As a pastor, you are asked to wear many hats. Any resource that serves you well will need to (a) understand your various roles, (b) equip you for those roles, and (c) care for the person under all those hats! Unfortunately, too often, pastors are the only believers who are expected to thrive without the benefits of Christian community.
Because I know your time is valuable, in this brief post, I want to summarize four ways this site can serve your ministry… and you.
1. Direct Public Ministry
It can be hard to come up with new, insightful applications of the timeless gospel message week after week. This is a safe place. We can admit that. When your message is leaning towards a particular area of application (i.e., communication, anxiety, forgiveness, etc.) review the topical index for helpful direction from a counseling perspective. If you find that you are using a significant portion of a post in a message, make a link to it on your church’s website (or your blog). Not only will this build on the amount of spiritual nourishment your congregation receives, it will begin to expose them to resources that your church can use in one another care or launching a peer-support lay counseling ministry (see #3 below).
2. Direct Private Ministry
The resources on this site for marriage [add each link when new page created], emotions, addiction, and identity are arranged to serve as sequenced homework for pastoral counseling. The seminar notebooks contain assessments, Bible studies, and practical helps for each unit and the video supplements narrate the journey. You can help an individual identify their primary struggle / goal, and then serve as an experienced accountability partner to guide them on this journey. If you find that your level of experience is not needed, the structured nature of these resources can allow you to transition that accountability role to another trusted church member, which brings us to point #3
3. Catalyzing Member Ministry
You may use the resources on this site to help emerging leaders in your church take on more pastoral care responsibilities. Or, you may have church members come to you and say, “Pastor, we need a ministry for [insert a need such as, men who struggle with pornography, wives who feel betrayed, first responders who’ve been traumatized, young couples who need mentors, etc.].” On this site you will find many “micro ministries” that a church member can facilitate and two “macro ministries” that a church member can receive training to launch and oversee (see biblical counseling certificate program for more information).
4. Personal Enrichment
I cannot conclude this post without talking to the person under the hats. If your Bible study has become “for others” or your emotional reserves are on empty, I want to make two resources available to you for free. If you are a vocational pastor, e-mail us (counseling@summitrdu.com) and we will send you a free e-copy of God’s Attributes: Finding Rest in God’s Character (a 4 week study in how to rest in each attribute of God). You may also benefit from this presentation from Burnout: Resting in God’s Fairness (a guide to helping you realize that burnout is not the “Purple Heart” of ministry and prioritize your life in a sustainable way) as an encouragement for you in your ministry.
Other posts that would be helpful for pastors:
- The Pastor as Counselor: 8 TED Talk Style Lessons
- How to Promote Excellent Counseling Resources to Your Church Members
- For Pastors: How to Vet Potential Counseling Referral Sources
- How to Find a Good Counselor in [Name of City]?
- Restorative Church Discipline Process (Structured Guide & Video)
- Why Your Pastor Can’t Be More Practical than You Are Honest
- When to Lead with Policy vs. Principles in a Counseling Ministry