Gears
When I became the pastor, Mountain View Chapel was a tiny church, and I was without pastoral experience. My training was on-the-job, and I led based on theories I had taken from the Bible. One of my guiding principles was that you build ministry by managing the giftedness of the people entrusted to you. What gifts do your people have? Turn them loose!
Initially I naively expected all gifts to gel naturally. Reality forced me to abandon that expectation quickly. I found that people struggle to grasp perspectives (and gifts) that differ from their own. For me observing, it reminded me of the way teeth work on gears or cogs. The teeth must mesh with one another for the gears to turn. But while the teeth on two gears are meshing, there are also teeth on the far side of the gears that couldn’t be further away from each other. Some people gel, but there are always those on the opposing side that don’t – but which are still necessary to make the gears work. This picture helped me to accept differences as natural, but I realized my responsibility was to manage “opposing” gifts/perspectives and help them to appreciate each other and to work together, each in their lane, rather than fighting each other. This proved trickier than I anticipated – especially when it came to music.
In the late 80’s our church weathered its first storm over music, blending praise choruses (led by guitar) with hymns (led by piano). We all learned to enjoy singing parts in harmony together with both types of music. In the mid-90’s a growing influx of people expressed a preference for contemporary Christian music that utilized electric guitars and drums. I didn’t object to most contemporary Christian music, but some of our people did, and once I again I had to find a way to lead the flock through these differences.
My main concern was on a practical level: our building was too small to handle amplified instruments and a drum kit, and we didn’t have a sound system sufficient to manage that much output. I tried to encourage our lovers of contemporary music to be patient. At that time, we were working on purchasing the field (accomplished in 1998) and that would (and did!) set the stage for a building that could accommodate the music they wanted to play.
I suggested a temporary middle ground to utilize the giftedness of our contemporary music lovers: present toned-down versions of contemporary songs on special occasions. This would help traditionalists get over some of their opposition, and we could grow together as a whole congregation in the way we used music. The times we tried this it was well-received, but it didn’t satisfy those who wanted contemporary music to dominate the worship time.
I wasn’t bothered by the contemporary music, but by the inability (refusal?) of these few strident souls to love people that differed with them and to see that working gradually toward compromise in the use of musical styles would benefit the body. People tend to adapt to new things slowly and gradually.
In the end, a sizable contingent left our church because we wouldn’t use only contemporary music, and they didn’t leave in a friendly way. Most of the hostility was directed at me behind the scenes. The congregation wasn’t even aware of it. The unexpected hostility crushed my soul and tried my faith, but the Lord used it to mold me as a pastor, teaching me how to be patient in leading a growing and changing congregation.
Each new soul (or family) introduces new gifts and new needs in a church. Managing that growth and helping each soul find a place in the body is part of what pastors must do. That’s what shepherding is.
Members focus on their individual responsibilities and rarely consider the complex interactions between the members of the body and the work it takes to keep everyone moving forward together as a congregation. That oversight is what shepherding is, and I’m writing this blog series on change to help you all understand this aspect of a pastor’s calling. If the congregation can understand it – even a little bit – we pastors can better lead “with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you” (Hebrews 13.17).
Initially I naively expected all gifts to gel naturally. Reality forced me to abandon that expectation quickly. I found that people struggle to grasp perspectives (and gifts) that differ from their own. For me observing, it reminded me of the way teeth work on gears or cogs. The teeth must mesh with one another for the gears to turn. But while the teeth on two gears are meshing, there are also teeth on the far side of the gears that couldn’t be further away from each other. Some people gel, but there are always those on the opposing side that don’t – but which are still necessary to make the gears work. This picture helped me to accept differences as natural, but I realized my responsibility was to manage “opposing” gifts/perspectives and help them to appreciate each other and to work together, each in their lane, rather than fighting each other. This proved trickier than I anticipated – especially when it came to music.
In the late 80’s our church weathered its first storm over music, blending praise choruses (led by guitar) with hymns (led by piano). We all learned to enjoy singing parts in harmony together with both types of music. In the mid-90’s a growing influx of people expressed a preference for contemporary Christian music that utilized electric guitars and drums. I didn’t object to most contemporary Christian music, but some of our people did, and once I again I had to find a way to lead the flock through these differences.
My main concern was on a practical level: our building was too small to handle amplified instruments and a drum kit, and we didn’t have a sound system sufficient to manage that much output. I tried to encourage our lovers of contemporary music to be patient. At that time, we were working on purchasing the field (accomplished in 1998) and that would (and did!) set the stage for a building that could accommodate the music they wanted to play.
I suggested a temporary middle ground to utilize the giftedness of our contemporary music lovers: present toned-down versions of contemporary songs on special occasions. This would help traditionalists get over some of their opposition, and we could grow together as a whole congregation in the way we used music. The times we tried this it was well-received, but it didn’t satisfy those who wanted contemporary music to dominate the worship time.
I wasn’t bothered by the contemporary music, but by the inability (refusal?) of these few strident souls to love people that differed with them and to see that working gradually toward compromise in the use of musical styles would benefit the body. People tend to adapt to new things slowly and gradually.
In the end, a sizable contingent left our church because we wouldn’t use only contemporary music, and they didn’t leave in a friendly way. Most of the hostility was directed at me behind the scenes. The congregation wasn’t even aware of it. The unexpected hostility crushed my soul and tried my faith, but the Lord used it to mold me as a pastor, teaching me how to be patient in leading a growing and changing congregation.
Each new soul (or family) introduces new gifts and new needs in a church. Managing that growth and helping each soul find a place in the body is part of what pastors must do. That’s what shepherding is.
Members focus on their individual responsibilities and rarely consider the complex interactions between the members of the body and the work it takes to keep everyone moving forward together as a congregation. That oversight is what shepherding is, and I’m writing this blog series on change to help you all understand this aspect of a pastor’s calling. If the congregation can understand it – even a little bit – we pastors can better lead “with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you” (Hebrews 13.17).