The Perfect Pastor preaches exactly 10 minutes. He condemns sin roundly, but never hurts anyone’s feelings. He works from 8 a.m. until midnight, and is also the church janitor.
The Perfect Pastor makes $40 a week, wears good clothes, drives a good car, buys good books, and donates $30 a week to the church. He is 29 years old and has 40 years’ worth of experience. Above all, he is handsome.
The Perfect Pastor has a burning desire to work with teenagers, and he spends most of his time with the senior citizens. He smiles all the time with a straight face because he has a sense of humor that keeps him seriously dedicated to his church. He makes 15 home visits a day and is always in his office to be handy when needed.
The Perfect Pastor always has time for church meetings and all of its committees, never missing the meeting of any church organization. And he is always busy evangelizing the unchurched.
The Perfect Pastor is always in the church down the street.
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Dear church members;
I am writing to apply for position as your pastor. My experience is more along the lines of evangelist but I believe I could fill your position adequately. I’ve never attended any bible school per say but I have a lot of field experience. I don’t have a degree on my wall, or a wall for that matter; I’ve traveled around most of my life, renting and doing odd jobs to support myself and preaching wherever I was invited; churches, streets, even jails. As a matter of fact, I’ve been thrown in jail several times and been involved in a few public squabbles. I’ve been accused of being anti-semantic, anti-authority and causing disturbances almost everywhere I go. But I did have a few conversions to Christianity during my ministry as well as a few healings. Thank you for considering my application.”
The Apostle Paul
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THE CARE AND FEEDING OF PASTORS
What makes a “GOOD” pastor? Though all pastors are trained and prepared to preach and teach the Word of God, to administer the sacraments and insure they are not abused, and to provide pastoral care to the members of the body of Christ in each congregation they are called to serve, that does not mean that each pastor is a cool youth worker, an experienced administrator, a savvy financial wizard, or an expert in the many other areas necessary for the smooth running of the church on earth. If a pastor and congregation are blessed, they will be matched in a way that between the two, the ministry needs of the congregation and the ministry skills of the pastor will match and the spread of the Gospel will be done.
What looks good on a resume or a church profile and what the true ministry needs of a particular congregation’s mission are not always the same. Before a congregation can start the call process, they must understand what they truly need in a pastor and what the limitations (no one is perfect) of the role of pastor are. The relationship of congregation and pastor cannot be that of employer and employee since the pastor is first responsible to God though the Word of God to provide spiritual leadership to the congregation and its mission. No hired hand can care for the flock of God, but only someone that truly cares for the people of God.
A pastor that is not respected and cared for by the congregation cannot endure the stress and cares of the office of ministry. What makes a “GOOD” pastor? A congregation and ordained minister working together for the purpose of serving the Lord.
Pastor Baker