Weekly services, meetings, outreach events, administrative tasks — such is the seemingly unending work of church staff members. But what about their home life? Can they find a balance between ministry requirements and nonwork responsibilities?
Although Alabama Baptist staff members agree that personal and professional responsibilities can and should be balanced, many of them don’t do it well, said Dale Huff, director of the office of LeaderCare and church administration at the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions. And the task is made even more difficult by the fact that most Alabama Baptist leaders are bivocational or volunteers.
“They get stressed out or they get in conflict with one of the job responsibilities or with their families,” Huff said. “They are just constantly trying to find a way to balance all of these demands and it’s hard to do.”
Bob Stephens, minister of music and students at First Baptist Church, Jemison, in Chilton Baptist Association, said achieving balance can be a juggling act.
“I just make sure I prioritize and get everything done,” he said. “Sometimes different things come along — something at church or at home — and throw you off track, but then I ask the Lord to help me figure out how to make it work.”
Like Stephens, Dave Burns said imbalance in home and work duties can be overwhelming and counterproductive, especially when priorities may change several times daily.
“I have a laminated poster that says, ‘The poorest actions beat the best intentions,’” said Burns, minister to senior adults and pastoral care at First Baptist Church, Prattville, in Autauga Baptist Association. “I try to stay focused and think if I take action and try to do (the work) with quality, it’s better than doing nothing.”
Further disrupting balance and, at times, causing conflict between pastors and staff members are differences in defined roles and expectations.
Huff said even in a church that has several staff members, there will often be job descriptions for all but the pastor. “They just assume the pastor is going to be responsible for whatever has to be done … and he, then, can expect more than the church has defined for (staff members) to do,” he said.
Still staff members say Alabama Baptist pastors and congregations expect them to maintain a certain number of work hours and show commitment to the church while carving out adequate time for family and friends.
Greg Platt, minister of education and outreach and office manager for Glynwood Baptist Church, Prattville, in Autauga Association, believes pastors and congregations play a key role in helping staff members increase effectiveness in their many roles.
“The pastor can give encouragement when staff members are stressed, overwhelmed or doing too much,” he said. “The church can be understanding when they realize staff members are going the extra mile.”
Platt has assumed additional responsibilities while his congregation seeks a pastor. “You’ve got to weigh what’s most important,” Platt said of finding balance as different needs arise. “There are times that family responsibilities outweigh those at church and (times when it’s) the other way around.”
Huff encourages pastors to meet regularly with staff members to help them prioritize and get organized.
“The key is to make sure communication is clear among staff ministers and pastors,” he said. “Because of his role, pastors should be the one to take initiative. But if he is not doing it, the staff minister needs to take initiative and sit down with the pastor to understand what the priorities and expectations are.”
Huff also encourages the two groups to develop good personal relationships outside the work area by doing activities that would be fun for the whole group like going out to eat together.
Ultimately some ministers believe the key to balance is developing leaders and delegating responsibilities.
Burns said without delegation, staff members become firefighters instead of being focused on their priorities.
“I think the tendency is to try to do everything — it’s a temptation for me. But you have to delegate some of the ministry because of the size of the job,” he said, noting that Jesus understood this and delegated some of His ministry to the disciples.
Stephens believes he could not achieve success without help from youth leaders in his church.
“It couldn’t work without them,” Stephens said.
“I just feel blessed to have them for help, because I have learned that one person can’t do it (as effectively) by themselves.”
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