Lead, associate, executive, or…?
This’ll probably sound weird, but the right fit will probably be more psychographically determined than demographically.
Here’s my two-sided question back to you: How do you define it? And what’s the nature of the team relative to what you want me to do?
For example, “associate pastor” can mean anything from “part of the core preaching/teaching team who takes rotations in the pulpit” to “guy who just does hospital visitations and administrative stuff the lead pastor doesn’t want to do.”
To me, then, the question is one of the team.
Am I entirely alone with an few other elders? Ok. I ran my own business, self-employed as a professional speaker for years. At most I had 1.5 employees. I don’t have the gift of administration, but you do what you gotta do (including outsourcing stuff like bookkeeping and accounting to real pros).
Thus, the idea of being a solo pastor in a small church somewhere might work. But what’s the elder team like, and do I get a little grace in the areas I’m not strong in?
Am I an “associate?” I’ll be honest, this is an exciting possibility to me. In one sense, I’m not a rookie and have led/built organizations and managed teams. But I also realize that while some part of that experience is transferrable, leading a church isn’t the same as leading a business. I have a LOT to learn. And I’d LOVE to do it on a team. I’ve used the band analogy before: am I the keyboard player who also happens to be able to pick up a mandolin… not the lead singer but a key contributor to both vision/strategy and tactical execution? Bring it. Sounds great.
Might I, because of my business/entrepreneurial background, be an executive pastor? Much like I articulated elsewhere, there’s a difference between what we’re all called to do (a general call as part of following Jesus) and having “the gift” (a particular calling and gifting). Let me be clear: I do not have the gift of administration (defined, in my estimation, as those who thrive in operations). But do I have a history and experience that means I could well manage your next building lease and working with/through an accountant to be fiscally sound both in present management and future investment? Yes. Am I an HR director that will perfectly nail being chief of staff? No. Do I know how to get that done otherwise? Yes. Running your own business doesn’t mean you’ve got the gift of administration, but you definitely learn how to get things done nonetheless.
Again, the question is how do you define the role… really, as in fer realz?. And then who are the other team members.
What this really boils down to is a level of nuance that is almost NEVER seen at initial levels of dialogue. Let’s be honest:
Your job description, no matter how much you labored over it, only partially represents the position — and it almost never represents the team culture and nuances that help determine ‘fit.’
My resume and even this website, barely scratches the surface of (good stuff) what I bring to the table or (bad stuff) where I really suck and need some help.
I know my gifts and strengths and weaknesses deeply. And I trust that you’ll just learn to trust that I’ll accurately represent those in our dialogue together.
Over the years (decades!), I’ve figured out that — for me, anyway — the ‘devil is in the details,’ and the only way to get to ‘marriage’ is to start dating. Evaluating a dating profile might be the beginning, but neither of us will EVER figure out the character of the other person from a profile. Ya gotta start dating.
So here’s my two-sided question back to you: How do you define the role? And what’s the nature of the team relative to what you want me to do?
(Oh, and this could even be a non-pastor role…IF it’s a role that aligns with my gifts).
