Financial accountability

The Louisville Kentucky Courier-Journal published a story today about one of our congregations that should make us all stand up and take notice.

 

According to the story (and who knows if they have it 100% right, but I digress...) the North Charlestown [Indiana] Church of God had nearly $163,000 stolen from it by a former church secretary-bookkeeper. Allegedly, she stole this over an eight year period, and was able to do so because have having the ability to sign checks without a second signature.

 

The church apparently tried to bring restitution before reporting the theft (a good move), but once she defaulted on her repayments the authorities were brought in.

 

There are many lessons to be learned here.

 

The obvious one is: Have policies in place to safeguard against individuals stealing money. For example, dual signatures on checks, despite their inconvenience, are essential. Annual outside audits are also necessary.

 

Quite frankly, we have been far too trusting, assuming that no one would ever do this. It is a sad reality of our fallen world, and that these and other even more horrific things occasionally happen in God's communities. Checks and balances are needed, and we must have these throughout, at the national level right down to the local congregations. I know this goes against our anti-organizational stance, and is even relevant in some of the debate going on right now concerning accountability in matters of credentialing.

 

Finding a balance between trust alongside Holy Spirit leadership and working within reasonable organizational structures is difficult. But, it is within these paradoxes that we find ourselves working out our faith and mission.

 

Transition - resignation

Continuing my transition saga...

 

Receiving the call to my new ministry was exciting, but also terrifying. Now I actually had to accept the call, and in doing so end a relationship with my current congregation. I needed to inform them of my decision, and reveal the relationship that had been developing behind the scenes.

 

As I stated at the time, giving my resignation was not easy. I'm not sure it ever is easy for a pastor, unless things have degraded to the point that leaving is nothing more than relief. Nevertheless, I was more and more convinced that this was the right decision, but putting belief into practice is not always easy.

 

Finally the dreaded Sunday came. Just prior to dismissal I had the congregation sit down for a "special announcement". Very carefully I read through a multi-page letter that I composed, explaining my struggle and search for God's will, and encouraging them as a church to move forward. Copies of the letter were made available for everyone before leaving.

 

People were shocked, not expecting that they would be subjected to something like this when they came to church on this particular day. Some were visibly stunned. Some cried. Several stated their support, saying that they were not surprised and saw this as part of God's bigger plan. A few waited for a few days, and either phoned, e-mailed, instant-messaged or dropped by to express their support and feelings.

 

I mentioned to my family prior to resignation Sunday that the congregation's response to my announcement would likely be similar to any grief reaction. People would experience natural feelings like shock, denial, anger, bargaining, etc. and we needed to be sensitive to their processing of all this in the remaining months (and, of course, recognize our own grief feelings). For the most part people have been working through it quite well, although a few individuals have experienced more pain than others.

 

Because of the good relationship I have with the church I decided early on to give 90 days notice, even though I was obligated to provide only 30 days. I sincerely believed (and now affirm) that in our particular case a 3-month transition would be in the best interest of the congregation at this time. They have truly appreciated this.

 

So, what does one do as a resigned pastor for three months? More on that in another post ...

 

On a related note, pray for the church this weekend. They are already candidating someone. I will also comment at a later time on how this impacts the whole transition experience.

 

Viewpoint on our children and postmodernism

I would strongly encourage everyone to listen to this week's CBH Viewpoint broadcast. Jim Lyon begins a series(?) featuring Dan Allender, President of Mars Hill Graduate School in Seattle. Allender's book How Children Raise Their Parents provides the launching pad for their discussion. But this is not just about parenting. Allender makes the point that as parents we learn from our children, and that this can lead to our own spiritual maturity. This episode's discussion brings up the matter of postmodernism, and how listening to our children can help us better know God, as well as our shifting culture.

 

The issues conveyed here have tremendous implications for the church, even beyond just parenting. I'm impressed that Jim Lyon is tackling this in a context and format that can have broad impact across the church.

 

Viewpoint is a tremendous production, and certainly one of the best Christian radio shows anywhere, period. It's a Church of God gem.

 

Viewpoint radio broadcasts can be heard online. While true podcasting is yet to come, there is an RSS/XML feed leading to the download and streaming page.

 

Transition - courtship

My transition story continues ...

 

The roller coaster ride of searching for future direction was coming closer to the end, but there was one more major loop to go through. Being contacted by the Pacific Northwest Association for serious consideration was quite exciting, not only because it was a breakthrough in my search but because it was an area of ministry in which I am gifted, and have passion and experience. While pastoral ministry is still close to my heart (as I believe that it is through the local church where ministry ultimately takes place), I know that I have much to contribute at the district level to better equip congregations and leaders do their important work.

 

But, perhaps I was getting ahead of myself. They were interested in me, but we were still at an early stage in our fledgling courtship. We still needed to have some serious discussions. They needed to check out my references. And, I had to learn more about the association and the expectations for this position.

 

All of these things we did. The process was good, and we were all convinced that this relationship was of God.

 

But, the most unnerving part of all this was not the intense discussions or seeking God's confirmation. It was conducting this courtship in secrecy from my congregation. Everything had to be done clandestinely, and our entire family was regularly reminded to be very careful not to accidentally leak anything. It would be devastating for the church and my ministry with this group.

 

I felt like I was cheating. Here I was working with my church as if everything was normal, and behind the scenes I was "seeing someone else". I remember the day I made a whirlwind one-day trip to and from Seattle for my interview. It was all done as inconspicuously as possible. Hopefully no one would face a major emergency expecting me to interrupt my day off. If so, how would I explain myself?

 

I don't want to over-dramatize it all, but conducting a search while still in the midst of ministry is not an easy thing to do. I believe what made this especially difficult for me is my love for the congregation I pastor. As stated in a previous post, there was no pressure for me to leave. I love this church and the people. My guilt for cheating was not just because I am conscientious. It was because I really care for this congregation and don't want to hurt them.

 

By mid-July the new courtship with the PNA was close to reaching a point of decision. My wife and I traveled to Washington for the district Family Camp, at which time I would be presented before a special called meeting of the district ministers and delegates. Up to this point I had dealt with the Search Committee, but now I was being taken home to "meet the parents". They would grill me on all the matters of importance for them, leading to a ratification vote. In the end the vote was around 93% and the ball was now in my court to accept the calling.

 

But that would mean resignation. More on that in a future post ...

 

High Church of God birthrate?

While all the details aren't readily available to me, it appears that according to a study presented at the Assocation of the Sociology of Religion there might be a direct relationship between conservative religious groups and the fertility rate among their members. Mormons and Mennonites had the highest rates, with Church of God (Anderson, IN), Church of The Nazarene, and Pentecostal groups also high. Liberal denominations like the Episcopal Church and Unitarians had the lowest rates. The study's author, Conrad Hackett of Princeton University, suggests it may be because of church's "natalist culture". He finds evidence of this in a correlation with the percentage of women who have a bachelor's degree.

 

Accurate. Likely. Useless information. Perhaps. But interesting nonetheless.

 

LINK to a story and commentary from The Henry Institute of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

 

Transition - searching

Continuing on my transition journey...

 

With the decision clarified as to whether I was to stay at or leave my present congregation, the natural next step was determining where I was to go next. That was not clear. And, in many ways having a new calling would be a further confirmation that leaving was the right thing to do. If God wants me to move on I was convinced that a new ministry would be open for me.

 

So, the search process began. To be honest, my investigation of opportunities began without too much vigor. Perhaps it was my continuing struggle with the whole notion of leaving, but my search was never an aggressive pursuit.

 

Things have changed in the 6-7 years since I last went through this. Church of God Ministries now has their own version of "monster.com", providing a much more effective way for churches and ministers to connect with each other. Even just e-mail itself has revolutionized things. Nevertheless, the whole process is still somewhat awkward and far from as effective as it should be. (Also, see Church of God blogger Dustin Sells' reflections on "The Hiring Process in Churches", part 2, part 3, part 4).

 

In the end I only applied at a few churches and, of course, for the position I eventually accepted. In most cases, I had some very positive responses from the search committees. With one church in particular I ended up having some very serious discussions. However, there was a point in the process where it appeared that all doors were closed, and that a move might not be as imminent as I originally anticipated. Even the Area Administator position in the Pacific Northwest Association appeared out of the picture based on what was conveyed to me.

 

The entire search process is often a roller coaster ride. At times there is an enthusiastic optimism concerning some of the opportunties, but when things don't go as expected it is very easy to feel dejected and frustrated. It was very important throughout to remain spiritually grounded and to trust God's leading. I was praying a lot.

 

The emotional ups and downs can be exhausting, especially if it drags on. Fortunately I was not sensing desperation, but my heart goes out to ministers who have tighter time frames to find a new church. My last search experience was way too long, and I certainly did not want to go through that again.

 

It was at one of those low points that I got a call from the PNA asking if I was still interested in their position. They had come to a realization that their own search was not going as expected, and that after going back to square one and re-examining the applications my name was coming to the forefront.

 

A new courtship was about to begin. More in my next post...

 

Transition - decision

It was suggested to me that I share some personal reflections on the process I have been going through in my own life, having recently resigned from my church and looking forward to a new role beginning in November. Over the next week or so I will do that.

 

Pastoral transition is rarely easy. Not only for the congregation but for the minister. In secular vocations the decision to leave one job for another is usually less complicated. Advancement, more money, or better working conditions typically make the choice straightforward. Although seeking God's will should be part of all decision-making, the context of spiritual community places greater pressure on ministers to get it right.

 

I'm sure all pastors have experienced the stress of deciding when it is best to resign and move on to a new call. In recent months a couple of other Church of God bloggers (Jeffrey Frymire and Ken DeMaere) have shared some of their resignation experiences. For me, the inkling that a transition was possible began several months ago. It was becoming more and more apparent that I was no longer the good fit with this church as I was almost six years ago when we first came in contact with each other. Since becoming their pastor we have had many tremendous times together, and the church has experienced signficant transformation. A large proportion of the people are new, and the ministry focus and direction of the church has changed dramatically. For pastors who have struggled getting their church to make even the smallest change, my situation might be perceived as ideal. It has been good. These are wonderful people. We love the city. Our family is somewhat settled here. On the surface there were no apparent reasons to leave. In fact, we fought against any notion of leaving.

 

But, as I looked at the situation honestly I began to see that with all the changes we have gone through the church needed a pastor with different gifts and strengths to lead them to the next level of their growth and development. I remain convinced that I was the right person for them at the time and with the issues they were facing, but I could sense that my time here was like Moses leading the children of Israel through the wilderness. A Joshua was now required to take them to the Promised Land.

 

Confirming this insight meant much prayer, long discussions with my wife, consultation with individuals I trust, and even a few restless nights. God speaks to us in a number of ways, and it became clear from all directions that my hunches were more than just that. Naturally, a big concern is that such a decision is being made on purely emotional grounds or for selfish reasons. I was also somewhat frustrated with the fact that I was not living up to one of my values: long pastorates. Nevertheless, all indications were that I had been used of God in this location and that my staying was likely not in the best long-term interest of this congregation that I love.

 

Once this decision to leave was arrived at, I tentatively began the next phase of the transition journey. The question now was: "OK, God, if you want me to leave, where am I to go?" More on that in my next post.