I?ve noticed the biggest source of conflict in many churches comes from a strained relationship between the pastor and the creative team. It?s surprising, right? But you?ve probably experienced something similar in your church.
Maybe the creative team feels under-appreciated. They feel overwhelmed with the workload or ill-equipped to do their job well. I?ve lost track of how many times I?ve heard someone say, ?My pastor just doesn?t get it.?
On the other hand, I consistently hear pastors feeling like the creative teams in their churches only care about their own work?not how it fits into the church as a whole. They don?t feel supported by the team. ?I wish they would give me the benefit of the doubt or at least just be happy with what they have.?
The bottom line is this: If you can?t support your pastor and his vision for the church, you should probably go find another job. Seriously. God has placed him in the position of authority and has given him charge of the church?even in the creative side of things.[quote]If you can?t support your pastor and his vision for the church, you should probably go find another job.[/quote]
So how do you know if you should find another job? What if you just need to refocus? Here are three situations I see where most creative team members live.
Don?t support your pastor?s vision for the church?
If you can?t get behind the vision?you?ve tried all you can?you should quit. Leaving the church staff because you can?t get behind the vision doesn?t make you a bad person or less of a Christian. In fact, it actually means you realize unity is important. Scripture has a lot to say about that. (1 Corinthians 1:10, Ephesians 4, Psalm 133:1, 1 Peter 3:8)
If you find yourself here, don?t go out swinging. Quietly move on and find a place where you can give 100% of your heart. Wasting your time and energy talking about what you think the pastor should be doing right now gets you nowhere. If God wanted you to be the pastor, He?d put you there. Instead, He might just want you somewhere else.[quote]If God wanted you to be the pastor, He?d put you there.[/quote]
Dealing with constant frustration?
This might sound depressing, but this is one of the symptoms of working for a boss and having limited resources. There?s no perfect pastor and no perfect church. You should deal with it and work to change your attitude.
I encourage you to fight for unity. Guard your words and thoughts, and don?t be the source of division within the staff. Make the effort to bridge the gap where there?s friction with your pastor.
Many creative team members live in constant frustration because they want their pastor to be like someone else. Support your pastor for who he or she is, not who you want them to be. Learn what?s on their heart and have their back. You might just be surprised by how that opens up dialogue to help your church be more effective.[quote]Support your pastor for who he or she is, not who you want them to be.[/quote]
In a good situation?
Protect it. Thank God for it. And continue to fight for it each and every day. Guard the meetings after the meetings and lead the way in fighting for unity. This doesn?t mean you blindly support everything. It does mean that you build the relational equity with your pastor and leadership to push back where necessary, give your opinion when needed and, at the end of the day, support the decision that was made.
I?m blessed to work in a church where I experience the healthy tension between leadership and creative teams. A bit of friction here and there is good for any team?especially creative teams. But at the end of the day, the most important thing to me is that my pastor knows my team and I have his back and support him.
That?s why in hiring our team, the most important aspect I looked for was not talent. Instead I looked to assemble people that had a church-first attitude and mindset. That?s been the key to the success of our team and ministry.
Unity is that important. And if you?re not there and don?t know how to get there, it might be time to quit your job. But I?m convinced for many, it?s more about making an effort to bridge the gap. Support your pastor and get behind his or her vision. Find your place on the team and you?ll find better purpose.
