A Pastoral Ministry Reader

Like the other readers I have compiled, this one on pastoral ministry is simply a collection of articles, blogs, chapters, audio, and other media that I have found helpful. The resources here cover topics from preaching (lots of preaching!) to counseling to administration to ministry philosophy. If you are looking for resources on ecclesiology (church government), check out this reader. This is not exhaustive by any stretch. As always, more links will be added as time goes on. If there are links you cannot believe I missed, suggest away!

1. Pastoralized (whole website) – Eric McKiddle
2. 10 Reasons to Underprogram Your Church – Jared Wilson
3. 3 questions with Tim Keller – Garrett Wishall
4. Sermon Prep: A Week in One Life – Stephen Um
5. Foundation Documents – The Gospel Coalition
6. Surprising Benefits of Theological Vision for Ministry – John Starke
7. Preaching to the Collective Heart - Tim Keller
8. Coram Deo Church Liturgy – Bob Thune (PDF)
9. Churches and Buildings – Various Authors
10. Ten Things Pastors Wish They Knew Before They Became Pastors
11. Mental Illness and the Church – Jeremy Pierre
12. 7 Reasons in Support of Consecutive Exposition of the Scripture – Clint Arnold
13. What Tone Should Preachers Aim At? – John Piper
14. 10 Questions for Expositors (category page with several posts) – Colin Adams
15. Top 200 Preaching Resources – David Murray
16. 7 Things a Pastor’s Kid Needs from a Father – Barnabas Piper
17. Eight Reasons We Preach – Peter Mead
18. John Piper’s Preaching Course at Re:Train – John Piper
19. Dale Ralph Davis on Preaching Christ in the OT - Collin Hansen
20. Multisite, the Poker Tell and the Importance of Presence – Carl Trueman
21. Leading the Church While Leading your Family – Bob Johnson
22. 7 Tips to Be a More Interesting Preacher – Eric McKiddle
23. A Plea for Profound Simplicity – David Murray
24. How Seminarians Can Preach to Normal People (Part 2, Part 3)
25. Preaching Christ from the OT: An Interview with Sidney Greidanus – Collin Hansen
26. Preaching Christ in the Old Testament – The Gospel Coalition
27. Triperspectivalism, Leadership, and Church Planting – Tim Brister
28. How to Preach the Gospel from Every Part of the Bible – Fred Zaspel
29. Giving and Receiving Criticism in Light of the Cross – Justin Taylor
30. On Controversy - Nathan W. Bingham
31. Unbelief in an Elder’s Children - Justin Taylor
32. Sermon preparation - Ray Ortlund
33. Ten Things Pastors Wish They Knew Before They Became Pastors – Thom Rainer
34. A Conversation with Worship Pastors – The Resurgence
35. The Case for the Senior Pastor – Greg Gilbert
36. A Church Discipline Primer – 9Marks
37. How Sermons Work – David Murray

Twenty-three years, then hard hearts

I’ve been reading through Jeremiah lately and in chapter 25, something Jeremiah said to the people of Judah convicted me.  Here’s what he wrote:

For twenty-three years, from the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, to this day, the word of the LORD has come to me, and I have spoken persistently to you, but you have not listened. You have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear, although the LORD persistently sent to you all his servants the prophets, saying, ‘Turn now, every one of you, from his evil way and evil deeds, and dwell upon the land that the LORD has given to you and your fathers from of old and forever. Dot not go after other gods to serve and worship them” (25:3-6a).

So often I am disappointed if someone does “get” the gospel immediately.  Yesterday, I had lunch with a friend and we discussed what it means for a church to be “successful.”  For Jeremiah, it meant faithfully preaching God’s word, even if people didn’t listen.  It mean being patient because transformation is a process, and sometimes God takes his time with grace. And even after 23 years, Jeremiah didn’t give up his warnings and pleadings to turn back to God.  He faithfully kept speaking as God called him to.

O Lord, keep me faithful to your word, and help me teach it lovingly and truthfully.  Keep me from complaining when someone doesn’t listen, and help me remember where I was before you saved me.

The stories you won’t read about will matter the most.

I used to hate soccer.  I thought it was for Europeans who didn’t have the coordination to play American sports.  Then I lived in South Africa and was continually schooled by kids half my age who did things with a soccer ball with their feet that I can’t even do with my hands.  After a year there, my appreciation has grown for the game. I wouldn’t call myself a die-hard, but suffice it to say that I’m going to pay a bit more attention to the World Cup that starts this Friday. I’m even more interested because it is being hosted by none other than South Africa.

South Africa and it’s people has been preparing for this tournament for a long time. This is the largest sporting event to ever be hosted on the African continent. This is a big deal.  Most likely, Africa will never host an Olympic Games, so unless another World Cup comes to the continent, this is Africa’s (not just South Africa’s) finest hour.

As much as the international competition excites me, what’s more is the fact that the entire world is coming to South Africa, and churches and para-church ministries want to spread the gospel to the visiting nations.  They have been preparing for this since the vote was cast to bring the tournament to their beloved country.

In the next month, you will read or watch a lot about this tournament if you open up a sports page or log onto ESPN.com.  You’ll read  about Wayne Rooney scoring goals for England, or Landon Donavon leading the Americans on an improbable run. You will hear about Bafana Bafana (SA’s national team) and their fans’ vuvuzela noise makers.  You will watch segments about the favorites, Spain, Italy, and Germany, and their superstar rosters that shouldn’t even lose a game.  You will learn about a country torn by racism that is slowing healing and how something as insignificant as a soccer tournament can be much-needed medicine.

But the stories that you won’t hear or read or see will be the most eternally important. They will be about a boy from Soweto who hears the Jesus story in his own language. They will be about a local university soccer player who is bold enough to share his faith for the first time. They will be about churches partnering with other churches from another denomination in order to tell people how God and sports are more related than you might think. They will be about Argentinian and Dutch fans who read a gospel tract in their hotel rooms and want to know more about spiritual realities. They will be about those lonely times after a loss when a striker realizes there is more to life than scoring goals and winning a trophy. They will be about a country that needs medicine — not in the form of futbol – but in the form of the Great Physician, who not only heals emotional wounds, but forgives the worst of sins.

These are the stories that will matter millions of years after World Cup 2010 is over. All these stories are bound up in the great story of redemption that God has been, and is still, writing. It’s a story worth paying attention to. Let’s ask our Mighty God to open the eyes of the blind and draw all people to his Son.

South African Hodge-Podge

Part 10 in a 10 part series. View series intro and index.

Campus Crusade Leadership at UJ

Part 9 in a 10 part series. View series intro and index.

Staff Conference in Durban

Part 2 in a 10 part series. View series intro and index.

 

 

 

 

Union Building (Pretoria)

Series Index

1. Union Building (Pretoria)
2. Staff Conference in Durban
3. Jesus Film
4. Table Mountain
5. Robben Island Prison
6. Stellenbosch Vineyards
7. BEAM Africa
8. Joburg Summer Project
9. Campus Crusade Leadership at UJ
10. South African Hodge-Podge

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Part 1 in a 10 part series. View series intro and index.