Analysis of Stan Toler's Practical Guide for Pastoral Ministry - Book Report/Review Example

A Review of Stan Tolers Practical Guide for Pastoral Ministry A Review of Stan Tolers Practical Guide for Pastoral Ministry Summary `Stan Tolers Practical Guide for Pastoral Ministry is a concise, exceedingly practical guide to the nuts and bolts of pastoral work. Toler’s goal is to benefit both fellow and future pastors, advising them from the wealth of knowledge and insight he has gained from three decades of ministry. It has seventy-five brief chapters that offer practical guidance for a minister, including his personal growth and his family life. In addition, it contains real world advice on such disparate yet related subjects as preaching, ecclesiastical leadership, personal coaching and communicating with others. The individual spiritual maturity of pastors is at the heart of Toler’s writing. Towards this end he stresses the lordship of Christ in all areas of a minister’s life. He discusses how the pastor should behave in public as well as private. He also speaks to how the man of God should interact with his family, friends and acquaintances and the members of his church. Personal devotion, obedience and integrity are all strongly emphasized by Toler within the text. He sees a healthy personal walk with God as the wellspring from which an abundant ministry flows from the pastor to his family, his church and the world at large. In chapter one he outlines six characteristics of great pastors. He says that they know how to pray, meaning that they are fervent in praying and actively seek time alone with God. He also says that effective ministers have strong personal integrity. For Toler this means having the courage and humility to admit when one has made a mistake. He writes: A great pastor always speaks the truth and has the courage to correct his or her mistakes. The words “I’m sorry” aren’t pulled from their mouths like an impacted tooth. Great pastors take responsibility for their actions. They lead with integrity. (Toler 17) He also emphasizes that great pastors must be flexible in how they deal with practical concerns. They don’t take a “my way or the highway” attitude in dealing with church boards, elders or deacons, or laypeople in general. Also, they are effective team builders, have a sense of direction and a vision for the future, and finally they also demonstrate great commitment to their calling from God. Going forward from chapter one, Toler develops these important themes by detailing what the pastor should do in terms of marriage and being a father. Disciplining and relating to children, managing finances effectively and prudently, and being a kind and understanding spouse are all areas that he touches on. Toler shifts gears as the book progresses, turning his attention to offering guidance on the particulars of pastoral ministry. He offers suggestions for virtually every aspect of ministry outside the pulpit. He covers the basics of pastoral care, outlining how to conduct funerals, officiate at weddings and plan worship and evangelistic services. Personal evangelism, visiting the sick and injured, finding willing volunteers, and reaching out to absent and backslidden church members are other topics that he deals with. Toler changes emphasis once again later on, turning his writing to the topic of leadership. He notes aspects of historical leaders, discusses team building methods, and looks at ways of finding and developing congregational leaders. This section ends with Toler telling his readers how to deal with conflict and change. Chapter thirty six discusses means for bringing revival to a spiritually lukewarm church. In it Toler emphasizes a combination of personal piety on the pastor’s part with the use of effective methods for encouraging a revival of spiritual passion among the congregants. In it he writes: A twenty first century call to revival will utilize a variety of methods: a revival Sunday or weekend emphasis with an evangelist, a month long series of revival messages by the pastor, small group studies focused on renewal, a group outing to hear a speaker or author whose specialty is spiritual renewal, retreats, assisting a church plant with a revival emphasis…(Toler 152). For Toler, then, personal devotion to God and practical methodology are not at odds with each other. To the contrary, they work hand in hand to stir the fires of revival among lukewarm believers. Toler rounds out his book by showing his readers how they can coach others to personal and spiritual success. He reveals ways that a pastor can motivate and inspire his hearers to partner with him in doing the Lords work. In his final words, Toler examines the dynamics of pastoral communication. He shares insights that he has gleaned from years behind the pulpit the as well as in ecclesiastical board rooms. In the afterword he invites his readers to visit his website www.stantoler.com, where he discusses issues of importance to clergy and answers questions from ministers. Toler describes the importance of networking and staying abreast of technological advances and innovations in order to enhance one’s personal ministry efforts. Critique In reading this book, I was struck by three qualities within its text. The first is how Toler openly embraces modern innovations and insights from the worlds of psychology, technology, business and other secular academic fields. In particular he adopts principles that are used with great success in the corporate world to equip CEOs. He encourages pastors to dream of what their ministry can accomplish. He leads them into developing a personal vision for where they want their efforts to go. He then shows them concrete methods, gleaned from worldly examples, for turning those dreams and visions into reality. Some reviewers found this a matter of concern. One in particular was turned off by this portion of the book. In his online review he wrote: Almost the entire book stinks of modernism. Many of the suggestions Toler gives could be applied to the life of a CEO in order for him or her to be successful. Much of his emphasis on leadership, casting vision, and encouraging others to come onboard has its roots in the corporate world. With the church trying to distinguish itself from the world, this writer does not understand how a business mindset can be applied to the church that is biblically trying to communicate that it is not a business, but the body of Christ. In encouraging pastors to think like this, Toler actually encourages the church to expect their pastors to be dynamic worldly leaders. It is an extra-biblical requirement; and thus, is legalistic. Instead of helping pastors and churches, it actually harms both of them. (Moore) I vigorously disagree with Moore’s statement. All truth is God’s truth, and true principles of success can be applied to all sorts of endeavors. Thus the fact that the same techniques can benefit both corporate leaders as well as church leaders is no reason for alarm. There is no legalism in giving a clergyman a useful set of tools for doing the work of the Lord more effectively. While I greatly admired and appreciated Toler’s welcoming attitude towards secular insights and innovations, I was also struck with how he began the book by stressing so greatly the foundation from which all effective ministry must flow: the personal and spiritual character of the minister. This theme recurs throughout the pages, even when Toler turns his attention to integrating cutting edge team building and leadership theories into the work of the church. As good as those things are, Toler emphasizes that they are worthless unless the minister is him or herself close to God, with a vital prayer life, an uncompromising commitment to personal integrity, and a worldview that sees the things of the Kingdom as taking precedence over those of this fleeting world. Personal piety alone does not make one an effective pastor, of course. Toler makes this clear by also developing how the church leader must deal with others in a spirit of personal humility, openness to suggestions, and by balancing the authority that comes with leadership with a servant spirit. He shows how this even handed approach must be evidenced in all aspects of a pastor’s life, including his family relations, his dealings with church leadership and his associations with others in the community. In summation on this point, I was very impressed with Toler’s balanced views. He sees effective ministry as flowing from mentally healthy, intelligent, reasonably open minded and above all humble and loving pastors. He leans not too far to the left or the right but steers a middle course, avoiding many of the extremes that have proven to be downfalls to many otherwise capable and promising professional clergy. (Beach) I should also mention how the book was written in accessible, non-technical language, with its topics logically organized and the work as a whole exuding a warmth and gentleness that must surely flow directly from Toler’s heart. He is truly a pastor to pastors, and evidence for this calling is found on every page. Application In summary, I found this book to be deeply spiritual, eminently practical, and filled with insights from a variety of disciplines, as well as from a wealth of experience gained from Toler’s thirty years behind the pulpit. It of course isn’t a primary academic source for ministerial students; it is too general and broad in its scope for it to serve in that capacity. It is a fantastic asset, though, for teaching Bible college and seminary students how to enhance all aspects of their future vocations, by a combination of fervent spirituality, adoption of modern methodology and a love for humanity. Stan Tolers Practical Guide for Pastoral Ministry gets my highest possible recommendation. Personal Application I learned from Toler a number of indispensable things about succeeding in ministry. The first is the indispensable role that integrity plays in a pastor’s spiritual life. Without this bedrock quality no amount of speaking ability, personal charisma or academic knowledge will suffice. I also learned the importance of keeping in touch with the times. Truths are eternal; the ways to communicate those truths are always changing. There is much a minister can learn from the worlds of business, science and technology that can enhance his effectiveness. To be both unshakeable in one’s commitment to the truth as well as open to learning new things requires a humble, teachable spirit that is nonetheless grounded in devotion to Christ. To walk a balance between extremes in these matters is the primary lesson Toler taught me. I will not forget it. Bibliography Beach, Bert. Pitfalls of Ministry. Ministry International Journal for Pastors. http://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/2001/January/pitfalls-of- ministry.html (accessed September 28, 2011). Moore, Jared. Stan Tolers Practical Guide for Pastoral Ministry. http://jaredmoore.exaltchrist.com (accessed September 27, 2011). Toler, Stan. Stan Tolers Practical Guide for Pastoral Ministry. Indianapolis: Wesleyan Publishing House, 2007. Read More