Five Essentials for Pastors Who Want to Stay Ahead of the Challenges

from Jim Martin:
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Serving a church in a ministry role can be very challenging.  Yet, there are some things you can do to get out in front of some of the challenges.  For example:

1) You are far ahead if you are committed to maturing in Christ.  Pay attention to your own spiritual formation.

2) You are far ahead if you are dealing with the pain from your past.  The problem for many of us is that we have pain and emotional baggage that we bring into a church but fail to acknowledge this burden even to ourselves.

3) You are far ahead if you are maturing emotionally.  Many ministers experience a limited influence because they often behave immaturely.

4) You are far ahead if you nurture your friendships.  Many ministers have hundreds of acquaintances and very few friends.

5) You are far ahead if you have a passionate commitment to Christ, the gospel, and the church.  A minister can read the right books, have a social media presence, and be in demand as a speaker. However, when a minister has lost any sense of a passionate commitment to Christ, the gospel, and the church, the minister and the congregation have lost something very valuable
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The details of each can be read here.