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[Dallas Themshirts]

Withoutpointing fingers at any one church or institution, why do churches and other Christian organizations seem to handle employee relationships so poorly? Or is it that Christian employees have unreasonable expectations of their employers? Why do apparently good, well-meaning, Christian people seem to struggle on both sides of the employer-employee relationship?

But I also know that churches and church organizations have not always lived up to their calling, have brought harm instead of healing. So I started this website to share resources for doing ministry better, and pray that together we might serve more faithfully and effectively.

April Yamasaki, 2016-2024. The views expressed on When You Work for the Church are my own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or denomination. Please feel free to share any of my posts as long as you credit the original source, and if online, please include a link to my original article. For other copyright questions including reprint rights in anthologies or other publications, please contact me. Thank you for your interest!

I was presented with an opportunity to move to Louisville with my wife at the time to run the program at his brand new church. As a 25-year-old, I was excited, but still smart enough to find out all the details. He sent over paperwork saying that the church would provide an apartment for us as well as pay us a handsome salary that was triple anything I had ever made before.

With the opportunity to return to my home state and to have financial stability doing what I enjoyed, I jumped at the chance. Tony contacted me and told me not to worry about bringing all of my old mix-and-match furniture, as they would be fully furnishing my place. I was in heaven.

If you think he was done there, guess again. A few weeks after I moved, I received papers saying that he was suing me for the remaining cost of rent and for misrepresenting myself as someone who could do this job. Shockingly enough, Tony is no longer in ministry and his wife left him. I wonder what happened to his faith?

After a little time away repairing myself both mentally and emotionally, I got an offer to run another ministry program at the church where I had been a ministry student in Ohio. I was overjoyed by the chance to head up the exact program that had previously had such an impact on my life. We moved, and everything went great for the first year.

He explained her feelings and issued an apology like some sort of contract negotiation, then asked if I would be OK to drive her home. I told him it would be fine. As soon as I got in the car I asked when she was leaving. She looked at me perplexed and asked what I meant. Apparently she thought I was going to let her plow my intern and then just hug her and go on about my day. I made it clear that I wanted nothing else to do with her ever again, much to her surprise.

At this point, I was done working for churches. I moved down to Orlando for a fresh start and got a place with a couple of my friends. While unsuccessfully searching for a job, I ended up volunteering at the giant megachurch where my roommate worked. That eventually led to me getting hired as part of the staff there. These churches run like well-oiled machines, at least on the surface. Services are like rock concerts, and the thousands in attendance leave in awe.

What if the solution for the decline of today's church isn't more money, people, programs, innovation, or busyness?

What if the answer is to stop and wait on God?

In When Church Stops Working, ministry leaders Andrew Root and Blair Bertrand show how actively watching and listening for God can bring life out of death for churches in crisis today. Using clear steps and practices, they invite church leaders to stop the endless cycle of doing more and rather to simply "be" in God's presence. They tell the story of two congregations who did this--and found new life in the process.

When Church Stops Working distills the core themes of Root's critically acclaimed Ministry in a Secular Age series in a more accessible form. Leaders and churchgoers who are burned out and hopeless will experience affirmation, encouragement, and empowerment as Root and Bertrand turn to the book of Acts as well as examples from contemporary congregational life to show what "active" waiting looks like and the saving grace it can hold.

Contents

1. Why Your Church Has a Problem, but It Isn't What You Think

2. Busy People, Busy Church--A Killer Cocktail

3. Stop All the Having and Just Be

4. It's Time to Wait, but for What?

5. Waiting Brings Life, Not a Slow Death

6. Forget the Mission Statement--Get a Watchword

7. Out of the Family Basement

8. Nothing Can Separate You

"There are many books written about the state of the church, and they fall into every literary genre: true crime, romance, science fiction, fantasy, and horror. And if they have the word 'crisis' or 'decline,' they can tip into being self-help, business management, and even home improvement. What I value about this book is that it is theology--as it seeks to address where we are by reminding us of who God is and who we are. Because it puts God in the center, it is a profoundly hope-giving book, engaging us all by diagnosing the real crisis of faith and encouraging us to live alertly and expectantly within that. The church needs teachers like this."

"Andy and Blair have given us a priceless gift. In the midst of ongoing questions about how to respond to church decline, they peel back the layers and help us face the deeper questions about why we are declining. Resisting the temptation to offer superficial tips and tricks, Andy and Blair invite each faith community and believer to wait and listen for the generative faith God has for each of us and our churches. This book will draw every leader and Jesus follower who wonders what could work today into a deeper, more faith-full relationship with the God who is always working."

"There are not many books on what ails the church that I would share with laypeople. This, in fact, might be the only one. Our real crisis--usually misdiagnosed--is that our churches can be great places to hide from God. Root and Bertrand make clear that we must put away our strategies and gimmicks and wait on the Lord all over again. I pray we all would follow this brilliantly antiprogrammatic counsel."

"We're all feeling the crisis of church decline and frantically trying to fix the problem. This groundbreaking book proposes that we've misdiagnosed the problem and that our supposed treatment is actually making things worse. Thankfully, Root and Bertrand offer both a better diagnosis and a helpful, human way forward. Finally, a book that guides the church in practical ways through our actual problem (i.e., trusting in our own action to save the church) to teach us once more to wait upon the God we claim to believe is powerful."

"Churches across the West are in decline and, as a result, are trying to do something about it. Andrew Root and Blair Bertrand explain why this is precisely what they should not do. Rather than attempting to whip up a frenzy of programs and activity, Root and Bertrand point churches back to the mystery and power of God, back to waiting on him to do the things that only he can do. Rejecting pithy slogans and slick approaches, this book challenges us to think first about God's place in our church and, in the process, rediscover just how beautiful her life might become once again."

Andrew Root (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary) is Carrie Olson Baalson Professor of Youth and Family Ministry at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is the author of more than twenty books, including Faith Formation in a Secular Age, The...

Blair D. Bertrand (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary) is a lecturer at Zomba Theological University, teaching consultant with Theological Education by Extension Malawi, and adjunct lecturer at Tyndale University, Toronto. He has served various Presbyterian...

"A well-written, accessible, refreshing entry into the field of congregational development. Its focus on spirituality, relationship, and God certainly speaks to me and the challenges and opportunities I see in my parish, diocese, and church. This could make for an excellent book study for clergy groups, parish councils, or entire congregations. I hope that this book will be widely read and its ideas discussed by people in every order and ministry of the Church."

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