2001
Frank Jay Hawkins, Jr.
When the Boom Fizzles: Reclaiming Purpose in the Local Congregation
There are four distinct pastoral leadership problems which lie within a local church reclaiming a purpose for existence that has been lost or forgotten. The Four Principles of pastoral leadership directly address those problems. The first problem is a lack of trust in “outsiders” by the members of the church. Their lack of purpose has driven them ever inward in their thinking and acting. A pastor, especially a new pastor, is an outsider. Accordingly, the pastor must first win the trust of the parishioners. The second problem is one of lay leadership. With the cognitive loss of church purpose, the leaders have become engaged in survivalist thinking. The survivalist centers on the maintenance of the status quo and tends to become frustrated and dysfunctional as the status quo dwindles and wanes. The survivalist tends to operate alone. It is for this reason that the pastor identify and organize the lay leadership around a new goal. After the identification and reorganization of the lay leadership, the pastor’s next problem is to train them. They need to be trained in how to deliver to the ambient culture whatever is their chief purpose for existence as a church. Finally, the pastor needs to mobilize the leaders for delivery of the church’s purpose both within and without the parish. While accomplishing each of the Four Principles there are blockages and stressors that threaten both the pastor and the pastor’s mission in the church. There are seven techniques the pastor may use to bypass the blockages and to alleviate the stress.