Bi-vocational pastorates

Before coming to my present ministry I was bi-vocational for 9 years in my previous pastorate. I simply could not do it any longer. I was running on fumes at the end of those 9 years and finally came to the point I had to resign for the good of the church, myself and my family. I do not know how men do it successfully for most if not all of their ministry. I knew my next pastorate would have to be full time.

 

During my 30 years of pastoral ministry I was always techically fulltime. However, I did have a morning newspaper route during a few years to help pay the bills for our household. My wife has worked throughout our ministry, though it has always been part time and related to our ministry (she is a piano teacher and has taught many of our church kids over the years).

For the past 4 years I have been the director of our state fellowship and we have about 110 churches that fellowship with us. Of those churches about 20% are bi-vocational. That 20% figure does not include wives who work full or part time so their pastor husband can be full time. On the average it takes 6-10 years to bring a church in Wisconsin to full support status.

On the foreign fields that I have visited many of the pastors are bi-vocational and will never be fulltime in the ministry. In most cases their deacons carry a lot heaver load than do our deacons here in the US.

I know some faithful pastors who have a wonderful and fruitful ministry and who work an outside job. There is no shame in being bi-vocational.

 

Some comments:

1. Bi-vocational ministry should not be seen as inferior prima facia. However, far too many churches and pastors are bivocational due to the almighty dollar instead of the almighty. Churches refuse to pay a man a worthy salary, so he must work in addition to his full-time pastoral duties. Pastors like having the cushy jobs and don't want to give up their perks for pastoral ministry, and some of that is understandable. Unsaved heathen can be far more gracious in employment than can baptist churches. Still, far more churches could support a man and keep him from having to burden himself with outside employment.

2. I hate the "full-time" pastor vs. "bi-vocational pastor" mentality. I use the terms "single-vocation pastor" and "bi-vocational pastor" because no pastor is part time, unless he's lazy or the like.

3. New church plants do tend to grow rapidly fairly quickly. However, a great number of church plants die within 5-7 years. Has very little to do either way with the pastor being bivocational or not.

4. Bivocational churches' expectations can mirror those of single vocation churches, so I hope no one here deludes himself into thinking bivocational ministry is easier. It isn't. I've met far too many men who think it's a piece of cake. Work a job, come preach twice, pick up some extra spending money. These peddlers are a disgrace.
I know from my own experience as a bivocational pastor and as a single vocation pastor that expectations can be so similar that you wouldn't know the two apart. I even candidated with one bivocational church that required 80 hours of ministry a week. I'm not kidding. I wish I could say that was an exception and not the rule, and maybe the number is. But the numbers aren't much lower.
5. A bivocational ministry should not be seen by seminary graduates as a waste of their education. Too many seminarians finish their M.Divs, and think they should be making what a man makes when he finishes law school or earns an MBA. In theory, fine. But churches just don't work that way. Nor should seminary or Bible college education be seen as a ticket to single vocation churches, and those with less must be relegated to bivocational ministry.

 

I have been a bivocational pastor at 2 churches and interim at several others. My ministry has always been bivocational and that calling from the lord was very specific in my case. Most of the churches around us are bivocational and I have a great relationship with most of those pastors but there is some bias against us from the full-time establishment.

For example, our denominational meetings are all held during the day on a weekday. Our local SBC missions director holds pastors bible studies and help sessions, special prayer meetings and conducts classes on church administration. Never are these offered on weekends or at night, but during the day on week days. Our independent churches have meetings and pastor’s lunches and things, always during normal business hours.

I have been made to feel second rate many times. Normally not by individual pastors (although that has happened) but by full time denominational or mission board employees. But then often that is my own pride keeping me down also. I know what the Lord has called me to do.

 

I know what you mean, NCT. Pastors in my association always ask me why I wasn't at this or that, or why don't I support this or that - when just about everything is during work hours.

In truth, I'm not taking time off for "just another business meeting." I'm more likely to take time off to worship during a special event or something like that.

 

dh1948,

I'm not gb and I don't have any facts either but I do have one good example that would substantiate the claim.

Rosemont Baptist Church - Home Page

Go to the Staff page and read the bio of the founding pastor.

I suspect it's all about pastoral leadership regardless of whether the church has a vocational pastor or a bivocational pastor.

 

Look, it's really just simple mathmatics. If a church of 200 has a full time pastor and they see 10 people saved, they've grown at a rate of 5%. Then you take a church of 30 with a bi-vo pastor and they see 3 people saved, they've grown by 10%. The smaller you church, the bigger the % of growth when you add someone. Our first year as a church plant, we went from around 15 to almost 50. That's 200% growth.

What's really cool is when you're brand new, and you only have 2 families tithing, and you add another family that tithes, you're offerings go up by around 50%. Now that's something to get excited about

 

Most minority pastors are bivocational. There is some freedom in being bivocational in that you can speak freely and if they turn against you and can you then your family is not on the street like many churches have done to FT pastors.

The negatives are that there is so much to do even when you have the extra 40 hours that it can become a burden and frustration because you cannot do more.