Week 5 - People

I think the saying "It is all about people" is absolutely correct.  Our job is all about people, the problem is that people don't understand that our administrative tasks are done as a means of best serving them.  I think it would be hard for a congregation to have great relationships with the staff but yet not be able to grow spiritually because we as pastors don't spend enough time in study, or we don't have small groups to get people assimilated and discipled.  

Most pastors don't have the ability to have a face to face individual meeting with most of the people in their congregation during the week.  The most time that an individual will spend with the pastor will be during the Sunday morning service.  Like I mentioned before, I think it is critical that we spend time taking care of the administrative tasks because it is a way that we can invest in our people. I'm not saying that a pastor should be completely shut off from people during the week.  That is actually the complete opposite of what I think should happen.  I feel that it is the job of the pastor to be available and to spend time meeting with the congregation, but this cannot always be his priority.  There are other tasks that are critical to making sure that the church ministry is being effective.  

Scheduling time for relational ministry in my mind is important.  Maybe a couple times a week a pastor can spend a few hours visiting people at their homes or work places.  It is still important to show that we as pastors do not simply want to preach at people, but we do desire relationships with our members.  I also think it is important for a pastor to be involved in fellowship opportunities that the church provides.  Depending on the size of the church the pastor may be the leader of these events, but regardless of size and responsibility, a pastor should be involved with the events the church holds as a way of connecting and building relationships with the people.  Ultimately the people need to know that the pastor is involved and wants to have a relationship with the church, but is also our responsibility to make sure that the ministry of our churches is effective and that we are assisting the Spirit in changing lives for eternity.