How Pastors and Leaders Can Work Together to Care for People

One of the greatest challenges for churches, pastors, staffers, and church leaders is the ability to work together. The reasons for an inability to work together appear endless: ego, pride, selfishness, a lack of vision, personality tension, church politics, and a failure to plug into a focused priority of Jesus first with a love for the Lord’s church that sets aside personal agendas. Such reasons may appear difficult to swallow on the surface, but the value of working together begins with a heart for God and His kingdom.

How can pastors and leaders work together?

1. Start with purpose.
Matthew 28:19-20 is a great place to start. Study God’s work in the early churches: Acts 2:41-47, Ephesians 4:12-16, and I Corinthians 16:13-14. A study will uncover five things:

The churches were Christ-centered.
Proclamation of the good news of Jesus and God’s Word were basic.
Discipleship transformed lives and culture.
The church engaged community and culture as worship, mission and specific mission activities like ministry to the poor.
The church enacted people to build God’s kingdom and people.

2. Put prayer at the center of the purpose.
Pastors and leaders, ultimately, pray to “join God in His work,” to borrow a Blackaby and King quote from Experiencing God. Prayer reminds the pastor and leaders of two things: 1. God’s plan in His love for people through salvation transforms lives; 2. Work cannot be done apart from God’s Holy Spirit and people-action-ministry. God’s work should not be done in isolation. It requires God working through people. Prayer engages that purpose.

3. Respect each other.
Max DePree has a book entitled Leading Without Power. Many pastors and leaders seek to dominate and lead with personal power, that is, out of their own independence, insecurity, or authority, rather than God’s power. Depree quotes Peter Drucker as saying that “manners are the lubricant of the organization.” Depree also calls for building community, deciding what is significant and measuring it together, and service to people.

These goals are achieved through respect for others. I find that tension, anger, and conflict arise many times when rudeness, pride, and disrespect prevail. The fruit-of-the-Spirit kindness never hurts. Try good manners.

4. Resolve conflict.
Differences about church, ministry, preaching style, and local church vision, mission, and programs abound. Conflict is inevitable because humanity sticks to all of us like peanut butter to the roof of your mouth. My father grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. He says, “Everybody has an opinion!” Often conflict arises over differences of opinion. Still, I am amazed at pastors, staffers and church leaders who carry unresolved conflict deep in the soul. It causes bitterness and kills the joy of service to Christ. Differences may stay, but conflict must be resolved to work together for Christ.

5. Build a team.
Team building through retreats, a monthly staff luncheon, or even an activity like bowling can open communication and encourage unity and ministry to people. Work toward working together by appreciating the grace-gifts of each individual. Aim for harmony like an orchestra sounding music. Train leaders. Focus on people’s needs.

6. Live in Christ’s Joy and Wonder.
What can you do when conflict is unresolved? Return to number one in this article and start over. Read Philippians to recapture Christ’s joy in service. Joy? Working together requires it. Such Christ-joy supplies purpose, wisdom, restraint and togetherness to glorify God. That’s the goal, isn’t it?

Discover the joy of serving Christ and working together to care for people.
Written by John Duncan