Let’s be honest. Pastoring is like heart surgery. It is serious business. The Lord is the great Physician, and we pastors are his assistants. People live or die on the table, so to speak.
With that in mind, what I’m about to suggest may seem trite. And yet, much of the genius of ministry includes doing small things well, things which keep you focused on what and Who matters most on a daily basis.
In 2007, Casting Crowns released a song called “Slow Fade.” Small decisions and habits lead to increasingly entrenched sin. Rarely does it happen overnight. In a similar way, small decisions and habits can lead you not only away from distraction and exhaustion, but toward greater clarity and effectiveness in the operating rooms of people’s lives.
With this in view, here are five practical tips for pastors.
1. Don’t leave your email open
When I was inducted into my current congregation, the preacher said that ministry is full of constant interruptions. While that can certainly be true, it doesn’t have to be as bad as we make it.
Yes, there are legitimate interruptions—like when someone has received some very bad news and asks for a time-sensitive visit at the hospital. But there are others which are not critical. Many of them come through email.
Much of the genius of ministry includes doing small things well, things which keep you focused on what and Who matters most on a daily basis.
We are servants of Christ attending to the great things of God. We need sustained thought. Our current digital climate continually pulls us away from deeper contemplation and into minutiae. How many of us have been working on an important exegetical point for Sunday’s sermon when a ‘ding’ tells us that we have a new email? We let it break our concentration, check the email, and waste five minutes responding to a piece of administration that, in the end, really doesn’t matter.
Over time I have learned to only open my email when I want to receive or send messages. I have been surprised at how this habit changes the feeling of my workspace. Concentration heightens.
2. Turn off your social media notifications
This point is closely related to the first. Not only does this steer you away from non-stop interruption, but from the largely senseless scrolling that rots your brain. (Do we even need to quote the studies anymore?)
In the franticness of modern ministry, there is an impulse (temptation) to constantly engage and respond to every single issue or post in real time. Instead of thoughtfully drawing from the cistern of prayerful and sustained thought, we skim the surface. In so doing, not only do we deprive the flock of the fruits of deeper contemplation, but we set a bad example. ‘If the pastor needs to comment, respond, blog or release a podcast episode as soon as anything happens, maybe that is what faithfulness looks like.’
Faithful ministry has more to do with responding than reacting.
3. Don’t waste good ideas
Develop a system to keep track of good ideas. Have you ever awoken in the night with a particularly helpful insight, perhaps about a pastoral situation or a biblical text? ‘Oh, I’ll remember that in the morning.’ Then when the morning dawns you can’t remember what it was.
Some pastors carry a notepad. I use an app on my phone to capture insights or ideas. On my Monday to-do list, I have a reminder to go through those ideas to ensure none of them are forgotten. I have a list with theological insights, prayer topics, and blog or podcast ideas.
4. Make a system to catalogue useful quotes and illustrations
It’s tempting to overuse quotes and illustrations, especially those that are “inspiring” or emotive. A pastor or teacher always needs to be cautious not to misuse these kinds of materials. The biblical text comes first. However, there are times when quotes or illustrations can be helpful tools.
I read a lot of books. You probably do too. I have a cataloguing system that I started fifteen years ago. After every book, I make a note of material I may want to refer to again in the course of teaching, pastoring or preaching. The log is based on a keyword and includes the page number where it can be found. As of now, there are almost 6000 entries. This helps me save time. If I want to track down that Spurgeon quote about providence, or that Corrie Ten Boom story about living sacrificially, I can do so in under a minute.
5. Make a plan to pray
One of the great tragedies of pastoral ministry is the interior erosion of one’s devotional practices and relationship with the Lord. When that happens, everything else suffers.
In a recent book called “Lead with Prayer,” Ryan Skoog, Peter Greer and Cameron Doolittle, the authors chronicled the habits of faithful leaders all around the world. This included profiles of men and women from different denominational backgrounds. What they all had in common was a serious, ongoing commitment to prayer.
My suggestion is simple: If you struggle with consistent prayer, make a plan. Designate a time each day (or times), to pray certain things, to read the Bible, and to commune with your Father. People with a plan tend to follow through more than people who don’t.
Personally, I have a schedule of psalm recitation and prayer throughout the day. There are times when it needs to change. That’s okay; it’s a plan, not a straitjacket. But it keeps me tethered, clarifies my thinking, and aids in my discernment.
In closing, pastoral leadership is serious business. We are engaged in the proclamation of the gospel, pastoring a flock, teaching, praying, organizing, modeling, and leading. In and through it all, we want to do small things well, and resist the insidious distraction of our time. Perhaps these five embarrassingly practical tips will help you hone your craft as you strive, with God’s help, to keep focused on what and Who matters most.
