A few weeks after my second pastorate began, the deacon chairman said to me, “Now, son, you just preach, visit the sick, and care for the old folks. The board will set the agenda for everything else.”
Situations like this weren’t covered in seminary. So I began pondering my role in that church. I quickly realized that a number of questions needed to be answered: Who sets the pastor’s agenda? The board? The congregation? The pastor alone? Do I look exclusively at my gifts and calling, or do I yield to others who want to give direction? Who really is responsible for my ministry activities?
Eventually, I found that by following these steps, many of those questions were answered.
 Start with the givens. Every pastor quickly learns the “givens”-duties that go with the territory: visiting the sick, conducting weddings and funerals, counseling, preparing and delivering sermons. This is a large part of what any church board expects. As pastor, I must squeeze these essential jobs into my schedule.
 Know your calling. During a stormy committee meeting in a church I served, a member asked, “Pastor, do you know who you are? If you would assume more spiritual authority, we could get on with this matter.”
How do I view myself? As a spiritual leader, am I a permissive facilitator or an autocrat?
Where I fall on the spectrum depends on my personality and gifts. But still I want to pattern myself after Christ. He knew what he was on Earth to do, and then set about doing it. Though he faced opposition, it did not deter him from his purpose. He remained faithful to his mission.
I must remember a call is not just a job. I am an instrument to do God’s work. He is the active agent, working in and through me. Obstacles will arise but can never cancel my mandate to minister as Jesus did.
 Identify your limits and abilities. Before setting a specific agenda for my ministry, I need a clear understanding of myself. I cannot be effective when forced into another’s mold. It doesn’t matter what mold it is: the former pastor or someone’s concept of Reverend Right.
If I know my gifts, capabilities, and weaknesses, I have boundaries for my work. This helps me avoid headaches and take some of the mystery out of setting my agenda. Starting with my abilities I can move toward a ministry that complements the ministries of others in the church instead of duplicating them.
 Examine your motives. As I think about starting a program or new emphasis in the church, I ask myself: Are my motives selfish? Adventurous? Or am I truly sensing God’s leading?
I don’t want to simply satisfy selfish desires. I must be able to say, “My purpose is to serve God and others with the love of Jesus.”
Sometimes, however, it’s hard to determine what my motives are. So, to test my sincerity, I notice how rigid I am with my agenda. In most cases, if I am willing to bend, learn from others, and adapt, I’m more likely to be the servant I’m supposed to be.
 Identify the church’s needs. Although my ministry may not be defined by others’ needs, I’m in ministry to help others. So if I know the church’s needs, it gives me a better sense of what I should be doing with my days. Naturally, this requires a careful analysis of the church and community.
 Articulate the agenda to others. A pastoral search committee and I were engaged in a provocative interview. “I’m not sure our church really has a vision or a dream,” commented the chairman. “As our pastor, what would be your dream?”
As pastor I must articulate a vision that will shape an agenda for ministry. But a vision is lifeless until it is expressed, and futile unless it is shared by others. The process invites the participation and response of others. Involving people in planning, problem solving, and decision making establishes ownership and often generates strategy.
As I listen, even to the complaints and personal agendas, other good ideas surface. Then I can rank the ideas, deciding priorities.
 Prepare to be challenged. There will always be those who want to deviate from the purpose you have agreed on. Church business sessions can give some individuals the opportunity to redirect things toward their vested interest.
In one meeting the chairperson of the grounds committee demanded that the church use outreach funds to replant flowers and shrubbery around the building.
The answer is simple, but not easy. I try to handle with care those who have their own agenda. I am kind and gentle, but I am also firm.
Above all, I work to stay cool. When I appear indecisive or under stress because the agenda is challenged, I seem insecure. A leader must inspire confidence.
Who sets my agenda? I do. But I base my decision on Scripture, God’s Spirit, an informed, trusting relationship with the board, and knowledge of the church’s needs, my abilities, and my motives.
-C. B. Hogue
California Southern Baptist Convention
Fresno, California
Copyright © 1991 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. Click here for reprint information on Leadership Journal.
