Practical(ly) Pastoring

In this episode of Practically Pastoring, Andrew, Tim, and Jeff tackle two ministry questions that hit both structure and soul. First, they dig into church constitutions and bylaws, especially what happens when a church’s governing documents were written for an earlier season and now create real bottlenecks for staffing, leadership, and growth. The conversation explores the difference between governance and management, why churches need to follow the bylaws they have before changing them, and how clear communication with the congregation can turn a frustrating process into a healthy teaching moment. 

From there, the guys shift to a question many pastors feel but do not always know how to answer: how do you actually find your people in ministry? If everyone says not to do ministry alone, what do you do when you feel isolated, younger than everyone else in town, and unsure where to start? The discussion gets practical about building friendships on purpose, reaching out before burnout hits, and letting go of the idea that your ministry friends have to be perfect personality matches or exact ministry clones. 

Along the way, the episode offers a helpful reminder that healthy ministry needs both strong systems and real relationships. You can have polished documents and still burn out in isolation, or great friendships and still get tripped up by unclear structures. Faithful ministry requires both clarity and companionship. 

What we cover in this episode

How to know when bylaws are protecting the church and when they are paralyzing it

Why churches should distinguish between major governance decisions and day-to-day ministry management

How to approach bylaw revisions without ignoring the process already in place

Why communication and vision-casting matter when changing governing documents

How isolation in ministry often persists because pastors wait too long to build friendships

Why your people do not have to be your age, your denomination, or your exact ministry role

Simple first steps for building real ministry friendships this week

Why “don’t do ministry alone” requires intention, not just agreement

Sponsors mentioned #sponsored

Church Merch
For mugs, shirts, banners, stickers, and more for your church. PromotionsGuy.com/churchmerch

Preach26
A ministry conference for pastors and church leaders, October 6 through 8 in The Woodlands, Texas, featuring speakers including Dane Ortlund, Brian McCormack, Hakeem Bradley, and more.

Head over to www.preach26.com and use the code [PastorPod] at checkout to get your name entered TWICE in all of the giveaways throughout the conference, including the Wyoming weekend getaway.

In this episode of Practically Pastoring, Andrew, Jeff, and Delmar tackle two timely ministry questions that force pastors to think carefully about doctrine, discipleship, public witness, and pastoral wisdom. The first question centers on baby dedication and what standards churches should use when the family situation is complicated. The guys discuss the difference between dedication and baptism, the importance of grace for new believers, and why churches need clarity before they are forced to make a difficult decision in real time. 

The second question focuses on hosting an interfaith National Day of Prayer event in a church sanctuary. The conversation explores whether sharing church space for a multi-faith prayer gathering strengthens community witness or muddies theological clarity. Along the way, the guys reflect on sacred space, civic involvement, symbolism, and why the location of an event can change the meaning of the event itself. 

This episode is a great reminder that pastors are often asked to make decisions in gray areas without much time, and that faithful ministry usually requires both conviction and compassion, not just one or the other. 

What we cover in this episode

How churches should think about baby dedication versus baptism

Why a baby dedication is often more about parental and congregational commitment than the circumstances of conception

The value of written policies or one-page position papers for difficult pastoral issues

How grace and discipleship should shape the way churches respond to new believers

Why pastors should be careful not to confuse guarding holiness with guarding appearances

Whether hosting an interfaith prayer event in a sanctuary changes the meaning of the event

Why a church building may not be a neutral space when the gathering is explicitly spiritual

How to think about civic prayer events differently from worship-centered events

The challenge of balancing neighborliness, theological clarity, and public witness

Resources mentioned

Church Merch from Promotions Guy
promotionsguy.com/churchmerch

Practically Pastoring Facebook Community
A place for pastors and ministry leaders to ask honest questions, get practical feedback, and avoid doing ministry alone

In this episode of Practically Pastoring, the guys tackle two heavy, real-world ministry situations that require courage, wisdom, and a steady hand. First, they discuss what to do when a staff member or elder appears to mislead the congregation during a church meeting. From Matthew 18 conversations to questions of trust, bitterness, and leadership integrity, the conversation digs into how pastors can respond without blowing up the church in the process.

Then, after a Church Merch ad break, the conversation turns to an even more serious issue, how to respond when a man attending the church is discovered to be on the sex offender registry for a crime involving a minor. The guys talk candidly about grace, consequences, written restrictions, background checks, safety teams, and the church’s responsibility to protect children while still offering a path for supervised fellowship and discipleship.

This episode is a reminder that pastoring is not just preaching and handshakes in the lobby. Sometimes it means stepping into awkward, uncomfortable, necessary conversations for the good of the flock. 

What we cover in this episode

How to address a misleading statement made publicly in a church meeting

Why budget disagreements and trust issues are not always the same problem

The importance of handling conflict directly, privately, and with maturity

How past church hurt can shape present reactions

Why some leadership problems may reveal deeper cultural issues

Best practices for handling a registrant attending church

Why written policies, signed agreements, and clear restrictions matter

Whether a chaperone or buddy system is wise, and why it often is

How background checks help protect kids, churches, and volunteers

Why protecting the flock includes both guarding the vulnerable and helping keep sinners from returning to old patterns

Resources mentioned

Church Merch from Promotions Guy
promotionsguy.com/churchmerch

Trinity Security Allies
A trusted church safety resource recommended by the team for consultations, policies, and practical safety guidance

This week on Practical(ly) Pastoring, Andrew, Tim, Delmar, and Jeff tackle two questions straight from the Facebook group, and both of them hit close to home.

First, they discuss the sting pastors feel when key families skip their church’s Easter service for the bigger production down the road. Is that just modern church culture, a discipleship issue, a membership issue, or simply one of those wounds pastors have to hand to the Lord? The guys talk honestly about insecurity, church commitment, megachurch envy, Facebook sleuthing, and why relational investment may matter more than confrontation.

Then they turn to a second question that may be even harder: how do you actually invite criticism in your church? They unpack how leaders can model humility, create healthy pathways for feedback, separate useful critique from noise, and build a culture where honesty is normal instead of threatening.

This episode is brought to you by Church Merch.
Whether your church needs t-shirts, hats, pens, name tags, or maybe even a hairnet with your logo on it, they can help.
Visit promotionsguy.com/churchmerch and tell them Practical(ly) Pastoring sent you.

This week on Practically Pastoring, the guys dive into a conversation a lot of pastors know they need to have, but would rather keep punting down the road: retirement. Sparked by a question from a pastor in his early 40s who is realizing he may be late to the conversation, the episode tackles what it looks like to start getting serious about retirement planning, especially if no one ever helped you think about it in the first place. 

The conversation covers denominational pensions, 403(b)s, Social Security, Medicare eligibility, life insurance, debt payoff, and why simply figuring out where you stand right now is a huge first step. The guys share their own situations honestly, from denominational safety nets to trying to build a plan after leaving one, and from paying off a house to making sure a family is protected if the unexpected happens. 

A big part of the episode focuses on the practical reality that many pastors who opted out of Social Security may still need to understand their Medicare eligibility and their quarter history. It is one of those classic ministry moments where nobody told you this stuff when you were 22, and now you are trying to piece it together without panicking. The good news is simple: you may not be as far behind as you think, but you do need to start looking now. 

In the second half of the episode, the guys shift into a pastoral question about trust, transitions, and what happens when another pastor mishandles a sensitive situation involving a family leaving a church. They talk about grace, communication, exit interviews, member follow-up, and the importance of holding people with open hands instead of treating every departure like a declaration of war. In other words, church life stays complicated, because apparently people did not get the memo to be simple. 

Sponsor

This episode is sponsored by Church Merch. From comfortable shirts and hats to mugs and custom gear, they help churches create merch that people actually want to use and wear. As the guys mention in the episode, good merch is not just about printing a logo on a shirt, it is about creating something people will actually put on, use, and talk about. Check them out at promotionsguy.com/churchmerch. 

In this episode:

• Why retirement planning sneaks up on so many pastors
• How denominational pensions and 403(b)s can work together
• What pastors should know about Social Security quarters and Medicare eligibility
• Why paying off debt can become part of a long-term plan
• How life insurance fits into protecting your family
• What to do when another pastor mishandles a sensitive conversation
• Why exit interviews and regular member check-ins can help churches grow

A few lines worth remembering:
“The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” 

“You might not be as far behind as you think you are. But the first step is to spend some time figuring out where you are.”

This week on Practically Pastoring, Andrew sits down with Tim, Delmar, and Jeff for a wide-ranging conversation that starts with a tough pastoral leadership question and ends with Holy Week and Easter check-ins.

Question 1 is a sticky restoration situation: a man who confessed an emotional affair, continued the relationship for a year during a messy divorce, and has been out of meaningful church membership for years, now wants to rejoin the church while also continuing to “preach out.” The guys dig into the difference between membership and leadership, forgiveness and trust, gifting and qualification, and what a clear restoration pathway should include. They also talk about how to guard against implied endorsement when someone is eager to get back on a platform.

Then the crew pivots to Holy Week plans, Easter traditions, and what each church is doing this year, including Lakeview’s big tent weekend, Good Friday plans, and the practical realities of big Sundays, food trucks, and yes, counting dogs.

Sponsor
Church Merch, promotionsguide.com/churchmerch 

Key ideas from the episode

• Membership and leadership are not the same thing
• Forgiveness can be immediate, trust takes time
• A restoration plan should be written, measurable, and elder-led
• Faithful church membership and submission matter before public ministry
• Churches should clarify the difference between preaching and testimony sharing
• Holy Week is coming fast, and pastors are doing what pastors do: improvise, laugh, and carry on

At the Practically Pastoring Conference, Adam Powers makes a biblical case for elder-led ministry from Hebrews 13:17. He argues that pastors must resist treating churches like businesses and people like customers, and instead recover the hard, joyful work of caring for souls. This talk explores the duty of the church, the duty of elders, and the shared delight that comes when leaders shepherd faithfully under Christ. Along the way, Adam reflects on authority, abuse, suffering in ministry, elder training, and why the care of souls must stay at the center of pastoral work.

Follow Adam on instagram @reformedshelves

Links:

🌐 Practically Pastoring: https://practicallypastoring.com/

🫂 Join our Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/practicallypastoring

👕 Church Merch: https://www.promotionsguy.com/churchmerch

📧 Join our mailing list: https://bit.ly/3plt5so

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/practicallypastoring

Listen / Watch Practically Pastoring:

🎧 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0xJqPmXn1MqaznnV8MHFKx?si=4a942df64e48410e

🍎 Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/practical-ly-pastoring/id1522043414

📺 YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@practicallypastoring

We’re launching a new podcast.

Get a Job with Andrew and Riley is a limited-run series following a real-time ministry job search—from the moment you realize it might be time to leave, all the way through interviews, candidating, and whatever comes next.

Riley is living it. Andrew is asking the questions. And together, we’re pulling back the curtain on what the process actually looks like—honestly, practically, and sometimes awkwardly.

If you’ve ever wondered how ministry transitions really work (or you’re in one right now), this podcast is for you.

First episode coming soon.

A podcast about calling, clarity, and the awkward in-between.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/get-a-job-with-andrew-and-riley/id1887401983

https://open.spotify.com/show/3EVMMXy3OfqMVEqKmTntii

Welcome back to Practically Pastoring. Andrew hosts Jeff, Del, Frank, and guest missionary Zach Harrod, serving in Prague, for an episode that is equal parts pastoral weight, practical systems, and classic pastor banter.

Question 1, Kids ministry trauma and safety
A church leader asks how to care well for an 11-year-old who disclosed abuse (now under investigation by police and CPS) while also protecting other kids and volunteers. The crew talks through trauma-informed ministry, supervision, and wise safeguards that communicate compassion without ignoring safety.

Key takeaways

• Do not create “reactionary policy” for one child. Build trauma-aware practices that serve your whole next-gen ministry.
• Consider training for children’s and youth volunteers so everyone understands trauma, triggers, and appropriate response.
• Use a “big buddy” approach: an extra trusted adult in the room who can provide stability, keep eyes on the situation, and help de-escalate without stigmatizing the child.
• Care for the parents too. Church family means supporting the whole household, not just managing behavior on Sundays.
• Write an emergency action plan for kids ministry: clear steps for escalation, who does what, and how you protect the room if an incident occurs.
• Be proactive, not reactive. Policies and plans made ahead of time protect kids, volunteers, and the church.

Question 2, Tracking online attendance
A question from Reddit asks how to track online attendance across YouTube, Facebook, and streaming platforms without constantly rewriting numbers. The team talks about defining what “attendance” means, avoiding inflated or unethical reporting, and remembering that online engagement is not the same as embodied discipleship, while still acknowledging the value streaming can have for shut-ins, medically vulnerable families, and certain demographics.

Practical tips discussed

• Decide what metric you mean before you track it, since each platform counts differently.
• Consider peak simultaneous viewers as a simple, consistent metric.
• Tools like Restream can provide reporting on peak viewership by platform, and send post-stream summaries.

Question 3, Bible marking without regret
A listener asks for real systems for marking up a high-quality wide-margin Bible without ending up with a mess. The crew shares approaches ranging from keeping a separate “study Bible,” to using clear sticky notes for temporary markings, to building a color-coded system, to writing prayers and notes with legacy in mind for kids and future readers.

Guest
Zach Harrod shares his story of coming to faith, long-term ministry in Prague, and how proactive planning and “respond, don’t react” leadership instincts translate into church life and family care.
Learn more about Zach and his ministry at http://harrodovi.com

Links mentioned

• Church Merch: promotionsguy.com/churchmerch
• The Body Keeps the Score (recommended reading) https://www.amazon.com/Body-Keeps-Score-Healing-Trauma/dp/0143127748

Chapters00:00 Intro and Zach Harrod joins the show
03:00 Question 1, Kids ministry trauma and the Big Buddy Plan
24:00 Church Merch sponsor
31:00 Question 2, Tracking online attendance across platforms
52:00 Question 3, Bible marking systems that work
1:10:00 Wrap-up and Facebook group invite

This is a session from the Practical(ly) Pastoring Conference. Chad Williams, lead teaching pastor at Building 28 in Clearwater and former church planter and Chick-fil-A leader, argues that many churches accidentally build discipleship like a corporate ladder. The result is efficiency without formation, status without maturity, and a system where people feel stuck. Using the 1911 South Pole race as a vivid illustration, Chad reframes disciple making as lanes, not levels: same destination, different pace, different proximity, different responsibilities. He grounds the model in Jesus’ own practice with the 72, the 12, and the 3, then offers a practical framework for churches to clarify the destination, define disciple focuses, identify lanes, and implement resources at different speeds.

Key takeaways

1. A shared destination does not require identical movement

2. Levels organize people, lanes develop people

3. Levels unintentionally create status and shame, Jesus’ leadership is about carrying, not climbing

4. Jesus discipled in concentric circles, 72, 12, 3, same mission, different proximity and pace

5. The goal of discipleship is not a position, it’s a person, Christlikeness

6. Build a clear destination language, then choose a few disciple focuses for everyone

7. Lanes let people change pace without feeling demoted, seasons change, lanes can too

8. Potential is found in the gap between vision and execution, most churches do not have a vision problem, they have an execution problem