Solo Pastor: Understanding and Overcoming the Challenges of Leading a Church Alone

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Denominational officials, Bible college professors, and ministry coaches also will benefit from reading the book. The insights McIntosh offers will help them target their advice to the needs of solo pastors they are leading and training. Gary L. McIntosh (PhD, DMin, Fuller Theological Seminary) is president of the Church Growth Network and professor of Christian ministry and leadership at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University. He is an internationally known speaker and church consultant who has written more than 25 books, including his most recent book, The Solo Pastor: Understanding and Overcoming the Challenges of Leading a Church Alone. He lives in California. Learn More »

Lincoln City Church

Solo pastors, whether full- or part-time, lead 56% of American churches, according to the 2015 National Congregations Study by Duke University researchers. I recommend McIntosh’s book to all solo pastors, especially those at the start of their ministries in smaller churches. Pastor Bruce Jahnke I had the privilege of co leading a pastor’s training group with Brian. Brian’s wealth of knowledge and practical experience was an asset to all of us. The interaction with the group and the relationships built was a great value. I highly recommend having Brian facilitate a group to provide invaluable resources and practical knowledge.Just look at the term “solo pastor” – doesn’t it sound lonely? Loneliness and isolation are two of the most common problems among pastors. It’s Hard to Find Practical Help Maybe you think I’m being overdramatic. “Being a solo pastor can’t be that hard,” you might say. But Jesus sent his disciples out in pairs for a reason. When the apostle Paul traveled on his missionary journeys, he took along people to help him. Jesus and Paul recognized the dangers of solo ministry. Ministry is supposed to be teamwork. If your pastor is flying solo, it’s important that you know these dangers too. Small Congregation Our church is extremely grateful for the insight, adaptability and wisdom Brian so graciously contributed to our needs as we transitioned. Our pastor transition was from Father to Son, which is by definition, difficult. Yet Brian was able to foresee issues, feelings and responses with high accuracy. Brian is personable, yet can direct when he needs to help us be reasonable and vision-oriented." Karl Vaters became frustrated looking for help as a small church pastor. Everything was written from the perspective of a large church, and most of that didn’t apply to a smaller congregation. He says it’s hard to find help when pastoring a smaller church:

Solo Pastor: Understanding and Overcoming the Challenges of

A key insight here is the importance of trust. McIntosh writes ,“The trouble is that pastors think organizationally about the church before thinking relationally. A good rule to remember is this: whenever you hit resistance, strengthen the relationship before bringing in reinforcements.” Learn to hate the twin pastor-killing sins of bitterness (because of what you did to me that you shouldn’t have done) and resentment (because of what you should have done for me and didn’t do). Get enough rest. One of my favorite pastors leads two churches but practices a “real sabbath day” every week as well as a “day off” with his family. Your church will be blessed if you are adequately rested. If so many churches are even smaller than the small church I was pastoring, why did I have to search so hard to find them? Why weren’t these principles front-and-center in every seminary, church leadership conference, and book? Become a prayer warrior. It’s striking to me that the apostles, as the first leaders of the first church, after their unique and matchless training at the hands of Christ himself, viewed prayer as a major part of their ministries – “…we will give ourselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word…” (Acts 6:1-4). This is not beneath you. It’s not a waste of your time: Christ himself has prayer as a major part or his current ministry, interceding for us at the right hand of the Father (Romans 8:34). Of course you’ll want to turn as many others into prayer warriors as you can, but don’t be bashful about letting your people know that you are one of them.

By contrast, multi-staff churches are like armies that value “loyalty, commitment, and risk.” People voluntarily enlist in those churches in response to the compelling vision of the lead pastor. How can a church balance faith and practice? This is one common problem in solo-pastor churches. Churches thrive on big vision (faith) but face the reality of limited resources (practice). Here are some insights and tips to consider. I am so grateful to God for Brian, his ministry, and his friendship. As a result of his assessment and coaching, my church has experienced unmistakable, God-given renewal. We are increasingly living out our church's mission which is to love and glorify God by making disciples of Jesus Christ. This is clearly showing in terms of spiritual depth (i.e. more people are maturing as Christian disciples) and spiritual width (i.e. more people are becoming Christian disciples). Our communication is clearer, our structure is stronger, our leadership development process is better, our facility stewardship is more proactive, and our cultural mindset is now set on eagerly advancing the kingdom of God. I strongly recommend the Church Whisperer to you. So, what does it mean to live in a marriage-shaped culture for we who labour solo in the Lord’s vineyard? How do we affirm pastoral and counselling roles that likely include other couples’ marital preparation and support, when we don’t enjoy that blessed union ourselves? Are we really ministering from a place of authentic adult life and experience, or are we occupying a weird sort of waiting room until we grow up? As single people, do we have to defend our ministry calling?

The Solo Pastor: Understanding and Overcoming the Challenges

Single pastors are well aware that being solo in Christian ministry brings with it both benefits and challenges. For an unmarried pastor, benefits include flexibility of time, freedom to make independent decisions and priorities, and the ability to devote uninterrupted time to study or ministry events. Also beneficial can be the availability of time and energy for pastoral visitation that married clergy may no longer have. A single pastor may find it less challenging than her/his married counterpart when considering a change of employment since accepting a call to a different, and sometimes distant, community is not nearly as complicated without the additional factors of a spousal employment or children’s school enrollments. Not to be overlooked is the simple truth that solo clergy enjoy dinner invitations, take home doggie bags, and appreciate restaurant meals out at a rate far beyond that which married pastors might enjoy – with or without kids! An important insight emerges: “The key ingredient in the solo-pastor church is love.” Why? Because the relational dynamics in solo-pastor churches differ from multi-staff churches. The “woods are full” of good men who have served as solo pastors who are now selling insurance, building homes or working at Home Depot. Solo pastors have an urge to lead a church beyond its capacity. As Christians, we must count the cost of discipleship, but the principle applies to ministry too—godly faith leads to strategically planned ministry. So without scolding pastors or churches for the current reality, let’s get down to those seven ways – some of which are much better than others – to keep your church from killing you.Before we dive into those seven defensive strategies, I need to make one positive, faith-filled comment first, so I’m not misunderstood. Following are a few truths we need to remember. I hope they will affirm the single clergy among us, and perhaps encourage married people to better appreciate the ministry experiences they had before saying “I do.” I’m fine with seeing pastors “leave the ministry” if they weren’t the right men to be serving in this way in the first place. But if leading a church is what God made you to do, I don’t want to see anything keep you from doing it. No pastor sets out to do this, but it happens, over time, to too many of us. I’m talking about getting tough, hard, contemptuous, sarcastic, and cynical. I’m talking about emotionally, and sometimes physically, isolating yourself from all except a few individuals.