Does Your Church Have a Damaged Pulpit?

Most congregations don’t think about the health of a pulpit.  By that I mean, people simply go to church, listen to a message, decide if it’s helpful, and move on.  Very little thought is given to the unique relationship that is developed between a preacher and the personal filter of the listener.  But when pastoral failure occurs, that unique relationship is traumatized, damaging the pulpit and the way people will listen in the future. Does your church have a damaged pulpit? 

Here are two questions that will provide the answer:

1.  Why Did Your Previous Pastor Leave?

Most often a damaged pulpit will be determined by the circumstances surrounding the departure of a preaching pastor.  In a healthy situation, trust and credibility is developed between a preacher and their congregation. This in turn means that when a sermon is delivered, the congregation will be receptive to what is being taught. When pastoral failure takes place, that trust and acceptance is broken.  This will immediately impact how people will listen to future sermons. Filters of skepticism, distrust, and displaced anger will result from a damaged pulpit, diminishing the rate of success for any future preacher.

2. How Long Has Your “New” Pastor Been Preaching?

Any time a new preaching pastor is hired, a congregation will inevitably compare them to the prior pastor.  If the prior pastor’s departure triggered some level of congregational crisis, the new pastor will be fighting an uphill battle of skepticism and distrust every time they preach.  Studies have shown that if this isn’t handled in a proper and public way, the rate of success for any new pastor will be limited.  If your new preaching pastor has been in place longer than 2 years, then quite possibly a transition has taken place and pulpit trust re-established.  But if your lead pastor is relatively new, then your church may still be at risk and the future yet to be determined. It doesn’t have to be a “wait and see” process! There are practical steps that can be taken to ensure future success.

 Solution: It is important to note that a damaged pulpit can be repaired and trust re-established by incorporating a 3-step biblical preaching process.

To find out more about how this works, contact us at Revive Consulting for a free consultation. We are here to provide assistance and support for your current leadership challenge.