More thoughts on unity

Yesterday I spoke about the unity between a pastor and the congregation. Today I want to share some thoughts on how to achieve that unity. That unity doesn’t always just happen, and the lack of that unity can cause pastoral relationships to end long before God ordains them to end.

Many churches look for a pastor who is a good fit and who shares the same important ideas of ministry. But sometimes a church settles for the first reasonable candidate that comes along. They feel pressured that if the search goes on to long, the church will suffer. And the result is that the new pastor sometimes isn’t a good fit.

What do you do when the pastor and congregation don’t have unity in purpose or in mission? What do you do when they disagree about the role of the local congregation in the community? I think this is when the lines of communication have to open up. The congregation needs to come to the pastor and share their purpose and their sense of call. Let the pastor know what you feel God is calling you to be. Talk about where you feel God is leading you as a congregation.

Of course for this to work, the congregation has to know where God is leading. They have to have a sense of calling from God. They have to have a purpose for being a congregation.

Communication and prayer can bring this about. Retreats and congregational meetings can have components of this type planning. The congregation together should discuss this purpose. And it should be clearly communicated to all involved.

A good Pastor Parish Relations Committee might explore these questions as well. The church needs to have an idea where it is being called, but through open communication and prayer this sense of call can be developed in the committee setting.

As a pastor, most of the frustrations I have felt have come from trying to lead people where they don’t want to go. Sometimes they are stubborn and don’t want to change. Sometimes they have no idea where they want to go. Sometimes they just don’t know where God is leading them. And sometimes they know where God is calling, and the pastor is trying to lead them somewhere else.

Let’s make sure we know where God is leading us. And let’s go together!