“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”

Prov 19:21 NIV

When it’s done right, pastoring is the most exciting, invigorating, and life-giving vocation I can think of. There is nothing on earth I love more than watching God move in the lives of his people, in the community of faith, and in the community around us. The rewards of living into one’s calling, I suppose. But, pastoring isn’t easy. There. I said it. Something we were all thinking. And pastoring through change is more difficult. And pastoring through major transition, when we don’t have many of the answers is infinitely more difficult. In his book, Canoeing the Mountains, Tod Bolsinger says:

“Adaptive processes don’t require leadership with answers. It requires leadership that create structures that hold people together through the very conflictive, passionate, and sometimes awful process of addressing questions for which there aren’t easy answers.”

What Bolsinger is getting at is a fundamental truth of all leadership in general, and something central to Christian leadership in particular. Leadership is not about having all the answers; it’s about building up a community who can weather change, navigate difficult decisions, and continue in mission in the midst upheaval. That’s true in business, the non-profit sector, family, civic organizations, and definitely in the Church. To frame this in biblical terms:

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.” (Gen 12:1-2 NRSV)

God called Abram out of what was familiar and into something very unfamiliar. He was being called to a place he didn’t know and one that God would have to show him. Much of the Christian life, and subsequently much of Christian leadership is about charting the unknown, following God to a place he “will show” us. As I begin writing this series, my family and I are in such a liminal season, a time of transition, a time of being shown. That means then that our congregation is in a liminal season, a time of transition, a time of being shown. My successes and/or failures as a leader will be demonstrated through this time. How I, my family, our congregation, and our community weather this transition is a direct reflection on me as a disciple, a spouse, a father, a pastor, and a leader in the Church of Jesus Christ.

My reasons for blogging about this journey, for being this transparent and vulnerable, are three-fold. 1) Firstly, I need to articulate this process so that I might communicate it more clearly to myself, to glean the lessons I need to become a more effective leader. This I could have done in a personal prayer journal, but that would be of little benefit to anyone else. 2) Secondly, I need to articulate this so that I might communicate it to those who are directly affected by the decisions we have made and the journey we have been on. This is for my family, my friends, my Church, my community. 3) Finally, the struggles we are experiencing are common to pastors, their families, and their churches. I hope that in these reflections, others might not only find a sense of solidarity but glean with me some lessons, some wisdom that will ultimately benefit the Kingdom of God.

1. Bolsinger, Tod. Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory. ↩︎