Abuse of Power in the Church—Part II—Serving at the Pleasure of Jesus Christ

(Read: Abuse of Power in the Church—Part I—Questions to ask yourself and your colleagues)

Pastors and church staff come and go. By contrast, congregation members, for the most part, can be there for generations. This perspective can help those hired to shepherd a congregation keep their own leadership and power/influence in perspective. All pastors and church staff, by definition are “interim”. They are serving at the pleasure of Jesus Christ and through the church’s calling of them for a season.

Some good questions for pastors and church staff/leadership to ask themselves regularly

·         Is your first commitment to Jesus and His church (or to your job and your own success or “kingdom”)?

·         Are you dedicated to being a person of love, compassion, mercy, reconciliation, and forgiveness while also being a person of integrity, honesty, humility and care for others?

·         Are you dedicated to engaging with God’s work in your midst to exhort those in your sphere of influence to become people of love, compassion, mercy, reconciliation, and forgiveness while also being persons of integrity, honesty, humility and care for others?

Some good questions that congregations and Sessions/Governing Boards can be asking of/about their pastors and staff—on a regular basis—include:

·         Are you noting a pattern where only the lead pastor’s ideas are the ones that matter and are carried out?

·         Are others on the staff/leadership team asked for input and truly heard?

·         Where are the rough edges/areas for growth in this leader? Is this person aware of these blind spots? Are they willing to do the work to grow in these places (through therapy, coaching, spiritual direction, receiving and applying constructive feedback…)?

·         On a scale of 1 to 10, how defensive is this leader when given helpful input (about ideas, processes, goals, or personal correction)? How willing is this leader to apologize for mistakes/errors?

·         Would you say that this leader has been harsh, bullying, or abusive in some way in your interactions with him/her? Have you heard from others that this leader has been harsh, bullying, or abusive in some way in their interactions with him/her? Is this a pattern of behavior?

·         How affirmed/encouraged do this person’s colleagues feel by this leader?

·         Are people with gifts of Discernment pointing out leadership patterns that seem easy to dismiss as “nothing”—but, magnified forward, will present a future problem?

·         Are people with gifts of Prophecy pointing out leadership inconsistencies that seem easy to dismiss as “nothing”—but, magnified forward, will present a future problem?

·         Does this leader have a pattern of favoring certain staff/ministry leaders over others—a Jacob-Joseph—technicolor coat problem?

·         Does this leader have a pattern of jealously guarding all “important ministry” for himself/herself instead of focusing on equipping, discipling, and delegating—a Moses-corrected-by-Jethro problem?

·         Has this leader not been able to “graduate” from their prior assistant/associate/parachurch/youth ministry/outside-of-church role into their current  leadership role? What support/training/accountability might help with that transition/leap?

·         On a scale of 1 to 10, how safe are staff meetings with this leader in charge?

·         On a scale of 1 to 10, how safe are leadership meetings with this leader in charge?

Admittedly, congregations can have high (sometimes too high) hopes for a new pastor/staff member. There can be undue pressure on that person to be omni-competent, ultra-gifted, uber-talented in ways that are toxic to both the pastor and the church.

In being aware of these issues and dynamics…and rooting ourselves in God’s definition and design for His church (in Scripture)…and relying on the power and guidance of His Holy Spirit, going forward, Jesus’ church can be a healthier, flourishing, transformed and transformative, restored and restorative agent of love and life and reconciliation to a world desperate for what Jesus and His people have to offer.

(For more on gifts, check out the Resources page at GodGiftsYou.com. Take the free assessment and see what gifts God has bestowed on you to contribute to the whole.)

Shirley Giles Davis, author of the God. Gifts. You. Your Unique Calling and Design workbook, Your Unique Design Class Guide, Your Unique Design Facilitator Guide, and Gifts-Calling-Purpose blog, is a consultant, coach, facilitator who has worked with faith-based organizations, nonprofit agencies, and leaders in a diversity of fields for over 30 years. She has also been Catalyst for Equipping at her 1,200 member church since 1999.

Photo (c) Shirley Giles Davis, all rights reserved.