The Stages of Ministry: The First Decade

We are living in a world where there’s a great deal of stress and disagreement. Churches struggle to decide whether to meet in person, require masks, have singing, and figure out how to navigate the technology of hybrid worship. There is a lot of disagreement about these questions, and when there’s disagreement, pastors are going to hear about it from those who disagree with those decisions. Criticism, disappointment, anger, and division are rampant. What is in short supply is encouragement.

E. Stanley Ott, who goes by Stan, and Lee Zehmer are advocates for the power of encouragement. Stan is president of Leading Moments, whose mission is to develop vital leaders for the church and the world. He is also the author of several popular books, including “Pray Daily: Igniting Our Passion for God,” “Twelve Dynamic Shifts for Transforming Your Church,” and “Transforming Your Church Through Ministry Groups.” Lee serves as Transitional Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in High Point, NC. Together they host a podcast called Building One Another.

We got together recently for a delightful conversation about pastoral and congregational vitality, and the power of encouragement in a fault-finding world.

The conversation you are about to hear is one of the most important we have had on this podcast because it is about one of the most prevalent and difficult issues folks face in every one of our congregations, but also one of the most ignored by our congregations. I’m talking about addiction. 

Dr. Ed Treat is a Lutheran pastor and the director of the Center of Addiction and Faith. You’re going to hear the moving story of his journey from addiction to recovery and one of the saddest parts of his story is how little support he received from the churches, pastors, and even seminary he attended. Ed has some very convicting words about the lack of understanding and pastoral care most pastors and churches exhibit toward those struggling with addiction - including the families of addicts. But, he also has some words of hope about how we can begin to include these hurting people in our circles of care and prayer.

This first episode of our second season is about a topic that has become an integral part of every congregation’s and every pastor’s life: our church’s presence on social media. My guest is Dee Decker, digital and social media strategist for the Presbyterian Church (USA), and you are going to very quickly learn that you are almost surely doing your social media wrong! In the first 10 minutes of our conversation, Dee completely turned my thinking about the use of social media upside down!

An insightful and stimulating conversation with 7 pastors about the challenges and lessons learned after one year into the COVID-19 pandemic.

Most pastors either embrace our American holidays without question or try to ignore them and hope our congregations won't notice, which they always do. Our conversation with James Calvin Davis, author of American Liturgy: Finding Theological Meaning in the Holy Days of US Culture, is both edifying and entertaining!

By the second decade, most pastors have experienced the crises and joys of ministry. We chat with four pastors about what brings them joy and what saps their soul and how the pandemic, in spite of its challenges and difficulties, has confirmed their sense of call to the ministry.

Continuing the honest and insightful conversation with five pastors in their first decade of ministry about the unexpected highs and lows of being a pastor, how the pandemic has made life even tougher, and what they did NOT learn in seminary!

A fascinating and inspiring conversation with five pastors in their first decade of ordained ministry, discussing the adjustments of identity, theory becoming practicality, and questions about whether this is really where God is calling them!

We begin our series on the stages of ministry by having an inspiring conversation with three seminary students (actually, two students and one recent graduate) who are not only preparing for ministry, they are already engaged in it! You, too, will be delighted and inspired by the stories of these three amazing people!

This episode begins a series focusing on the stages of ministry from seminary to retirement and beyond. Each episode will feature a conversation with pastors in a different decade of their ministry, and we begin by asking the Rev. Dr. Tim Cargal, Associate Stated Clerk for Ministry Preparation and Support with the Presbyterian Church (USA) what he's seeing as he works with seminaries and seminary students.  Is seminary enrollment growing or declining? Is it easier or more difficult for seminary graduates to find a first call?  Is it more difficult for white women and both men and women of color to find a church to serve? And do more of the older ministers need to retire to make room for the younger ones?!