1 copyright 2010 church innovations institute The Role of Pastor in Times of Change Dr. Patrick Keifert Dr. Patricia Taylor Ellison Church Innovations Institute Dr. Patrick Keifert Dr. Patricia Taylor Ellison Church Innovations Institute

Who is Church Innovations Institute? innovating your church’s capacities to be renewed in God’s mission The Partnership for Missional Church –a 3-5 year journey of spiritual discernment taken by local churches in clusters of seeking God’s call to their congregation into God’s mission innovating your church’s capacities to be renewed in God’s mission The Partnership for Missional Church –a 3-5 year journey of spiritual discernment taken by local churches in clusters of seeking God’s call to their congregation into God’s mission

Where have we worked? North American churches since 1980 Mostly on the margins –Mennonites, Church of Christ, also old-line protestant (Presbyterian, Lutheran, Episcopalian), few old-line evangelical –center city, rural, some suburban –smaller congregations, some larger North American churches since 1980 Mostly on the margins –Mennonites, Church of Christ, also old-line protestant (Presbyterian, Lutheran, Episcopalian), few old-line evangelical –center city, rural, some suburban –smaller congregations, some larger

Where have we worked? southern African churches since 2002 in clusters that deliberately cross lines –cultural –ethnic –language –denomination newly launched in the United Kingdom southern African churches since 2002 in clusters that deliberately cross lines –cultural –ethnic –language –denomination newly launched in the United Kingdom

The Partnership for Missional Church Phase 1 Discovering our Partners Phase 2 Missional Experimenting Missional Experimenting Phase 4 Learning & Growing Phase 3 Visioning for Embodiment Visioning for Embodiment

The Partnership for Missional Church Phase 1 Discovering our Partners LISTENING Phase 2 Missional Experimenting Missional Experimenting RISKING RISKING Phase 4 Learning & Growing BECOMING BECOMING Phase 3 Visioning for Embodiment Visioning for Embodiment FOCUSING FOCUSING

Phase One The first phase, Discovering Your Partners, assists the local church and its leaders to discover its partners inside and outside. LISTENING The first phase, Discovering Your Partners, assists the local church and its leaders to discover its partners inside and outside. LISTENING

Phase Two The second phase, Missional Experimenting, guides those partners in experimenting with some challenges facing the local church in walking into God’s preferred and promised future. RISKING The second phase, Missional Experimenting, guides those partners in experimenting with some challenges facing the local church in walking into God’s preferred and promised future. RISKING

Phase Three The third phase, Visioning for Embodiment, learns from the second and puts that sense of missional vocation tempered by the experiments in the second phase into a plan of action. FOCUSING The third phase, Visioning for Embodiment, learns from the second and puts that sense of missional vocation tempered by the experiments in the second phase into a plan of action. FOCUSING

Phase Four The fourth phase, Learning and Growing, helps the local church embody the larger sense of missional vocation. BECOMING The fourth phase, Learning and Growing, helps the local church embody the larger sense of missional vocation. BECOMING

Throughout the four phases, mentors and teachers are discerned, coached, and trained to pass on their good habits and capacities for innovating a missional church. This is called Sharing and Mentoring, and it goes on throughout the Partnership voyage.

During the journey through the PMC, at least 5 things happen with pastors: The pastor establishes the emotional field within which change takes place in the local church. The pastor can have high influence on process or high influence on outcome. We encourage the pastor to use that influence on process, functioning as the spiritual leader and teacher rather than the governor. The pastor establishes the emotional field within which change takes place in the local church. The pastor can have high influence on process or high influence on outcome. We encourage the pastor to use that influence on process, functioning as the spiritual leader and teacher rather than the governor.

The pastor must establish beforehand what possible outcomes would place him or her in statu confessiones and thus she or he could NOT support. The pastor needs a God-centered self-definition which allows both healthy distancing as well as staying in touch. The pastor must establish beforehand what possible outcomes would place him or her in statu confessiones and thus she or he could NOT support. The pastor needs a God-centered self-definition which allows both healthy distancing as well as staying in touch. During the journey through the PMC, several things happen with pastors:

Phase 1: Listening Help spiritual leaders get first things first… Phase 2: Risking Help spiritual leaders attend to their role as … Phase 3: Focusing Help spiritual leaders turn the congregation’s expectations Phase 4: Becoming Help spiritual leaders really grow into their role of evangelical public leaders in mission… Spiritual Leaders’ Time through the Phases of PMC

Phase One Listening Help spiritual leaders get first things first attend to the personal build/strengthen their theocentric self-definition by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin Help spiritual leaders get first things first attend to the personal build/strengthen their theocentric self-definition by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin

Phase Two Risking Help spiritual leaders attend to their role as public leaders who guide the formation of Christian community through one-on-one skills use the stability from their theocentric self- definition to lead through risk and change by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin Help spiritual leaders attend to their role as public leaders who guide the formation of Christian community through one-on-one skills use the stability from their theocentric self- definition to lead through risk and change by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin

Phase Three Focusing Help spiritual leaders turn the congregation’s expectations for them toward the role of leader in the formation of Christian community build on their theocentric self-definition and experience of leading through risk by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin Help spiritual leaders turn the congregation’s expectations for them toward the role of leader in the formation of Christian community build on their theocentric self-definition and experience of leading through risk by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin

Phase Four Becoming Help spiritual leaders really grow into their role of evangelical public leaders in mission as the whole congregation grows into their missional vocation build on their theocentric self-definition and experience of leading through risk by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin Help spiritual leaders really grow into their role of evangelical public leaders in mission as the whole congregation grows into their missional vocation build on their theocentric self-definition and experience of leading through risk by means of deep listening and action-reflection learning with a twin

A Day for Spiritual Leaders includes Dwelling in the Word Meet with Accountability Partner Spiritual Practices Spiritual Leadership in Change Reflection on Congregation’s Recent Work How do you do these things? Dwelling in the Word Meet with Accountability Partner Spiritual Practices Spiritual Leadership in Change Reflection on Congregation’s Recent Work How do you do these things?