“Nearly every professional occupational field trains aspirants in every competency necessary to provide a baseline minimal standard of professionalism to his or her profession and clients. This cannot be said for pastors and ministry leadership. While pastors appreciate courses in preaching, Christian education, and church history, when they arrive at their first church, it’s like being handed the keys to a small business, for which they are unprepared.” ~ Jimmy Dodd

Some denominations tout their entrepreneurial approach to pastoring. They toss leaders into the pool, wish them well, and hope these leaders learn how to swim in the shark-infested waters of a church. For all intents and purposes, these pastors are on their own.

This sink-or-swim philosophy that is used in some circles to launch pastors into churches bothers me. We have the most important mission in the world. We come into the role ready to preach, teach, and maybe even counsel a bit. But most pastors are ill-quipped to deal with difficult people, manage a staff and/or board, develop systems, create and stick to a budget, plan, or think strategically. And unfortunately, most have no gameplan for staying healthy.

According to Barna Group, 84% of pastors in the United States report they don’t know how to think strategically. 85% of churches run 100 or less in Sunday morning attendance. Is it possible a degree of correlation exists between these two stats? Some experts believe the ability to think strategically is God-given… you either have it or you don’t. Other experts believe strategic thinking is a muscle most leaders can develop. I fall into the second camp.

Most seminaries do a good job preparing students to exegete, teach, and preach. By and large, this is their institution’s charter. On the other hand, most seminaries do not have the resources, time, or the expertise to equip those same students to deal with the realities and rigors of day-to-day leading described earlier. And so they adopt the sink-or-swim posture. “Good luck to you… here’s your degree” and then they hope for the best. With 85% of our churches at 100 or less, this appears to be a losing strategy.

So can we do about it? Are we resigned to handing over the keys to leaders who are ill-prepared for the role? Is the current system as good as it gets? Or can we do better? I think we can do better. Here are 3 ideas to consider:

Denominational Reflection

Perhaps credentialing bodies need to take a long hard look at their philosophical approach to preparing and launching leaders. The idea of sink-or-swim isn’t working. Is it possible to train for every conceivable scenario a leader will face? No. But throwing him or her into the water without giving them adequate training and some practical experience beforehand seems to be a recipe for failure. Ramping up and revitalizing internship processes, and maybe even requiring internships prior to handing over the keys might produce better long-term results.

Strategic Partnerships

Partnerships with third party organizations that provide expertise at a fraction of the cost it would take seminaries to provide is an idea whose time has come. These partnerships bring support, perspective, expert advice, and (hopefully) years of experience to the table. No leader is competent at everything. Strategic partnerships offer competence, a fresh set of eyes, and even some level of accountability to a church and its pastor.

Commitment to personal growth

Continuing education is required for physicians, teachers, nurses, social workers, IT employees, etc. Why isn’t it required for ministry leaders? I guess one answer might be most denominations don’t have the resources to oversee that kind of process. So here’s the bottom line: Leaders have to commit to personal growth on their own. Denominational leadership and strategic partners likely won’t do this one for leaders.

The good news is we have so many great resources at our fingertips. The bad news is we have so many great resources at our fingertips.  On the good side, we have access to accomplished leaders via books, videos, podcasts, and blogs. We can learn in five minutes what it took them five years to learn. On the bad side, we can get confused if we read thirty different authors… because within that group of thirty, there may be 20 different approaches to leading. So in order to prevent yourself from having an anxiety attack: pick 3-4 horses that seem to resonate with you and ride them. It helps when you realize there is more than one way to do church well.

Are you bothered by the practice of tossing leaders into the pool without proper preparation? Of allowing them to try to lead on their own and hoping for the best? Of the sink-or-swim approach? I think we can do better. What do you think?