discuss the serious topic of losing another Pastor to an untimely death. Our hope is that you would be encouraged as we discuss some of the challenges we face as Pastors and if you need help and assistance you would reach out and find the help and hope you need.
Challenges Pastors Face
The Work is Hard: we just have to be honest, pastoring is difficult work, especially during the days we are experiencing of Covid19.
Performance/Work: feeling like you are on always-having to do ministry week in and week out.
Doing ministry in Isolation: going alone, bearing the weight of ministry in the church by yourself.
The Lack of Consistent Positive Feedback and Encouragement: it often happens that encouragement and affirmation come after a Pastor has left, departed or passed.
Capital “F” Friendships: finding and developing close relationships with people you can be honest with.
Family of Origin Trauma and Drama: our personal past influences the way we interact with others, the way we view the world, the way we lead. Christian counseling is incredibly helpful to unwind a lot of the hurt, pain and dysfunction that occurs in our families of origin.
Pastor, please remember that Jesus died for the church so we don’t have to, He is our Savior and the Church belongs to Him.
If you are hurting or in need, please reach out and find support. Email us here at the Bootcamp or consider contacting the Pastor’s Help Line: 1-844-PASTOR1 a free, confidential helpline for Pastors and their spouses.
Episode #33 - Leading in the Aftermath of a Crisis with Special Guest Joe McKeever
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The guys welcome Dr. Joe McKeever to the bootcamp. Joe shares some great wisdom from his years of experience as a Pastor and as a Director of Missions in New Orleans.
Q: What is it like to lead in the aftermath of a crisis?
J: Crises never announce themselves, you have to be prepared ahead of time. For example, in the 90s the Wedgewood shootings and how Dr. Al Meredith handled all the interviews. I asked him about it and he said; “I didn’t know what I was saying-I was so tired.” I think that is evidence of Matthew 10-God gave the words. When did he prepare? When he got up in the morning and opened up the word.
Q: What are the key elements of a Leader’s relationship with the Lord?
J: Your past experiences always prepare you for your present challenges. Difficult pastorates, suffering, battle scars all helped me in the challenges I faced.
Q: What advice do you have for a local pastor who is dealing with the polarization of response to a crisis like Covid19?
J: Stay on your knees in prayer, be informed, connect with other Pastors and find out what they are doing. I would also stay close to my leaders at church—gather them on zoom and ensure we have unity.
Q: How do you continually develop as Leader?
J: I would be afraid of any leader who acted like they know everything. I admire humble leaders. One of the keys is to read widely-from a variety of sources. For instance, I’m reading the journal of a Christian German woman from WWII.
Q: How can we continue to safely and wisely minister to our church members who may still be shut in and slow to return poste Covid19.
J: Keep contacting them, mobilize leaders and ensure you speak to them personally. Write notes-people save and keep handwritten letters.
Q: As we regather the church what is important for a leader to do in those first few weeks?
J:Stay informed, know what your local officials are saying, stay close to your key lay leadership, connect to your people. Make decisions, don’t wait for a poll, the recipe for misery as a Pastor is to wait till everyone is happy.
Q: What are some other great things happening right now in the Church that should continue?
J: Suffering has come to us here in America-that is a good thing. We, as the church, have been lulled to sleep We should not go back to business as usual.
During Katrina I told guys this; “If there is a program you want to stop-stop it. If there is something you want to start, start it.”
Q: What would you say to the guys who are concerned about the viability of their congregation in the future?
J: Some will have to start all over again-from scratch. Another thing, if you know someone who is in need? Send them money-we sent some money from our stimulus check the other day.
Joe dropped some great lines as we closed:
Leadership really earns the right to be called leadership when there is a Crisis – we’re in a crisis! When you step up and say this is the way we should go-and people follow-you’re a leader.
Anyone can lead a group in the way it was going.
Judges 5:2 When the leaders lead in Israel,when the people volunteer, blessed be the Lord.
When leaders are leading, and people are volunteering you can get things done!
Sometimes you have people volunteering and no one leading
Where there are no leaders leading, or volunteers volunteering the church is dead.
Episode #32 - Coping with the Covid19 Crazies We Feel As Pastors
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EP 32 – Coping with the Covid19 Crazies We Feel As Pastors
Are you beaten down by the pervasiveness of the Covid19 pandemic? The boys talk about what they are finding encouraging, challenging and how they are personally navigating this unique season in ministry.
Bob has been encouraged by the activation of the body for ministry and mission
Jimbo is finding a lot of joy in connecting with people from his church and past years in ministry through his morning Cup of Coffee with Jimbo on Facebook.
Both of us are struggling with the disconnect with people from our church.
It is important to be honest-this is impacting us mentally.
How are we coping? What are our outlets?
Prayer
Getting outside
Walking and exercise
Hobbies and productive activities
It is also important to lament, to be honest about your sadness.
It is important to understand that the pain that we are feeling connects us to the work of God in us.
As we think through returning to the church what are some important things to consider?
Be aware of the guidelines for returning from the federal, state and local officials.
Develop a “Phase” approach with clear steps and instructions.
Prepare Now! Don’t wait until the last minute.
Walk through your building and see everything from the perspective of someone who is concerned about infection.
Involve medical personnel, get their advice and input.
Pastor-prepare your heart, adjust your expectations, understand that people may not return right away.
Don’t go this alone-if you are struggling, reach out for help.
BONUS EPISODE - Pastoring in a Pandemic Español // EPISODIO EXTRA - Pastorear en una Pandemia
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ENGLISH – Today we have Pastor Jaime Lopez from Bell Shoals Iglesia Bautista in Florida, and Pastor David Quiroa de Valley Baptist Español in California. Today we are talking about ways to reach our church through social media, email and phone calls. We will talk about some cost-effective ways to record your sermon. The reasons why Pastor David and Pastor Jaime are choosing to pre-record sermons instead of going live. Then Jaime and David are also discussing the importance of having a team, it is easy to want to do everything on your own, but we are not alone. We hope you enjoy this time with Pastor Jaime and Pastor David
below are some links to the apps and equipment discussed in this podcast
ESPAÑOL – Hoy tenemos al Pastor Jaime Lopez de la Iglesia Bautista de Bell Shoals en Florida, y el Pastor David Quiroa de Valley Baptist Español en California. Hoy estamos hablando de formas de llegar a nuestra iglesia a través de las redes sociales, correo electrónico y llamadas telefónicas. Hablaremos sobre algunas formas de grabar su sermón, con costo minimo. Tambien las razones por las cuales el Pastor David y el Pastor Jaime están eligiendo pregrabar sermones en lugar de ir en vivo los domingos en la mañana. Jaime y David también están abalndo la importancia de tener un equipo, es fácil querer hacer todo solos, pero no estamos solos.
Esperamos que disfrute este tiempo con el pastor Jaime y el pastor David.
A continuación hay algunos enlaces a las aplicaciones y equipos que se tratan en este podcast.
Josh Ellis and Keelan Cook from the Union Baptist Association stopped by The Bootcamp to visit with Bob and Jimbo about considerations in re-opening and leading the church after the Covid19 quarantine ends.
Pastors are all over the board in terms of their plans for resuming church gatherings.
Pastors are asking: “What steps should we take in phasing in a return to gathered worship? “Should we go back to normal?”
Our advice: No! Don’t go back to normal. Don’t return to a pre-Covid19 state. There have been so many good things taking place and ministry successes, so keep moving forward.
One concern is that some churches will want to knee-jerk and go back to life as it was pre-Covid19.
This moment of disruption, due to Covid19 is a real godsend to the church. Capitalize on this moment and move forward.
Ken Braddy’s list of 24 questions for Re-opening the church is a great reference point for logistics.
From a leadership standpoint focus on the needs of the people who are in our church, look at the entire system and structure of the church and ask: “Are we rushing back into live services because I want to? Because our people want to? Should we wait for the benefit of our people?”
Regarding lists that you see online for returning to gathered worship know this: it’s just that-a list, a point of reference. Your local context and the needs of your congregation must be considered uniquely.
We suggest getting key leaders together and processing everything logistically and programmatically. Divide them into categories: don’t do this again, start this now, wait to start this later.
We are not post Covid19 yet, the peak is not the goal. The goal is the decline of the infection rate. Officials are talking about opening up the economy to meet the financial needs of businesses and people. This is different from our needs as a church.
We should anticipate that people will likely want to avoid handshakes, hugs, coffee stations, doorknobs, classrooms.
We need to really evaluate what core actions; practices are required to help us fulfill our mission. Our rush to get back together in the building may cause us to overlook the gains we have made during the pause of ministry as normal.
Anticipate that upon returning to gathered worship you will have two groups: those that want to return to community as normal (hugs, handshakes etc.) and those that are afraid to come back and attend worship. Pastor both groups.
One of the most important leadership actions Pastors can take and need to take in this time is this: multiply yourself, invest in leaders who can share the weight and responsibilities of leading in the local church.
Some encouragement for Pastors right now: let others lead, let others preach, develop them and take time to rest.
Does your church need a website? Check out our sponsor ONEEIGHTY let them know you’re a bootcamp listener.
Episode #30 - Leveling the Church with Micah Fries
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**After this episode was recorded Chattanooga TN, along with many other cities in the southeast were impacted by severe weather and tornados. Pray for the people impacted and the Church as they seek to minister grace and practical help**
The book grew out of my experience as a first time Pastor-the pain and the learning that came from me getting over the idea “that I could do everything better than anyone else.”
I realized that I had failed the church because I had not equipped the members of our church for ministry as Ephesians 4 speaks about.
Q: What were some of the barriers that caused you to not equip others for ministry?
Micah: the number one barrier was pride. I felt like everything had to be exactly the way I wanted it in order for us to succeed.
The Super Pastor is an idea we often rail against but also something that we end up doing ourselves, because we love the affirmation that comes from doing ministry well.
There is a dangerous idolatry that drives us to do ministry so that we receive the information from our efforts. That keeps us from equipping others.
Ministry is not our vocational responsibility, ministry is the collective familial responsibility of everyone in the body of Christ, the church.
Our vocational responsibility, the reason why we are paid, is to equip and develop leaders to do ministry.
The idea behind Leveling the Church is not destroying it but bringing all things to a level where everyone is doing ministry.
Think through this:
Global response: leading the entire church from the platform
Strategic Equipping: training the entire church to spread out and do ministry in the church.
When we equip the church for ministry, there is a cost to us, we get a lot less credit-which is good.
In our multi-site model we are intentional about having live preaching, local leadership, this forces us to equip people for ministry.
Q: How does the pastor of a normative sized church find leaders in which to invest?
Micah: Normally we look for character (which is good) but also for people who are really good at their job.
Here’s what I would look for as the Pastor of a normative sized church:
Character-do they possess godly character.
Who is the best developer of others-who can equip others to do ministry best.
Focus on finding leaders who can bring others along and train them and develop them and multiply themselves.
Q: What advice would you give on building out great ministry teams?
Micah: I’d do the following:
Rethink how you spend your work hours. I’d read the article on church size by Tim Keller and learn how to adjust my time, focus on what is required for my church at its stage and size and then order my work around that.
Develop relationships with others.
Never do ministry alone-always take someone with you.
Reprioritize your work-so that you can involve others in your work.
Proximity trumps every-time. Just having people near you is the development plan.
On doing it yourself, delegating or developing others: I’m learning that there is very little that is actually my sole responsibility. Others can do what I do, so I am responsible for developing them.
The main question is this: What are the things that only I can exclusively do? The point is this, there is almost nothing that is solely your responsibility.
If you want to make this transition and adjust the way you lead understand this: leadership is by fractions and degrees-make small adjustments over time.
There has never been a better time to invite people into ministry than now-begin inviting them to engage and begin handing ministry to them.
Need a website? Checkout the great resources from our great sponsor, oneeighty.church
Matt stopped by the bootcamp and shared his replant story with Bob and JimBo on this, another Quarantine edition of The Replant Bootcamp.
When Matt became the Pastor the church had already been involved in Replanting for some time.
When another church approached them about taking on their church and facility in another state, they prayed and followed God’s leadership and moved their entire church, from Alabama to the facility in Columbus Georgia.
Sometime later, yet another church in the north part of Columbus reached out to The Fort and asked them to take their church.
Q: What are you learning as a leader right now during this season of social distancing and separation?
Matt: As a Pastor I’m grieving and missing my people.
One of the great blessings in Replanting is that you get to see Senior Adults get to play a big part in the relaunching of a new work.
One of the most difficult but important lessons I learned in Pastoring is that I needed to learn to love the people God called me to pastor.
Right now, we are focusing in on increasing our Pastoral care of our congregation. We are going to divide up our congregation and begin calling them and checking in with them personally.
Q: What is your advice that you would share with a Replanter stepping into a situation like yours.
Matt: Love your people, slow down, communicate and care for the congregation.
Episode #28 - SPECIAL GUEST Les McKeown, Author of Predictable Success
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Leader, author and business expert Les McKeown stopped by the bootcamp to share his insights regarding life cycles of organizations and churches. The guys talked to Les about we need to know as we navigate the new realities of doing and being the church during Covid19.
The Predictable Success Model is about recognizing what happens in organizations-Les added vocabulary and codified what happens in each stage.
The stages: Early Struggle, Fun, Whitewater, Predictable Success, Treadmill, The Big Rut, Death Rattle.
For new things to grow (i.e. campuses, church plants) they must go through the stages on their own-organically.
On the Treadmill stage: this is a dangerous stage-it is the last of the seven that you can do anything about. If you can challenge, push back you can move back into predictable success.
On the Big Rut stage: all the Visionaries have typically left and the Synergists are keeping everyone happy. It is a lovely place to work-but you are in danger.
In the Church world: the Visionary may stick around until they retire-leadership gets handed off to someone else without a thought about what could happen to the vision and the church begins to struggle.
When a church is in the “big rut” or “death rattle” you have to jump back to early struggle in order to restart. In the for profit world-you have to “decapitate” or completely change the leadership at the top.
What are some key characteristics of the leaders who can bring life back to an organization either in the business or the church world?
In the for profit world that individual typically has the VO (Visionary/Operator) or VP (Visionary/Processor) style.
In the not for profit or church world that individual typically has the VS (Visionary/Synergist) or OS (Operator/Synergist)
A key insight:a Synergist finds the people decisions to be very difficult. So they struggle in making the hard decisions involving people.
Covid19 Applications
During a crisis or major event, the force of that event will push you down the side of the curve on which your organization finds itself.
If you just recently started something-you may want to press pause
If you are on the decline side, the force will push you down toward the Big Rut or Death.
You have to relearn to innovate.
Statement from Les: if you are one of the older established churches that has been saying that online worship is (insert negative comment) you better rethink that very quickly.
The depth of permanent behavioral change that this crisis is creating and will create is going to fundamentally change everything about the way we do what we do.
For instance: online communication via zoom will only accelerate and change the way we interact. This will impact the way people interact and do church.
If your organization is struggling you need to find and let Visionaries lead and find Operators to help them implement the vision.
Q: What is the importance of identifying Leaders/Lay Leaders in your church or organization?
Start with the Visionary: let that person select their leadership team who are Operators. This is not a true leadership team-it is a group of enablers who can make the vision happen.
During Whitewater: develop a true leadership team, you need people who possess strategic capabilities who can help you navigate the complexities of this stage. At this point you need Processors who can help the organization move forward. This is the stage where you begin to experience conflict on the team and this requires the team develop Synergist skills and stay committed to the Kingdom goals.
If you want to have fun, and stay at the mom and pop level you just need Visionaries and Operators (and a few mini-Processors to keep things legal)
If you want to scale and grow, you have to have Visionaries, Operators, Processors and Synergists working together. A VOPS model.
