tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8620005.post112105703875493131..comments2023-09-11T04:09:02.455-05:00Comments on Pastoral Transition and Placement Reflections: Transition no. 1: RelationshipsEdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01204385954996143021noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8620005.post-1121292977952326062005-07-13T17:16:00.000-05:002005-07-13T17:16:00.000-05:00The annonymous comments above make some good point...The annonymous comments above make some good points. Thanks, blogosphere lurker, for your good input. Thanks especially for the dating illustration-- you've demonstrated my take on the "work ethic of placement" exactly.<BR/><BR/>Learner is not alone, I'm sure. Many of us (especially the introverted, thinking-judgment types like me) would <I>rather</I> be in the office a lot of the time. Good thoughts on how the office is arranged; maybe I'll tackle that one down the line...<BR/><BR/>Adam, thanks for sharing your experience, as usual. Providential circumstances often don't look so God-given in the moment, do they? Man, what if we all had to set aside entire months at the beginning of our ministries to build relationships? I'm thinking you're going to be a powerful force on the ministry team there, simply because of the strength developed in that start...<BR/><BR/>Thanks, all for your participation.Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01204385954996143021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8620005.post-1121221907895701512005-07-12T21:31:00.000-05:002005-07-12T21:31:00.000-05:00Ed,As one who has recently made the transition (to...Ed,<BR/><BR/>As one who has recently made the transition (to assistant pastor), I would agree whole heartedly with your comments on relationships. In our case, I feel like we were forced into it in some ways. There were three months between my accepting the call to my present church and the time in which we were able to move (tight housing market). As a result, I began working part-time commuting from 3 hours away to work on the week-end. Therefore, there were no boxes of books or even things to unpack at home. Thus, the majority of my time was spent with congregants. I wouldn't recommend my transition to anyone, but a year + later, I see a great value to those first couple of months that were focused on building relationships. <BR/>Thanks for your posts...AdamAdam Tisdalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15537474108872705874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8620005.post-1121180131790034952005-07-12T09:55:00.000-05:002005-07-12T09:55:00.000-05:00My friend, Learner, thought your comments here wer...My friend, Learner, thought your comments here were right on target...and challenging. Learner's the type who likes to have his ducks in a row and make a good impression (at least until figure out the truth). He's made the same mistakes you've cautioned against (largely because it's easier for him to stack books than initiate with people), and he said he appreciated your words.<BR/><BR/>One last suggestion (and maybe you could devote a blog to this): desk placement in your office. How many pastors have their desks smack in the middle of the room almost as a bunker between them and those with whom they are meeting? What would it communicate if a parishoner walked into his or her pastor's office and didn't have that barrier to talk across? Learner thinks it would communicate a lot, perhaps not consciously, but certainly sub-consciously.<BR/><BR/>How about a post on that? Couldn't get much more practical.Craig Dunhamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05967034706769695941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8620005.post-1121111596358008312005-07-11T14:53:00.000-05:002005-07-11T14:53:00.000-05:00Ed,Where do comments like this go? Maybe not right...Ed,<BR/><BR/>Where do comments like this go? Maybe not right here, but I want to think out loud. I agree that looking for a ministry placement position is an active task, not passive. In that sense, isn't it like dating? Example: In college, at our servant-team meeting one night, I took the risk of asking the team to pray that the Lord would lead me to someone to date. I added, "I haven't had any dates in nearly three years." Eyebrows went up all around the room. I smiled sheepishly. Then the campus minister said, laughing, "_____, at least one girl a week asks me about you. You could easily have a date...if you wanted one." I guess I'd been sitting back waiting for something to happen.<BR/><BR/>The dating illustration doesn't stop there: after several years of working with you, I applied for a new youth position at a church in Alabama. During my lunch with the "Youth Guy" search committee, members got careless with their words. One of them said, "We've always wanted to do such-and-such, and when <I>you</I> come on, we can finally do that." Someone else said, "When it comes time for <I>you></I> to move, let me know and I can help you find a place." This wasn't just dating: these members were proposing. So, I go home, pack my boxes and wait. Three weeks went by and I never heard back. I finally accepted another job elsewhere. <BR/><BR/>So while I want there to be prudence and perserverance on the part of guys looking for a job, I also want to warn them to "guard their hearts." Few things are more harmful to a family for some members of the search committee to make comments like, "You are my favoriate candidate," or, "I'm glad you are applying for this job. You'll be great at our church," etc., only then to find out that their kind sentiments were little more than kind sentiments; someone else gets the paycheck. This gets particularly sticky when multiple people (who know each other) are thinking about the same job. <BR/><BR/>So what do you do? Pray, perserver, pick up the phone and call. But never put "expectation" in a place until they are asking you to accept the terms of the call.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com