My goal is to put out a ministry update every quarter sharing the impact of our outreaches and ways we’re bringing the ministry of MainStreet Covenant beyond our walls. The past few months have been a highly productive writing season for me. Watch this video and join us in celebrating our Kingdom impact. … More Ministry Update May ’24
“I read your letters over and over, to help remind me that I am not alone,” said one parishioner during the early months of the pandemic. Another said, “While I love a Sunday sermon, I felt these letters so much more deeply in my heart.” … More Wise Letters for Weary Souls
This is the final post in a 4 part series. Read part 1, part 2, and part 3. I’m writing this from a monastery where I am diving deeper into the writings of the ancient Desert Fathers and later mystics and spiritual masters such as Saint John of the Cross, Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen. … More Pastors as Spiritual Guides
Modern day pastors have been all too willing to accept the role of a CEO running the church like a business, serving more as a visionary leader than a shepherd of souls. We’ve served the bottomline more than the “least of these.” Board rooms and whiteboards have replaced prayer chapels and the pastor’s study. More pastors … More Pastor: Shepherd or CEO?
The big box “church-as-business” model that arose in the last quarter of the 20th century was a complete (and short-lived) anomaly in the long 2,000 year history of Christian ministry. It rode the wave of American-styled capitalism and is grounded in the values of American consumerism and market driven strategies — not the New Testament … More From Big Box to Big Souls
Over three decades ago, my late hero and Protestant “Saint” (if Presbyterians canonized people) Eugene Peterson wrote the following in the opening paragraphs to his book on pastoral ministry called Working the Angles (1987): “American pastors are abandoning their post, left and right, and at an alarming rate. They are not leaving their churches and getting … More Reclaiming the Pastoral Vocation
Here’s a portion of my latest doctoral essay exploring the power of “Embodied Wisdom.” This section looks at the role of emotional vulnerability in a pastor’s leadership and example. A popular phrase I’m hearing these days is “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” I’m a guy who … More The Emotionally Real Pastor
By Hershael York By its very nature, the field of pastoral leadership is fraught with such incredible difficulties that we must say with the Apostle Paul, “Who is sufficient for these things?” Leading God’s people is unlike any other task in the world — which is why it requires a calling of the Spirit, and not … More 10 Challenges of Being a Pastor
At least 2 or 3 times in the past several years of pastoring, the following 4 lectures by Eugene Peterson have helped save me from drowning in the sea of vocational ministry. I, like countless other pastors, consider Eugene Peterson to be the Dean of Pastors and a voice of sanity in a culture of … More Jonah & Pastoral Vocation (Eugene Peterson)
“You’re name is NOT Jeremy!” the large, black man shouted into my ear with his thick Caribbean accent. His hands were heavy on my shoulders as he stood over me as I sat helplessly in a chair in a dim-lit room. “Your true name is Jeremiah! You are the weeping prophet!” he continued in his … More The Weeping Pastor
Billy Graham preached to over 215 million people in more than 185 countries in his lifetime. His impact for Kingdom work is significant. Late in his life, he was asked how he would go about making disciples if he was the pastor of a church. His response is recorded in Robert Coleman’s book, The Master Plan … More Who are Your Twelve?
I’m an artisan. It’s taken me about 38 years to admit it. My right brain has been trying to get my attention for years. I’ve been too busy doing important left brain stuff to notice. Or, perhaps I’ve been doing a lot of right brain stuff and giving the left brain all the credit. … More Right vs. Left Brain Pastor
I was alone at the church this Wednesday, preparing a large table for our second “Agape” gathering — a new monthly celebration of the Eucharist. I found my soul anxious and my spirit restless. I was physically tired, but mostly suffering from fear of disappointing others and myself. Whenever I put my hands to some … More Justifying My Existence
A few years back I had to write a paper exploring an image or metaphor that describes my personal vision for pastoral ministry. Here’s what I wrote. (Note: Keri was pregnant with Abby at the time). “My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you…” Gal. 4:19 … More Pastor as Spiritual Midwife
Next summer I will be officially ordained in the Evangelical Covenant Church (10 years after I graduated from seminary — its about time!). I’m reminded of a poignant lengthy quotation from Eugene Peterson’s The Contemplative Pastor. It’s a good reminder that we are weak and can, like Odysseus, be lured away by the sirens of people pleasing. We need God’s … More QUOTABLES: Lashed to the Mast (Eugene Peterson)
As my 35th birthday approaches, I’m looking back through some old journal entries. In my mid-twenties I had one big aspiration for my life: to put my knowledge to good use by becoming a teacher/college professor. The problem was I had no clue how to teach, and learning and teaching are too very different things. I … More Like a Unicorn at a Balloon Popping Party (or The Joy of Teaching)
Enjoy this growing collage of news headlines from our past years of local ministry in Mound. I’m very proud of these articles — not because I want my own name lifted up but because far too many churches are irrelevant to the broader community today. MainStreet’s burning passion is to bring the life-transforming message and … More Making Local Headlines for Jesus
This prank is so cruel….please don’t start an April Fools tradition at MainStreet! I beg you! Greg is a good sport — I fear I would have reacted less graciously… :) WATCH THIS!
Hi friends, Much of our church planting adventure thus far has been casting vision — or, in other words, telling a compelling story of what God has called us to do and why its a cause worth joining and/or investing in. There’s no better way to tell a story than through video. One of my … More The MainStreet Journey on Video
Today, Will Willimon, in his book “Pastor” quotes his own teacher’s words on the pastorate toward the end of his career training clergy. James E. Dittes speaks of “ministry as grief work”: To be a minister is to know the most searing grief and abandonment, daily and profoundly. To be a minister is to take … More Pastor 13 – The Cost of Vocational Ministry
Today Will Willimon, in his book “Pastor”, gives us Anthony Robinson’s helpful list of time-tested wisdom for leadership decision-making. 1. Give responsibility back. When a layperson says, “Somebody ought to be doing this,” as a pastor, you might respond saying, “That sounds like just the thing God may be calling you to do.” 2. Expect … More Pastor 12 – Ten Rules of Leadership
Another excerpt from Will Willimon’s book “Pastor.” This time preaching as commissioning. “Mission begins with commissioning. Therefore, preaching is an essential part of mission. I suppose that we preachers ought to strive, in every sermon, to have some illustration or example whereby ordinary Christian people could sense God’s vocation. Mission begins in the heart of … More Pastor 11 – Mission & Preaching
I’ve taken many biblical leadership inventories and spiritual gift assessments. Each seem to define the biblical gifts/ ministry offices differently. I enjoyed these definitions from Alan Hirsch’s Forgotten Ways website at http://www.theforgottenways.org. A good book, too. If you are involved in ministry, which of these best describes you? APOSTLES extend the gospel. As the “sent ones,” … More Five-Fold Apostolic Ministry
Here’s a story from a pastor friend of mine. We both enjoy watching squirrels, though I can’t say I enjoy reading about raising chickens. Enjoy! I was sitting on the outdoor patio of a great little coffee shop in the Swede Hollow neighborhood of St Paul yesterday. I was waiting for a phone call from … More A Squirrel Tale (by David Brown)
Jeremy L. Berg 