Pastors at larger churches are more likely to say connecting with the unchurched is a difficulty to which they need to give attention. Those at churches with attendances of 100 to 249 (79%) and 250 and more (81%) identify this as a need more than those at churches with fewer than 50 in attendance (70%). Pastors of churches with more than 100 in attendance (81%) are more likely than those at churches with fewer than 50 (72%) to say they need to give attention to developing leaders and volunteers.
Evangelical pastors (63%) are more likely than mainline pastors (43%) to say they need to invest in challenging people where they lack obedience.
Single Greatest Ministry Difficulty
When asked to narrow down the list to the ministry difficulty they most needed to invest in at this time, around a quarter said fostering connections with unchurched people (28%) and developing leaders and volunteers (25%).
Those challenges were also near the top when pastors were asked to pick the greatest need they face out of each of the 44 issues they said they faced. For 8% of U.S. Protestant pastors, connecting with those not involved with a church is their single largest need. Another 7% point to developing leaders and volunteers in their congregation.
“Three of the five ministry difficulties pastors need to personally address reflect the fact that ministry is done together,” said McConnell. “Motivating, developing and training leaders and volunteers are all needed for a congregation to function as one unit in sharing the love of Jesus with others.
Specifically among the five ministry difficulties, 15% of pastors said training their church leaders and volunteers currently requires most of their attention. Fewer say their top ministry difficulty right now is establishing a compelling vision (13%) or challenging people where they lack obedience (11%).
Pastors in the Northeast (16%) are the least likely to say fostering connections with unchurched people is their top ministry difficulty. Pastors in that region (34%) are, however, more likely than those in the South (23%) and West (23%) to say that developing leaders and volunteers is their greatest need among the five ministry issues.
Many small church pastors say they’re struggling most with the vision of their church. Those in churches with fewer than 50 in attendance (15%) and from 50 to 99 (16%) are more likely than pastors of churches with 250 or more in attendance (8%) to say establishing a compelling vision is the most pressing ministry difficulty for them.
This article originally appeared here.
