Hire church staff with similar ministry philosophies

One of the most important things in hiring church staff is bringing people together who have a similar philosophy of ministry. If people are working or operating out different ministry philosophies than they will often find themselves moving in different directions which will create conflict and frustration. To many times the subject of ministry philosophy never comes up in an interview process. We talk about past ministry experiences, we talk about their testimony, their heart for the local church, the great commission, we talk about character and personality but often the church or the candidate never talks about their convictions or philosophy when it comes to how a church is to live out its mission.

Whether we realize it or not, we all have a ministry philosophy about how the church should do ministry. Some times that philosophy may be well articulated and thought through, others times it is a subconscious conviction based on past experiences or upbringing. But when one enters into ministry leadership there is a bent that we all lean to. And when multiple people are operating out of multiple philosophies, it will create frustration among leadership and among the congregation.

Good leadership will be constantly coaching their staff in the church culture’s preferred style of ministry. But one of the best ways to ensure unity in ministry approach and direction is to hire those that already share your church’s approach. You will not be having to re-train but simply reinforce. Once someone develops conviction in this area it can be challenging to move them into a new philosophy when they join your staff.

If you are a pastor in the hiring process you may be thinking, “What if my church does not have a defined style of ministry?” Every church has a culture. If has not been formally articulated, then take some time to articulate it. If you are not sure, begin to ask leadership (Elders, Deacons, other staff, ministry leaders). It is important you know your church culture’s convictions and bents in this area.

Every new staff member comes in with expectation on how they want to live out their role. If your philosophy or the church’s philosophy of ministry is different than the new person coming in, the difference will be revealed quickly. This will soon create frustrations with the church and the new hire. Many new hires leave church position because of this one issue.

Whether you are a candidate or a church, address this question early on in the process. If your search team using a questionnaire in your interview process, make this one of the questions you ask. In my past resumes, I have made that one of my areas that I address. I wanted to make sure right upfront that the search team understood my convictions in this area. If there are questions in this area, I want to make sure they are addressed during the interview process and not in the first month on the job.

We can become drawn in by personality during the search process but at the end of the day one of the vital things that will determine a successful hire is if that candidate is aligned to the church’s ministry philosophy.