We all need affirmation and it feels good when other churches express an interest in us. The lived reality of…

If Jesus embodies an anti-narcissistic approach to life, then it is clear that not being a narcissistic pastor doesn’t suggest…

If “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom…

Narcissism is a term that is increasingly used to describe one’s excessive focus on one’s self. We speak of a…

We have been discussing the development of a greater awareness of the stress of ministry and the way in which…

At least once a year, the session should spend some time hearing the cumulative report of the elder/pastor meetings. In…

Again, I want to emphasize that the better and more sensitive a pastor is, the more taxing is his or…

Having filled out the estimation of time worked and discussed it, I want to now raise another factor that, in…

A first step is simply an honest recognition of the challenge inherent in ministry. Most good clergy accept that they…

Especially when we speak about congregations taking care of their pastors, both from the perspective of the pastor and that…

OK, so in the wisdom of the council, given financial realities, a member of the presbytery staff has to be…

We are increasingly hearing that a number of presbyteries, synods, and positions at the General Assembly level are laying off…

Ironically one of the major areas that is often neglected in the pursuit of our calling to ministry, whether that…

Yesterday we considered the blocks of time available in your life each week and how many of them are available…

As a Certified Lay Pastor, (CLP), you need to recognize that you are entering a phase of your life that…

As I understand it, there was a moment in church history in which the Presbyterian Church made a momentous decision…

There may come a time when you are unable to engage in forms of public ministry. There is a profound…

Sometimes, as we age, we develop physical problems that restrict what we can do in ministry. That doesn’t mean that…

Retirement can mean a new freedom to focus on an area of ministry that was often neglected because of the…

Particularly in this time of economic stress among mainline churches, the presbytery wastes a powerful resource in not availing themselves…