5 Things to Focus on in Your First Year in Ministry

I have seen the story unfold so many times I could tell it in my sleep. A young pastor walks into established church and tries to change the church’s structure and culture on the first day. Instead of getting to know the people, the culture, and his neighbors, he goes full bore after a checklist of changes he wants to accomplish. The church resists the changes he wants to implement and he gets frustrated. His preaching becomes caustic and angry. More people begin to resist him and an ugly ditch begins to grow between the shepherd and his sheep. This arrangement ends in the young pastor looking for a new place to go, leaving the ministry, or his firing by the congregation.

The early years of a young pastor’s ministry do not have to be marked by tension, stress, and hard feelings. By focusing on several simple tasks in the first year of ministry, a young pastor can lay the groundwork for a fruitful, God-glorifying ministry. Read More