Since His Christian Life Began A Quarter Of A Century Ago, Journalist Stefan Ulstein Had Enjoyed The Company Of Ordained Ministers. But He Noticed That Many Seemed Guarded. Eventually He Realized This Was A Professional Distance, That Ministers Rarely Feel Free To Speak Openly With Laypersons. So He Decided To Interview Pastors - From Canada, The United States And Mexico; Spanning Several Denominations; From Small Rural Churches To Burgeoning Megachurches. Now, With Fascinating, Sometimes Startling Candidness, They Speak Off The Record And Tell What The Ministry Is Really Like, In All Its Anguish And Delight. In These Pages You'll Hear From A Megachurch Minister Who Must Literally Leave The State To Find Time Alone. From A Pastor And Young Parent Who Announced To His Congregation, If Any One Of You Ever Again Comes To Me With A Criticism Of My Kids And Says, 'after All, They Are The Pastor's Kids, ' I'll Nail You To The Wall. I Will Not Have My Kids Growing Up To Hate My Job Or My God. From An Inner-city Minister Lamenting The Difficulty Of Reaching Gang Members: It's Hard To Watch Kids Ruin Their Lives And Finally Come To The Church In A Coffin. This Is A Unique And Desperately Needed Book That Will Encourage Working Pastors, Inform Prospective Ministers, And Help The Man And Woman In The Pew To Better Understand And Appreciate Their Pastor. Personal Stress. The Meter Is Always Running -- Like A Diesel Engine Without A Governor -- I Felt My Life Had Been Thirty-two Years Of Fraud -- No Blueprints. Keeping Up With Rapid Growth -- Hanging On In The Inner City -- Baby Boomers And The Talking Bush -- Sin, Not Skin -- Pastoring A Mexican Church -- If Bigger Is Better ... -- Living In The Shadow Of The Big Churches -- Why Should God Give Us Converts? -- Splitting Up. The Bishop Wanted A Different Outreach -- Tradition Was Like A God -- Serving All Faiths. Ministering To A Transient Population -- I Don't Tell Them Where I Live -- Tell The Parents Their Son Has Been Killed -- Staying Open. Never Forget Your Calling -- Becoming Transparent -- When My Wife Left, It Was Not A Surprise -- Maintaining The Standards Of A Holy God -- Bearing Burdens. Their Biggest Need Is What I Was Instructed To Ignore -- Let My People Grow -- Don't Deny My People's Pain -- Seeing Indian People Delivered -- Maintaining A Witness In The Glitter -- Sometimes The Pain Is That Close To The Surface -- The Sixty-seventh Book -- Keeping The Faith. The Only Church In Town -- Christ Is In History, And So Is The Church -- It Was A Surprise For Us All -- A Career Is Not The Same As A Calling -- Life And Death In The City -- No Students Are Shoppers. Stefan Ulstein.

Stefan Ulstein

IVP Academic

IVP Connect

United States, United States of America

US, 1993

Obscured text on front cover due to sticker.

246 pages ; 21 cm
Since his Christian life began a quarter of a century ago, journalist Stefan Ulstein had enjoyed the company of ordained ministers. But he noticed that many seemed guarded. Eventually he realized this was a "professional distance," that ministers rarely feel free to speak openly with laypersons. So he decided to interview pastors - from Canada, the United States and Mexico; spanning several denominations; from small rural churches to burgeoning megachurches. Now, with fascinating, sometimes startling candidness, they speak off the record and tell what the ministry is really like, in all its anguish and delight. In these pages you'll hear from a megachurch minister who must literally leave the state to find time alone. From a pastor and young parent who announced to his congregation, "If any one of you ever again comes to me with a criticism of my kids and says, 'After all, they are the pastor's kids, ' I'll nail you to the wall. I will not have my kids growing up to hate my job or my God." From an inner-city minister lamenting the difficulty of reaching gang members: "It's hard to watch kids ruin their lives and finally come to the church in a coffin." This is a unique and desperately needed book that will encourage working pastors, inform prospective ministers, and help the man and woman in the pew to better understand and appreciate their pastor
Personal stress. The meter is always running -- Like a diesel engine without a governor -- I felt my life had been thirty-two years of fraud -- No blueprints. Keeping up with rapid growth -- Hanging on in the inner city -- Baby boomers and the talking bush -- Sin, not skin -- Pastoring a Mexican church -- If bigger is better ... -- Living in the shadow of the big churches -- Why should God give us converts? -- Splitting up. The bishop wanted a different outreach -- Tradition was like a God -- Serving all faiths. Ministering to a transient population -- I don't tell them where I live -- Tell the parents their son has been killed -- Staying open. Never forget your calling -- Becoming transparent -- When my wife left, it was not a surprise -- Maintaining the standards of a holy God -- Bearing burdens. Their biggest need is what I was instructed to ignore -- Let my people grow -- Don't deny my people's pain -- Seeing Indian people delivered -- Maintaining a witness in the glitter -- Sometimes the pain is that close to the surface -- The sixty-seventh book -- Keeping the faith. The only church in town -- Christ is in history, and so is the church -- It was a surprise for us all -- A career is not the same as a calling -- Life and death in the city -- No students are shoppers

2023-06-28