Dozens of pastors admit that trying to lead their more artistically minded staff members and volunteers leaves them baffled and befuddled. Don't be one of them.
The following is an excerpt from "Leading Artists," one of the articles in Developing an Arts Ministry, a new resource now available on BuildingChurchLeaders.com.
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Some time ago a pastor from a nearby church called me for advice. He had just fired two of his worship leaders due to sexual misconduct. One was having an affair with a married woman on the worship team and the other, it was discovered, had a secret addiction to pornography. The pastor and I discussed strategies for dealing with the aftermath of the scandals, prayed together, and promised to stay in touch. However, his last words, before we hung up the phone, were very revealing. He said with a bit of frustration, "I don't know the first thing about leading artists."
Now I wouldn't necessarily blame the pastor for his worship leaders' immoral behavior. However, the messy ordeal uncovered a weakness this pastor perceived in his own leadership. By his own admission, he didn't know how to lead artists.
Since then I've heard dozens of pastors admit that trying to lead their more artistically minded staff members and volunteers leaves them baffled and befuddled. Another pastor once told me that he stays clear of those "artsy types." "They're kinda off in their own little world anyway," he added. What did he mean about those "artsy" types? And why did he make being an artist sound so creepy?
Source: Off the Agenda / Building Church Leaders
Rory Nyland is is the director of Heart of the Artist Ministries (www.heartoftheartist.org) and has authored three books, including The Worshiping Artist. Rory leads retreats and workshops, serves as Pastor of Worship at Harvest Bible Chapel, and also leads worship for the Transforming Center.
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