Placement Reflections

On aging and succession planning in ministry

Published on 2011-08-17 09:06:00

I pointed out Collin Hansen's great article on the Gospel Coalition website about succession planning last month. Hansen has posted on the topic again, this time with a video of three significant men in evangelical ministry today -- Tim Keller, Don Carson, and John Piper -- discussing aging and how is has impacted their own thoughts about succession planning.Congregations: do you have an aging pastor? Has your leadership had frank discussions with him about how he (and they) are planning togethe

Moving far from home, part 3

Published on 2011-08-09 14:35:00

I've been doing a short series on the difficulties of moving far from "home" and family, and how some have dealt with it. (Read part one and part two.)Back to my friend "Brian" who lives in Colorado, and his family is in South Carolina. Here's another observation Brian had, this time about his children's relationship with their grandparents.Brian has several children, so naturally his parents (and his wife's parents) try to come visit as often as they can. Brian's wife has a sister who still liv

For All the Saints endorsement/review

Published on 2011-08-06 17:00:00

My fellow PCA pastor Ron Steel was kind enough to send me this warm review/endorsement for my little book, For All the Saints: praying for the church.Ed Eubanks is wise to tremble, as he says, at the prospect of writing a book on prayer, but I am glad that the women’s prayer ministry at his church in western Tennessee prevailed upon him to set aside his understandable timidity and write this practical little treatise on praying for the church. The topics covered in the space of just 88 pag

Challenging the conventional wisdom on Ministerial Calls

Published on 2011-08-02 17:38:00

Carl Trueman posted a couple of shorter pieces on the Reformation 21 blog back in June (Some Questions and Thoughts on Ministerial Calls part one and part two), in which he challenged our usual approach and practice to identifying a "pastoral call" in candidates and churches.Trueman observes that the practice often is in conflict with similar practices in other parts of our congregational life:I have often wondered why it is in Presbyterian circles (and probably other churches too) that we routi

Moving far from home, part 2

Published on 2011-07-20 10:46:00

At our recent General Assembly I spoke with several friends who had moved a long way from "home" and family, and gleaned some interesting comments and reflections on their experiences. (Read part one here.)Now let's consider a comment from "John" whose family is from Alabama, and who is now a pastor in California. Here's what John said:"The best advice I received was from [a seminary professor] who said, 'you just need to negotiate into your terms of call that they will fly your whole family hom

On effective succession planning in pastoral ministry

Published on 2011-07-07 10:23:00

The question of effective succession planning in the church is a vital one, and yet it is usually one of the topics that a congregation-- even the leadership-- most often neglects and ignores. Churches seem to settle quickly into the assumption that, now that they have a pastor, he's there for good! And some great churches have seen devastating results as a consequence of that neglect. On the other hand, the exceptions prove the rule here; think about the congregations (or even large ministries)

At long last

Published on 2011-07-01 00:01:00

Both of my long-time readers will know that, for quite some time, I've been working on a book that summarizes my research, my personal experiences, and other information about pastoral transition, particularly on the niche subject of transitioning from seminary into pastoral ministry.That book, now seven years in the making, is finally out! From M.Div. to Rev.: making an effective transition from seminary into pastoral ministry, is finally available. It can be had in print and digital editions.B

Trevin Wax on "11 Questions Every Pastor Should Ask"

Published on 2011-06-26 08:15:00

Author and LifeWay Christian Books editor Trevin Wax has an excellent post on his blog entitled, "11 Questions Every Pastor Should Ask."His questions fall out into two general categories: About Preaching and About the Mission of the Church. In the first category, he touches on:Whether my sermons pointing to the "big-picture" message of ScriptureWhether my message is distinctively a Christian/Gospel messageHow I am applying God's Word for His peopleIn the second set of questions, he asks question

Moving far from home, part 1

Published on 2011-06-17 19:21:00

At our denomination's General Assembly last week, I had the chance to speak with a few friends who have accepted pastoral calls a long way from "home." Over a few posts, I'll share some of their wisdom.First let me say this: I define "a long way from home" as meaning either simply too far to drive, or far enough that it requires several days (3 whole days or more) of driving to get from where you live to where your extended family generally lives.Also, a quick disclaimer: I realize that the ques

General Assembly seminar

Published on 2011-06-07 14:07:00

If you're at the PCA's General Assembly this week, I'd like to invite you to consider attending my seminar tomorrow (Wednesday) morning on "What Is Biblical Church Membership?"The seminar will be loosely based on the topic of my booklet, Grafted Into The Vine: rethinking biblical church membership-- though the content will be quite different (and different from last year's seminar as well).The seminar is at 8am, and is tentatively scheduled for Meeting Room(s) 4A&B. I hope to see you there!(PS: