Ministry Nuts and Bolts: What They Don't Teach Pastors in Seminary

by Aubrey M. Malphurs

Publisher:

Kregel

, 1997

Overview

Many seminary graduates envision ministry as ninety-five percent preaching and five percent for everything else: weddings, funerals, visitation, and board meetings. The pastor's preaching and teaching ministry is often viewed as the primary vehicle for discipleship and outreach. Most pastors, however, do not and cannot devote extensive time to preparation for preaching or teaching and find that their enthusiasm for ministry is sapped by a sense of confusion and frustration. A careful analysis of the primary areas of struggle for pastors reveals that pastoral training programs have neglected four foundational ministry concepts—values, mission, vision, and strategy. Pastors and congregations often fail to agree upon a set of core values that provide unity. A lack of direction indicates a corresponding lack of mission. And a church without either core values or mission will lack both a vision and a strategy to minister to the surrounding culture. As a church planter, pastor, and seminary professor, Aubrey Malphurs examines those four vital concepts and demonstrates how to implement them in local church ministry. Ministry Nuts and Bolts provides the pastor or parachurch leader with a step-by-step guide for developing the basics needed to lead a ministry into the twenty-first century. As the author observes, "The evangelical churches that God is blessing in north America have carefully thought through [values, mission, vision, and strategy]. Thus, it behooves the rest of the churches to learn from their examples and pursue the same if the future church is to have maximum impact for the savior in the third millennium.

Key Features

• A step-by-step guide for developing the basics needed to lead a ministry into the twenty-first century
• Examines four vital concepts and demonstrates how to implement them in local church ministry
• Completely interactive with your Logos library
• All Scripture references appear on mouse-over

Contents

Top Highlights

“I define a ministry mission as: a broad, brief, biblical statement of what the organization is supposed to be doing. This definition contains five essential elements.” (Page 63)

“If a ministry’s core values are to guide it through difficult times of transition, those values must not be in transition. If the values drive the ministry and if they change every other year, then the ministry will constantly be changing directions.” (Page 21)

“How short is brief? I believe that a good mission statement can and should be no more than a single sentence.” (Page 65)

“Aspirational values are beliefs that you or your ministry don’t own but would like to.” (Page 31)

“The fourth foundational ministry concept is strategy. Every church has a strategy” (Page 10)

Praise for the Print Edition

If your church or organization is going through a mission or vision planning stage, I strongly encourage you to invest in this book. This book was written from pastor's view-point with the layperson in mind. I highly recommend Ministry Nuts and Bolts.

—Mike Hilger, Enrichment

Product Details

• Title: Ministry Nuts and Bolts: What They Don't Teach Pastors in Seminary
• Author: Aubrey Malphurs
• Edition: 2nd
• Publisher: Kregel Publications
• Publication Date: 1997
• Pages: 192

About Aubrey M. Malphurs

Dr. Malphurs is a visionary with a deep desire to influence a new generation of leaders through his classroom, pulpit, consulting, and writing ministries. He is involved in a number of ministries ranging from church planting and growth to leadership development. He has pastored three churches and is the author of numerous books and articles on leadership and church ministry. Currently he is the president of the Malphurs Group and is a trainer and consultant to churches, denominations, and ministry organizations throughout North America and Europe. His research and teaching interests include church planting, church growth, and leadership development.