Wednesday, May 19, 2010

27 Tough Questions Pastors Ask


27 Tough Questions Pastors Ask is a new book by Dick Hardy that is written specifically to help pastors...well...answer some tough questions that come up in ministry. This book gets right to the issues (the 27 questions) and doesn't bother with extra filler. I like that.

Each chapter is concise, direct and unapologetic for the responses to these very tough questions that tons of pastors regularly deal with. The book is divided into sections about:
  • Leadership & Management
  • Staffing
  • Conflict Management
  • Discipleship
  • Budget & Finance
  • Hospitality
This Book Is Not Just for Pastors

Obviously this book is designed for a small target audience of professional ministers. However, I think the book is a fantastic resource for those outside of professional ministry as well. Because, as it turns out, the solution to a great deal of a pastor's headaches rests upon the people they are leading. The regular church member. You. And me.

Pastors don't have to deal with unruly board members if the board members are sold out to their vision. They don't have to figure out how to not be undermined by congregation members if their congregation trusts them. Pastors won't have the same development and discipleship issues if the members realize how much responsibility they should personally have in the process. The examples go on and on.

Except for the chapters about staffing and budgeting, nearly everything else in this book can be applied to regular church members...if you have any interest in assisting your pastor & leadership team to make your church better off.

Which I'd hope you have interest in doing.

So yes, though this is an excellent resource for professional ministers, it's also incredibly valuable to anyone who just wants to give their Pastor, Pastors, church staff, volunteer leaders, etc a break and get on their side instead of unknowingly being a roadblock.

You can check out this book at the website of Dick Hardy's consulting company http://www.thehardygroup.org