Todd Gray

I had an interesting experience a few days ago while eating at a Mexican restaurant with a KBC pastor in one of our Kentucky counties.  

It is not unusual for young men who serve on church staffs to reach a point in ministry and leadership development where they start thinking about becoming senior pastor of a church.  

Leadership growth and development happens when we evaluate our experiences with thought-provoking questions.   Here are five questions that may prove helpful as you evaluate your ministry leadership from this past year.

“A happy marriage is the union of two good forgivers.” That comment by Ruth Bell Graham, wife of evangelist Billy Graham, is a reminder that people can disagree, and that conflict is inevitable in most human relationships. 

Many of us in ministry leadership are grieved by recent revelations of high-profile pastors who were discovered to have been unfaithful in their marriage. These discoveries continue to shock us and serve as a reminder that we are all in a battle against the flesh and the devil.

I remember one Sunday leaving a church service and asking a close friend for feedback on my preaching. The friend said, “Maybe you’re called to teach instead of preach.” 

What drives you to your knees in prayer? A pastor friend said, as I was listening to him describe a remarkably difficult time in his pastorate, that this event was certainly causing him to pray, and in his words, “anything that makes you pray is a good thing.” 

There is an oceanic experience known as the doldrums, which refers to certain regions of the ocean marked by the absence of strong winds. Pastors and ministry leaders also experience what feels like ministry doldrums a season when the wind is not filling your sails and things feel flat. 

I had dinner recently with a couple who were saved and baptized in the last church I pastored. This couple has walked with Jesus for several years now and raised children who are following Christ. They are faithful in their local church and have intentionally ordered their lives as ambassadors for Jesus.  

Years ago, I determined to learn more about evangelistic preaching to practice it more faithfully. While I would not classify myself as skilled in this area, I have learned some things that have proven helpful.