The Senior Pastor Seldom Visits The CM

Your Question:

“How do I work with a senior pastor or administrator who seldom visits the CM events?”

The Issues:

You have been hired to serve under, and support, this senior pastor or administrator. This doesn’t mean that you must agree with everything he stands for, but it does mean that you must be respectful while carefully expressing your own views.

Scripture Foundation:

“Nogood tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart.”   Luke 6: 43-45

Short Answer:

People’s actions reflect what they believe.  If your senior pastor or administrator seldom visits the CM events, this could indicate that he/she doesn’t value what is going on in the CM. Busy people attend events that they deem important. 

 

Your senior pastor may not believe that children are important, or he/she may not realize that the CM connects to a significant number of adults (parents) in the church.  You understand the significant value of the CM in the eyes of parents who will choose to stay at a church or leave it based on what is offered for their children; but he/she may not understand this reality. 

 

It is always good to consider your own “log in the eye” before you criticize someone else (Luke 6: 41, 42). Here are some questions for you to consider: 

1) Have you invited the senior pastor or administrator to your CM events? Don’t trust that he/she knows “he/she is always welcome.”  You must regularly send him/her an invitation to attend a CM event. Make the invitation “short and sweet.”  Make sure that he/she feels comfortable not staying the whole time.  Busy people like to swing in and swing out quickly. 

2) Do you consider the “fanfare effect”? If your senior pastor or administrator does visit a CM event, would he/she like to be announced, or would he/she rater visit anonymously? If your senior pastor or administrator would like the recognition and attention, you can publicly recognize his/her presence in the room and thank him/her for coming.  If this would not be appropriate, simply greet him/her at the door and thank him/her for coming. 

3) Do you “chain” CM events together for the senior pastor or administrator? This is done through an email that celebrates the good things that happened in the most recent CM event and connects that CM event to the next one coming up. This helps the senior pastor or administrator see that the CM events are not just randomly planned, but they are all a part of a bigger “picture” connected to the CM vision. 

4) Do you invite the senior pastor or administrator to speak to the children, or to be a part of the program?  Most administrators will attend an event if their presence is needed, or if they are a part of the program.  Consider what he/she could do or say that would enhance the value of the program. 

 

All of these ideas may help the CM become more significant to your senior pastor or administrator.  The “bottom line” is that you do what you do in the CM “as unto the Lord” regardless of whether or not the senior pastor or administrator visits.

 

Back to the “Working With The Senior Pastor or Administrator” page. 

More help on the “Working With The Senior Pastor or Administrator – APPENDIX”