• Bi-Vocational Ministry

    October 6, 2009

    Life on the Vine practices what we (I feel a bit more justified in the “we” since Amy and I officially became members last Sunday!) call bi-vocational ministry and a number of us met last Friday to discuss it.

    Some may take issue with the phrase bi-vocational, arguing that followers of Jesus, who may have multiple occupations, actually have a singular vocation – living as a Christian witness or something like that and I’d say that’s understandable.  However, if it passes to understand vocation as “a compensated way in which our singlular calling gets lived out” I think it’s just as easy to defend an argument for bi-vocational Christians.

    That’s all actually kind of beside the point.  Here were our main talking points and my summary from our time together last Friday (via an article written by DF)…

    1) Bi-vocational ministry breeds congregational participation in the life of a church.

    When those who lead a church community are bi-vocational, they are more easily seen as those entrusted to guide and direct, as opposed to “get everything done.”  This returns ministry to its rightful place, the corporate body.

    2) Bi-vocational ministry guards against excessive organization and programming.

    Without full-time people to create and maintain all sorts of programming options, the life of a congregation is able to be more relational and organic, drawing on the heart and commitment of the community.

    3) Bi-vocational ministry fosters a church culture that is outward focused.

    Bi-vocational ministry affords those who lead local church communities the opportunity to invest more of their time and energy in the marketplace.  This, in turn, serves as a model for the rest of the congregation of living out a faithful witness in all areas of life.

    This didn’t come up, perhaps because it’s so obvious, but when those who serve church congregations as leaders can supplement their income with alternative sources of revenue, more money is freed up for the community to meet the needs of others.

    I tend to agree with these statements, but as a friend brought up in the course of discussion, embracing an ecclesiology which practices bi-vocationalism probably makes for all-around healthier churches and healthier pastors.  The reason is that the inverse of these marks is typically true.  Having full-time paid pastors stymies congregational participation in the life of church communities (why do it when you have people that you pay to do it?), encourages excessive organization and programming (afterall, if you’re paid full-time, you have to come up with stuff to do), and fosters an inward focused church culture (because apparently being a ‘professional’ minister is what those who are really serious about their faith do!).

    Can you practice an ecclesiology predicated on one or multiple full-time paid staff that accomplishes the same ends as this bi-vocational vision?  I am quite sure that many people will read this and try to make the case that multiple full-time paid staff just have that much more time to give to doing just that.  The problem is that the medium doesn’t match the message.  I think this is what we are after at Life on the Vine – embodying a style of congregational leadership that itself communicates (if not necessitates) our commitment to fostering a church in which the responsibility for equipping people for ministry to one another and the world falls to the body and not paid professionals.

    Lots of discussion to be had on this topic, so I am interested and anxious for feedback, pushback, and further thoughts and questions.

    Related Posts

    1. Bi-Vocational Ministry & the Missional Church
    2. Bi-Vocational Ministry & Theological Education
    3. Bi-Vocational Ministry & Support Raising

    Posted in: bi-vocational, church, community, discipleship, leadership, LOV, money, theology

Recent Comments

  • Ryan said...

    1

    JR,

    Thanks for the post and your thoughts. I'm currently attempting to do this bi-vocational thing (and have been for 15 months) as I am trying to start a church. My partner in this ministry is also doing this. While there are clearly some benefits to this (being "in" the business world, etc), it is not a walk in the park. I can see it being sustainable only if you have a large team of leaders who all embrace sacrificially serving a church above and beyond their typical work week… and even then I think the church would still be best served by having some people put full attention to it. Currently I am investing 80 hours a week into work (real estate) and church. It is not sustainable. I may not be doing it correctly, but I am having a difficult time figuring out what that would look like. The cost of living here in San Francisco (where I live / work) is high and the amount of energy it takes to start a church from scratch is enormous.

    The other thing that happens is that in bi-vocational settings it is hard to do anything really well. My ability to teach gets severely limited because my study time is severely limited. If I had a family it would put enormous pressure on the family.

    I may be only one poor example, but I don't think the bi-vocational approach to ministry is the silver bullet. It may work better in certain settings than others and for people with particular gift mixes… but, as for me, I long to have the freedom to fully express my gifts and calling full time.

    10/6/09 8:18 PM | Comment Link

  • Dennis Bickers said...

    2

    Good comments JR. Most who serve in bivocational ministry notice that members of their churches are often more willing to be involved in ministry than those who are served by fully-funded pastors. Now, this doesn't happen automatically, and it requires that they be equipped to do ministry (Eph. 4), but it does happen, and it often leads to a healther church.

    Ryan, if you are doing 80 hours a week it is not sustainable. I have never started a new church so I can't speak to that. I can only imagine that it requires a great amount of time and energy, but no one can consistently put in 80 hours a week and maintain any sense of balance in his life. I served as a bivocational pastor of a church for 20 years and have now been a bivocational judicatory leader for the past 8 years. I learned the hard way what can happen if a bivocational minister does not maintain some balance. I tried to put in too many hours for too long a time and experienced clinical depression as a result. Please take care of yourself and be available for ministry for a long, long time.

    10/7/09 4:23 AM | Comment Link

  • Dennis Bickers said...

    3

    I think bivocational ministry is a great calling of God on a person's life. It is certainly a biblical model of doing ministry, and for much of the history of our nation it was a common form of ministry. The numbers of bivocational ministers are growing in nearly every denomination, and judicatory leaders I speak to predict those numbers will only keep going up.

    10/7/09 4:24 AM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    4

    Hey Ryan. Thanks for taking the time to comment. I'm encouraged to hear about your perseverance in bi-vocational ministry.

    I suppose I am taking for granted a sort of Sabbath mentality. By that I mean, predetermining a sustainable pace and style of life with room for rest and then make whatever decisions and sacrifices are necessary to live into it. In my mind, sustainably leading others bi-vocationally IS the win, not some other thing that is supposed to result from that decision. For the results oriented person (and I am not saying this is you), bi-vocational ministry is the worst possible idea. Everything happens slower. Often, the real problem is that we have been formed and shaped to have unrealistic expectations of church growth and how we are to spend our time. But, I am pretty convinced, that while the silver bullet doesn't even exist, this brand of faithful service is simply better suited to cultivating healthier communities.

    10/7/09 4:18 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    5

    Hi Dennis, thanks for stopping by and for your thoughts. While I think it's a good thing that the numbers of bi-vocational ministers are growing across denominations, I cannot help but assume that it's not because people are discovering it as missional model of Christian leadership that serves to cultivate healthier communities, but because most denominations are hemorrhaging members making it harder and harder to pay, let alone add, full-time staff. Whatever the case, I pray that God uses it as a means of redeeming the Church in the West.

    10/7/09 4:22 PM | Comment Link

  • Reclaiming the Mission » Bi-vocational or go on staff at a large church: Suddenly bi-vocational ministry doesn’t look so bad? said...

    6

    [...] See JR’s report on the Friday nite conversation here. [...]

    10/7/09 12:57 PM | Comment Link

  • Babs said...

    7

    This is a tough situtation. My dad was a bi-vocational pastor growing up. His life was work and church. Granted he made it to most of my games and was there in the really tough times. When he finally was able to pastor a church and do ministry full-time, things changed. His health and well-being changed knowing he was doing God's call. I agree with Bickers when he says to "take care of yourself." I don't ever recall my dad taking a week off of both vocations at the same time and it showed. He still has a hard time taking a vacation. I think that this is mainly because of his results/succes oriented personality. Most, if not all, of the pastors I have met have this tendency. It is hard to not want to be the best in both being a pastor and being in the marketplace.

    10/8/09 4:17 PM | Comment Link

  • Babs said...

    8

    My recommendation is that if you decide on bi-vocation, that your rest and breaks are consistent every week and time off of both at the same time happens often. And when you take time off, take time off. You wouldn't bug someone in the congregation when they are vacation, and neither should they. Turn the cell phone and computer off . Sit and read a novel. Yes, a novel JR. Something that's fiction that's a story that has nothing to do with strategy. leadership or planning. The Hobbit's a good start (haha). If the world ends, well, your going to heaven anyways. That's my soap box.

    If you do move forward in bi-vocation, keep the things written on this blog post in mind. If you keep God's Will at the forefront, he won't let you screw too much up.

    10/8/09 4:17 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    9

    Hey Babs. Yeah, I think it's a way different deal when you are thinking of a church community being led by a team of bi-vocational folks as opposed to putting a lot of pressure on one guy – which, I think, was the case with your dad, but I may have that wrong. I say a hearty, "Oh yeah!" to your last sentence – especially for driven people. Again, something that I think the right team and a healthy theology of finding our identity in Christ and not what we do for Christ can help with in big ways.

    10/8/09 5:04 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    10

    HEY! I do believe that it was I who recommended a novel to you recently, so there. And Amy and I have the collected Chronicles of Narnia sitting on our night stand for some good bedtime story-telling!

    10/8/09 5:06 PM | Comment Link

  • geoff holslcaw said...

    11

    JR,
    great post and summary. I wish I was there.

    the observations I have made over the last couple years of trying this:
    1) i've noticed that bi-vocational ministry is not for everyone. Whether it is because of temperament (either too motivated or not enough) or calling. I think some vocational callings doesn't fit being bi-vocational. I used to think anyone could do it, but I'm not so sure now.
    2) Bi-vocationalism can't be forced either. It is can't be done sustainable then it shouldn't be done. if your work not paying the bills, or taking up too much time, then maybe God is not leading you into it right now, even if you agree with the grounds/goals of bi-vocationalism.
    3) given the above, lastly, bi-vocationalism is unhelpfully discussed in the abstract. each individual person has to discern what it might look like, whether it fits with what God is doing in ones life, and how in faith one will move forward.

    but given all this, I definitely support bi-vocationalism for all the reasons above.

    thanks JR

    10/8/09 7:59 PM | Comment Link

  • Dennis Bickers said...

    12

    I like what Geoff says about calling. A person should go into bivocational ministry because he or she is called to it, not because a church doesn't have enough money to pay for a fully-funded minister. Persons are called to bivocational work and fully-funded work, and both callings are equally valid. I know a bivocational minister who served a church that averaged 600 people on Sundays. The church had 5-6 associate ministers, all of whom were bivocational by choice. The pastor said in an article that it is a sin for a church to call a pastor to do the ministry of the church when ministry is everyone's responsibility. The pastor and staff took seriously that their role was to train the saints to do the work of ministry, and they believed that was best done as bivocational ministers.

    10/9/09 3:14 AM | Comment Link

  • Babs said...

    13

    crap, that just completely blew up. anyways it was good fun why it lasted.

    10/9/09 7:12 PM | Comment Link

  • Jason Coker said...

    14

    Hmm. Good post. I can only share my experience so far, for whatever it's worth.

    At Ikon we're committed to a non-professional leadership – meaning nobody is supported in any measure. I have a full time secular job and have made it clear that our church plant is not in a horse race to bring me (or anyone else) on staff. I realize this is only my experience, but in my case this has been a tremendous source of liberation. Frankly, I work far less than I ever did as a full-time (well-paid) pastor on staff at a larger church, and in my case I think the reason is this: I don't see myself as having two jobs or two vocations. I have have one job and one vocation. This is where I suppose I may take small issue with the choice of "bi-vocational" as a phrase and an approach. I think it may communicate an expectation for an unsustainable lifestyle.

    Here's what I mean: In my experience those folks who have struggled 60-80 hours a week under the burden of being bi-vocational (like some of the comments reflected above) were still laboring under the inherent pressure of a professional ministry mantle – meaning they were working one of their vocations (namely, the ministry) as though they were a paid professional minister (and, unlike at LOTV, this usually this isn't an intentional choice made by a clearly stated value – more often it's a grudging choice made by a financial shortfall in the church. There's a huge difference between the two). This inherently conveys a powerful expectation of performing at a significantly higher level of commitment than others in the congregation.

    As someone said above, that's just not sustainable – but the solution to non-sustainability doesn't necessarily have to be total professionalization; that is, one person spending all their working time on the church. Rather, a solution could be total non-professionalization, meaning everyone spends whatever extra resources they have on the church. Naturally (and circumstantially) for some this will be more, and for others it will be less depending on capacity and availability. But if the burden is truly shared then there's no reason why the church can't be run effectively by volunteers who submit to a community of equality. Ministry, then, truly becomes everyone's vocation regardless of their job. Other organizations do this successfully.

    Of course, for us at Ikon that means the church must be be willing to develop more slowly – and even risk perhaps not developing at all. If everyone at Ikon doesn't pitch in to make something happen, then it may very well not happen. I would rather we fail as a group than succeed on the unhealthy sacrifices of one person or one family.

    10/10/09 6:41 AM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    15

    I am with you Jason. I would love to share in a living out of the vision of a church community w/o paid staff. Of course, all sorts of new dynamics are at play if that's the model you are trying to implement, but I'd say it's the right sort of tough road. And you are absolutely right, being faithfully and sustainably bi-vocational necessitates the death of a certain paradigm of church and ministry. Thanks for your thoughts.

    10/10/09 3:13 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    16

    Good additions Geoff. I get ya and agree. I would probably want to be a little careful about connecting a bi-vocational vision and the the idea of "calling." Might be too easy for people to say, "God has gifted me to preach, teach, lead a band, etc. so I should do that (aka 'feel called') full-time if I can."

    I suppose a second layer of what I am saying here is that we are all called to use whatever gifts and passions God has given us "full-time," but when that equates to drawing a full-time salary from a church community – especially when that church community exists in a hyper-consumeristic context – it does a disservice to both that person and the community they are a part of.

    To those who are either "too motivated or not enough," I would say the problem is the degree to which God has redeemed their motivation, not necessarily their calling.

    I guess what it's coming down to for me as I think about this is that inasmuch as the paradigm of single or multiple full-time paid staff hinders both personal discipleship and community formation, I have a hard time seeing how that would ever be God's calling. Note: That is not the same as saying that those who choose to serve in full-time paid church ministry are outside of God's will, just that the "God has this calling on my life" defense doesn't hold much water for me.

    10/10/09 3:33 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    17

    Dennis, see my response to Geoff on this notion of calling.

    I am simply not one who is quick to look to "callings" for any and every important decision that we need to make. In my experience, the notion of "calling" is typically something people hide behind and use for their own personal comfort. I wonder why more people don't feel called to sell all their possessions and give them to the poor? Or to go the route of Jason (below) and give their lives to the development of the body of Christ for no pay whatsoever?

    10/10/09 3:40 PM | Comment Link

  • Gus Macaulay said...

    18

    Hi there, I'm a 'bivocational' pastor in Scotland and have been following the various helpful comments. I wrote a short paper I can e-mail anyone on achieving 'balance' in bivocational ministry and staying healthy. I'm a lawyer heading up a family law dept and also have three young children, and help lead a growing Baptist church. Life is never boring and at times, far too hectic. Balance, margin, boundaries and priorities are all key. If you get the balance right, everyone wins. As soon as you're spinning plates, or juggling things, you've lost soemthing of the holistic nature of the call and who you're meant to be. I've a Twitter page called Bivocational where I post articles from time to time that might be of interest. Blessings to you, Gus.

    10/19/09 3:29 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    19

    Thanks for stopping by Gus. I would love to read the short paper you mentioned and I am sure others would as well. Can you upload it somewhere (Box.net, drop.io, divshare or something like that) and provide a link so that so one has to open themselves up to spam by putting their email address out there? Thanks.

    10/19/09 3:40 PM | Comment Link

  • Gus Macaulay said...

    20

    Hi there – I'm afraid all the suggestions were lost on me!! Through my law firm, Inksters, which has a website called inksters.com , I can be contacted by e-mail. If you e-mail me there, and I reply with the document, would that be OK? Feel free to let me know. Blessings to you, Gus.

    10/20/09 3:32 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    21

    For all those who have commented on this post, I wanted to make you aware of an article written by one of our commenters, Gus Macaulay, Bivocational Ministry: An Introduction to Some of the Issues Involved in Bivocational Ministry for Pastors and Churches. You can view and download the pdf of the article here, http://bit.ly/1TCyeb. Enjoy and thanks Gus.

    10/21/09 1:40 PM | Comment Link

  • Deb said...

    22

    I was raised by what we called in the '60's a "tent maker". Dad pastored a church and taught in the High School. Sadly – they still saw him as the pastor – too traditional then to step up and take responsiblity – but Dad brought a lot of people to Jesus and many more to at least question Christianities validity. His life was Solid – unquestionable – and his life at the school was many times more ministry than at the Church. I still have friends from my HS contact me, because Of Dad. I think you are on the right track – and I think that my Denomination should seriously consider it – but it will take a while.
    Love you and I have your back!!

    10/21/09 5:29 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    23

    :) Thanks. Can't think of anyone I'd rather have watching my back.

    10/21/09 8:00 PM | Comment Link

  • lifeasmission » Top Posts of 2009 » exploring the mystery of life and mission as one and the same said...

    24

    [...] Bi-Vocational Ministry [...]

    12/28/09 12:31 PM | Comment Link

  • Terry Dorsett said...

    25

    Thanks for speaking up for bivocational ministry. Consider making your readers aware of my new book.
    Developing Leadership Teams in the Bivocational Church, published by Crossbooks, a division of Lifeway. http://www.crossbooks.com/BookStore/BookStoreBook…

    08/14/10 7:58 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    26

    Thanks for stppoing by Terry. Your book looks interesting – hope to give it a look.

    08/15/10 10:25 PM | Comment Link

  • Juliet said...

    27

    I'm wondering if you know any women who are also mothers who have had a good experience with bi-vocational ministry. I am trying to imagine it as part of my life right now and feel like if I could just sit down with a room full of women who have had to make this journey, I could have a better picture of what it would be like.

    07/6/11 1:36 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    28

    That is a great question. Of course our mutual friend in Cyd comes to mind. Amy actually may have some examples as well. Have you heard of Helen Lee? She wrote a book called, "The Missional Mom." She is here in Chicago and would be a good conversation partner.

    I'd venture to say that the "success" of mom's being able to live out a life of bi-vocational ministry will be directly proportional to the willingness of their husbands to structure their lives in such a way that this is actually a possibility. Dad's who have all their identity in their careers won't be able to lend the right kinds of support. For my part, as someone who believes that all ministry should be shared by gifted men and women, I think we need to see way more examples of families and communities allowing the contours of life in God's Kingdom to determine the shape of their lives, which would translate, presumably, into seeing more women encouraged and supported into bi-vocational lives as pastors and Christian leaders.

    07/6/11 3:34 PM | Comment Link

  • Rusty W. said...

    29

    Loved your article. Especially since I myself am bi-vocational. Even though I didn't read the comments listed, you brought up valid commentary in the post. I would also add that there is good Scriptural support for financing the work of ministry. However, nothing such as a salaried paid position seems likely. More along the lines of part-time, occasional support.
    My recent post 5 Hallmarks of Religious People

    07/6/11 4:20 PM | Comment Link

  • Juliet said...

    30

    I also thought of Cyd, and Geoff is a great example of a husband who structures his life in order to support her in her ministry. My husband is too….however, while his identity isn't tied up in his career, it's still a job that requires him to be at work five days a week for 8-9 hours, rather than a job where he can work a lot from home (like Geoff). On the other hand, it is also a job that pays the bills well enough that I don't really "have to" earn a paycheck. I'll have to look into Helen Lee…..I've heard the book mentioned a number of times.

    Thanks for replying to my comment! I hope to see more women following God's lead into missionally-shaped ministry too.

    07/6/11 8:13 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    31

    Hey Rusty. Yeah, there's plenty of biblical precedent for various forms of "financing ministry." I am not sure that I would approach what we find there in a prescriptive way – as though we need to only ever do exactly what we see done in the Bible. Rather, I think we begin with the description that we see and seek to faithfully apply it to our given context. In other words, just because we don't see FT salaried support in the Bible doesn't necessarily mean that this system is automatically wrong. It just means that we need to ask questions about the appropriateness of this model when it comes to how we understand the nature and role of the church as it seeks to incarnate itself in a given culture.

    07/7/11 1:18 PM | Comment Link

  • Rusty W. said...

    32

    I'm not sure why would we not look to the Bible for how to do things if the Bible is our final authority, not only in matters of faith, but also in matters of practice. I would place a bit more theological significance in the distinctive practices of the apostolic church.

    07/7/11 2:12 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    33

    I am probably with you on what I assume is your heart on this matter. A desire to do things "just like they did it in the Bible," has a ring of Christian passion and faithfulness to it that is hard to ignore, but there are at least 3 things to consider here that I don't think we can overlook.

    First, I would say that chief among the practices of the apostolic church is exactly what I am proposing here – contextualization. The apostles were faithful to Jesus precisely because they refused to do things, "just like they did it in the Bible." The inbreaking of the Kingdom of God in and through Jesus called for a renewed understanding of God's design for his people and the apostles are to be emulated, in some instances for what they did (preaching, teaching, praying, sharing, sacrificing, etc.), but more so for how they did it – by responding to what God was doing in their midst and responding appropriately.

    The second thing that I would want to keep in mind is very closely related. It's the idea that God's Holy Spirit is just as fervently at work today, leading, guiding, directing, revealing, as it was in the time of the apostles. I would venture to suggest that if they could speak to us today, the main refrain of the apostles to us would be, "Don't follow us – follow the Spirit!" Or, at least something very close to the actual words of the apostle Paul, "Follow me as I follow Christ" – who if of course our prime example of what it means and looks like to follow the Spirit.

    The last thing I would mention is the problem of interpretation. Everybody and their brother tends to think that their way of reading the Bible is the right way, ya know? So you read something and think you have the right view of how to do something and someone else, just as sincere, reads the same thing and interprets/applies it differently. The point here is that communal discernment is needed and the desire to "just do it like they did it in the Bible," as good as it sounds, just doesn't end up getting us as far as we would like it to.

    Hope that clarifies what I'm saying a bit. These are the senses in which I would want to focus on following the "apostolic pattern." It's not that I don't think the Bible is authoritative for life and ministry. It's just that I think faithfulness to the kind of authority God means for the Bible to have in our lives entails discernment w/ regard to the leading of the Spirit in the midst of context, culture, and community.

    07/7/11 2:45 PM | Comment Link

  • abf2011 said...

    34

    apostolic pattern was the word I was looking for…recapturing the intimacy, simplicity, accountability and dynamic of first century church life.

    07/7/11 4:21 PM | Comment Link

  • ThirstyJon said...

    35

    I would submit that there is heaps of evidence in the New Testament (and Old) of ministers being paid full-time. (Rusty and jrrosko, I said much more about this on the Rusty's facebook post.)

    Paul refers to the "other apostles" as being paid full time. Jesus appeared to be paid full time.

    Of course, in our culture "paid" means receiving a paycheck. Their pay may have been at least some in the form of "provision." (Resources)

    I can see the strategic value in some contexts (as described in your article) of following different models, but I don't believe it is accurate to say that the Bible emphasizes part time or not getting paid. I would say that it actually very clearly teaches the opposite.

    I would have to experiment with "bi vocational" church planters to find out if it would really work better, but I can see the reasoning in this article. We do live in a time where people need to be discipled "from scratch" and modeling "making a living" may be an important part of the church planting process. We also live in a time where popular Christian culture wants everyone to "get in line" with the "pastor's" vision and things become hierarchical . I can see the potential value of a "come along side" type church planter / church leader in this situation – a leader who is "one of us."

    07/7/11 4:58 PM | Comment Link

  • jrrozko said...

    36

    Good thoughts, thanks for joining the conversation Jon.

    07/7/11 6:03 PM | Comment Link

Leave A Comment

Mail (will not be published) (required)