Duties as Assistant/Associate Pastor?

I would think that you could find the right situation where a Pastor would be content in handling most of the sermons, and you could handle a lot of other duties on his behalf and behalf of the church members. I'm sure though that he would want an Asst. Pastor that was able to handle the services in cases of emergency and when he was away on vacation.

 

It depends on the church and what kind of position you are seeking. In many churches, the associate/assistant pastor is an administrator with maybe responsibility over the educational ministries. In some churches, he is a almost like a co-pastor with regular preaching. Some larger churches may have an assistant pastor over pastoral care, in which case you may not preach at all.

Tradition of the local church plays a huge role here.

 

As a side note, some churches almost never have the associate pastor preach. In my home church, for example, we had a guest preacher or missionary on the days the pastor was on vacation, with very few exceptions.

 

The role of the Asst. Pastor will vary depending on the need of the church and Pastor. We (My Association) have some churches where the Assitant never preaches, some where they preach once a month, and my church, where the Pastor and I flip-flopped preaching and teaching each Sunday. He preached 3 out of 4 Sunday nights while I taught mid-week Bible study 3 out four times. So yea, you can provide help without much public speaking if that is what God is leading you to do.

 

You are getting a great deal of wisdom here. It is certainly going to vary from church to church and from Pastor to Pastor what they will expect from an Associate Pastor. I can tell you that I have never known of an associate who was never asked to preach in a small or medium sized church setting.

While pastors are called to fill many functions, often we find that there are some areas we are weaker in. An associate pastor can be a great help and encouragment when he is able to lift some of that burden off of the pastor. It might be administrative or visiting, etc., but a good trusty "right-hand man" is a true blessing to any pastor.

By the way, I don't think that your situation will be a big problem; most pastors that I know like to stand in the pulpit themselves. I have even known of a few problems in which the Associate/Deacons/Church felt that the Pastor was not being fair to the Associate- i.e.- giving him enough time in the pulpit. To be fair, I have also seen the opposite, a retired pastor who forced the associate to carry nearly the entire load with the exception of Sunday morning services. While it was a great learning experience for the associate, it did not work well for the church.

I would attempt to summarize what I am trying to say as this: if God has called you, there will be a situation that needs you.

 

I am an assistant pastor. My duties include pulpit supply and a few teaching slots each week (Sunday School, Men's Group, Senior's Group and the Mid-Week meeting). They would not have called me to the post without public speaking/teaching skills.

That said, I do more administration than I do teaching. This part is tough because it is not my forte, but that is the bulk of the work.

While there are permanent associate/assistant pastor roles, it is often an apprenticeship of sorts - as it is in my case.

 

Is that a Moses statement?

I would think it depends on what the pastor and the church needs. Administrative. Hospital visits. Some pulpit supply.

 

There are churches where the pastor does not do weddings and funerals. From what I see most of the time the associate is a man who does what the pastor does not do.

 

Our church has several associate pastors and one senior pastor. Each and every associate pastor has preached at some point, from the student pastor to the children's pastor. Each are very good public speakers and great teachers. This, in my mind, is a great, great benefit of being a part of a large church family.