Preachers Who Make Tents

I met him while visiting our daughter’s church lately, and we had a brief conversation. I asked about his lifework, and he said he was an attorney, but he’d considered Christian ministry as a young man. My response, conditioned on recent research I’ve seen, was, “You could do both!” He indicated he’d thought about this, but our conversation was interrupted before we could delve into details.

Most denominations report a shortage of pastors, including a shortage of bi-vocational pastors--those who have full time employment elsewhere. No one has been able to explain to me the demonstrable reasons for this. I think that’s because research is ongoing. But some friends have offered a thought or two.

One denominational leader suggested that many seminarians want to plant a church rather than taking established churches with their by-laws and traditions.

Another friend proposed pastoral salaries discourage newbies. I think this may be a factor.

I finished seminary and began serving a full-time church at age 26 and worked on another degree until I was 30. By that time most other young people have been well-established in their careers with salary, benefits and retirement savings. And it’s certainly true that many full-time churches struggle to offer a salary equivalent to other careers.

The theological aspect to this shortage really brings several questions. Isn’t God yet calling young people into ministry? Are some of these young people being disobedient to the call of God? If God guides, hasn’t he promised to provide?

Speculating on these questions is for another time. But I do think we have greater need now for “tent-making” preachers who, like St. Paul, “work with their own hands” and serve the churches.

This was true for many of us at Judson College who took off our professors’ mortar boards on Sundays and preached and directed music in Perry County churches. I’ve known police officers, elected officials and salesmen who have done this, too. Alabama even had a governor, the late Guy Hunt, who often preached on Sundays.

Another underlying reason for this need is that American churches are growing smaller.

The so-called “megachurches,” usually defined as having 2,000 or more on weekends, are a distinct minority, and becoming more so according to Sam Rainer’s research. These churches have their place, to be sure, and they do great ministry. But, for example, the “normative” or typical American church is populated with about 75 people. Rainer wrote about the rise of what he calls the “neighborhood church,” encouraging these churches to pour value into their communities without the stigma of being a “small” church.

If this trend is true, it stands to reason that bi-vocational ministers are needed in greater numbers than ever. -30-

“Reflections” is a weekly faith column written by Michael J. Brooks, pastor of the Siluria Baptist Church, Alabaster, Alabama. The church’s website is siluriabaptist.com.

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