Restoring Kingdom Builders

Would your church be better off without your present pastor?

Sometimes I’m surprised by how many lay people – especially board members – think this way.

Here’s a typical scenario:

Joseph is called to be the pastor of Trinity Church, which averages 80 people when he arrives.

Three years later, average church attendance stands at 240, meaning that Trinity has tripled in size.

While most churchgoers are excited by Trinity’s growth, three veteran couples – along with two board members – are very unhappy with Pastor Joseph.

Why?

They claim that he preaches too long … doesn’t offer enough invitations for salvation … doesn’t use enough Scripture when he preaches … isn’t involved in denominational work … and doesn’t listen to their ideas.

Most of their complaints are smokescreens … except the last one.

That’s the real issue: these pioneers sense that they’re losing control of their church.

Go back and read that last sentence again and note three key phrases:

these pioneers = since they’ve been in the church longer than most, the 8 believe that their feelings take precedence over the rest of the church.

losing control = the pastor’s values, ideas, and plans are being adopted by 95% of the congregation … while theirs aren’t being taken seriously by anyone.

their church = they mistakenly believe that the church is owned by human beings –  not Jesus Christ – who boldly proclaimed, “I will build My church!”

In all too many churches, some people are uncomfortable unless they’re running the church.  And when the pastor becomes too successful, they feel threatened … especially when he’s attracting too many newcomers … who seem to adore their pastor without knowing much of anything about the pioneers.

And the pioneers resent the influx of newcomers because they don’t know them and can’t control them.

In this case, the three couples and two board members – a total of 8 people – begin holding informal meetings … especially in restaurants and in each other’s homes.  These meetings are initially closed to anyone else.

The purpose?  To stop the chaos … and all the newcomers … and return the church to the way it used to be … when they were in charge!

If they’re that unhappy, why don’t the 8 just leave?

Because most of the time, they feel that they’ve invested too much time, sweat, and money to let someone else – even their pastor – run the ministry.

And so, 8 people meeting in secret will attempt to subvert the will of the other 232 people in the congregation just so they can alleviate their own anxiety.

It’s the height of selfishness … but this is precisely what happens in thousands of churches every year.

Of course, the pastor is too busy focusing on leading, preaching, counseling, and loving people to even pay attention to those secret little meetings.

And he’ll continue to be unaware when each of the 8 works their network and tries to recruit a few more people to join their subversive cause.

And then one day … after a Sunday service … or during a regularly-scheduled board meeting … the church board will ask the pastor for his resignation.

And the pastor will be so shocked that he’ll give it to them.

And after the pastor leaves, the following five things will happen at the church:

*The church board – and their network – will exaggerate charges against the pastor in an attempt to ruin his reputation so that people in the congregation drop all contact with him.

*Most of the pastor’s supporters will gradually leave the church – something the 8 never foresaw.

*The 8 will not be venerated, but vilified by most of the pastor’s supporters … causing several of them to leave the church.

*The congregation will struggle financially for a long time because (a) the pastor’s supporters took their money with them; (b) the church will now need to hire an interim pastor … usually at the same rate of pay that the pastor received; (c) the church will need to put together a search team for a new pastor; (d) several staff members will be released because the church can no longer pay them; (e) some ministries will have to be dismantled because the church can no longer staff them or fund them; and (f) overall costs will jump 10-15%.

Finally, the congregation will never fully heal because few people will ever learn the real reason why the pastor resigned … and most church leaders won’t want to tell the real story.

Wouldn’t it have been better for the 8 to leave the church quietly if they were that unhappy?

What do you think?