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My apologies for the delay since my last post.  Four weeks ago I found myself undergoing emergency surgery. ’m sure the experience will end up being material for future posts, but for now I am blessed with a renewed presence of God’s Holy Spirit.  A special “Thank You” to the many prayer warriors who interceded on my behalf!

Now, onto today’s post:

Even if you are only remotely interested in football, I am sure you have heard about the ongoing, public dissection of Coach Belichick’s decision to go for it on fourth and two.  It’s an interesting observation and the entire process exposes the burden of leadership.

Context: The media has stripped the decision from the context of the entire game.  They have focused on 10 seconds of a 60 minute football game!  The same is true in the church.  Pastors and church leaders are often openly criticized for one small decision that has been taken out of context.

Qualifications: None of the head coaches of other teams are jumping on the “failure” bandwagon.  Rather, they publicly acknowledge Coach Belichick as the only person in a position to make the best decision for the team. Those who are excessively critical are operating from an information vacuum and, therefore, are not qualified to determine if the decision was right or wrong.

Again, the same is true in the church.  Pastors and leaders may spend countless hours praying and processing through a decision.  They diligently seek God’s will for the church. Yet they are often called into question by those who lack all the information.

Consumerism: Bottom line - People are not happy with Coach Belichick’s decision.  Likewise, when a pastor is being eviscerated for a decision, the core of the criticism is “people” are not happy with it. 

Make no mistake - consumerism is alive and well in the church today.  I have been told by a church board member that the people who give their money to the church should get what they want out of the church.  Conversely, I’ve been told by a pastor that the only way he survives the burden of leadership is by making decisions based on what will make the largest number of people happy.

Accountability: This goes hand in hand with consumerism.  The truth is, most pastors have no problem being held accountable for their relationship with God, their relationship with other Christians, and their relationship with unchurched people.  Their “resistance” to accountability stems from the reality that being “held accountable” has become synonymous with making the members of the church happy.

The Problem with Church Government: This will be a topic for a future post.  For now, many forms of church government are contributing elements to the burden of leadership. 

High stress, Burnout, Job fatigue, depression, and even walking away from their calling are very common among pastor’s today.  Much of this occupational stress is brought on by interacting with the current forms of church government.

Again, I’ll address this more in future posts, and I’ll be sure to include some action oriented material.  However, before taking action it is always good to filter through the symptoms and expose the underlying causes.

In your experience, what are you seeing?  What are your observations of the contributing factors to the increasing burden on church leadership?


Alan Chandler is a Consultant Partner with Church Doctor Ministries, a full-service church consultation ministry dedicated to helping Christians and churches become more effective for the Great Commission, to make disciples of all people.  Alan can be reached at alanchandler@churchdoctor.org