Real-Life Example of Overcoming Busyness
Pastors in perhaps the city most known for its frenetic pace—New York City—overcame the busyness hurdle by applying this same principle—meaningful relationships can advance in concentrated time away from the distractions of everyday life. Loosely inspired by ESPN’s “30 for 30” docu-series, Lead NYC facilitated a 30-hour retreat for 30 lead pastors of mega-churches in the New York region. The invite list was purposefully curated so that attendees felt like they could readily empathize with the unique challenges pastors of large congregations experience. The agenda prioritized activities that foster relationships like prayer, worship and meal times. And at the end of the gathering, pastors were already discussing how they could work together through pulpit swaps and collaborative justice initiatives in the months leading up to the next annual retreat.
Adam Durso, Executive Director of Lead NYC, oversaw the retreat and enforced the following rules for the lead pastors:
- You can’t show up late.
- You can’t leave early.
- You can’t send anyone in your place.
Each of these rules protected the purpose of the gathering—build strong relationships between pastors of large congregations in New York City—and communicated the necessity and significance of each pastor’s presence. Listen to Adam share about church unity in New York City in this podcast episode.
One pastor who attended the 30 for 30 Retreat affirmed the effectiveness of the annual gathering format. He commented, “We spent more time together in these 30 hours than pastors have spent time together in the last 30 years.”
Our team—City Gospel Movements at the Luis Palau Association—desires to see the day when the lonely pastor is an anomaly, and churches working together is commonplace (Heb. 10:24-25). We are here to support leaders who share this vision. Visit citygospelmovements.org for more resources and to get connected to a network or like-minded pioneers.
Want to learn how to gather pastors, leaders, friends (and foes) well? Here’s another book we love: The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters by Priya Parker.
Idea for a Next Step:
In the coming week, we invite you to call another local pastor or ministry leader simply to say “hello” and offer to pray for them. This could be a 15-minute call during a commute home or lunch break. You’d be amazed at how one personal conversation can build momentum for deeper relationships.
