"You can feel whether a church is healthy or not if you stay there," said Pastor Wang of a church in City A. "You can get a feeling of happiness here in my church, as it is a place where you can settle down and enjoy being here to worship with communion with each other."
Pastor Wang's words echo the sentiments of this church’s congregants. Take this elderly female believer, for instance, who after attending the Sunday morning service is waiting to attend the afternoon service as well. "I want to learn more about the truth, so I’m happy to stay at church," she said.
According to Pastor Wang, the worship atmosphere at this church wasn't always this way. The change happened four years ago when a new team of staff workers was established during a leadership transition.
This new church worker team, made up of people born between the 1990s and 2000s, includes the church affairs department, research department, and training department. They are specifically responsible for regular church meetings, holiday events, weddings, funerals, and following up with new believers and their baptism and discipleship.
Currently, this church holds seven services over the weekend, with four services on Saturday and three on Sunday.
The church has six full-time staff members, and there is a bulletin board outside the church office that displays the staff's daily status, marking whether they are "on duty" or "out." Congregants are free to talk with pastors, and there are cases where believers reflect concerns about a pastor's performance. In such instances, the office members step in to have a conversation with the pastor, understand the situation, and provide feedback to congregants.
Friday is the fellowship day for the staff with morning and afternoon schedules, and every team member must participate. The morning consists of a study session and an office meeting. The afternoon is reserved for fellowship activities, where the team might go outdoors for some fresh air, Christian men may play sports together, and Christian women may have tea and chat. "Fellowship shouldn't just share God’s love; we also pointed out each other’s problems."
This church, located in City A of a provincial capital, provides its staff with a fixed salary. Recalling his time in seminary, Pastor Luo mentioned, "We all studied theology with faith in God. Our parents and seminary teachers would say, 'God will meet all your needs in the future.' We don’t place importance on a high salary, but in the city, you need to rent a house, get married, and at least afford to buy a new set of clothes each year." In 2020, the church referenced local public institutions to establish a salary system, including base salary and performance bonuses and plans to incorporate educational qualifications in the future to encourage further studies.
Additionally, the weekly sermon is required to be submitted to a staff worker. Pastor Wang explains, "This isn't for inspection, but to avoid laziness. You must take each service seriously." The division of labor among the church staff is clear. Pastor Wang spends half his time on administrative matters, such as preparing materials and handling diverse inspections. He mentions that these tasks are relatively quick to complete, which allows other staff to focus more on pastoral care.
"When a pastor is healthy, you can feel their bright and positive side." The positive attitude of church staff leaves a deep impression. As they say, this is largely thanks to the church's well-established system, which in turn builds an effective pastoral team and nurtures the congregants.
- Edited and translated by Abigail Wu
“教会健不健康，你是可以感受到的。”A城教会的王传道说。“你感觉在这个地方我可以待下来，爱到这个教堂礼拜，喜欢待在这个教堂。其实这就是一种幸福的感受，圣徒灵里的相通。”
王传道说出的正是A城教会信徒的心声。这不，刚参加完早上主日礼拜的老女信徒又在等着参加下午两点的礼拜。老姐妹说：“想多学习真理，待在教会高兴。”
按照王传道的说法，A城教会的礼拜氛围先前可不是这样的。改善发生在四年前，借着换届契机，一支新的同工团队建立。
新的同工团队由90后至00后组成，包括教务部、教研部和培训部。专项负责教会日常聚会、节假日活动、婚丧事宜、新人跟进受洗栽培。
目前A城教会周末有7场聚会，周六四场礼拜，周日三场礼拜。
A城教会有6位专职同工，教堂办公室门口的展板每日标注同工动态“在岗”，“外出”。信徒可以自由找牧者交谈，反映牧者服事状态欠佳的情况也是有的。这时办公室就会出面，找牧者谈话了解原因，反馈给信徒。
周五是同工的团契日，每位同工必须参加。团契日包括上午和下午日程。上午日程分为学习部分和办公室会议。下午为团契活动，大家一起外出踏青；或者弟兄们一起打球，姐妹们一起喝杯茶聊聊天。“团契不能只是讲爱，该批评的也需要指出来”。
A城教会地处省会，教会同工们有固定的工资。回忆以前读神学的经历，教会的罗传道说：大家都是凭着信心读神学，父母和神学院老师说的是“以后你们生活的需要，神都会供应的”。大家没有工资概念，可是在城市生活你需要租房、结婚，至少你每年可以有钱买一套衣服吧。教会也在2020年参考当地事业单位建立工资体系，包括基本工资和绩效，将来也会纳入学历因素鼓励大家进修。
教会每周的讲道稿是一定要交到一位同工手里。王传道说“这不是为检查，是为避免懒惰，你要认真对待每次服事”。A城教会同工分工明确，王传道平时一半的精力用在教会行政事务，像资料准备、各项检查等。王传道说这些做起来也快，其他同工就更多专注在牧养上。
“传道人是健康的，你就能感受到他很阳光的一面，”A城教会同工积极的态度让人影响深刻。如他们所说这主要得益于教会制度健全。反过来这些也促进了教牧团队的健康运作，反哺了教会的牧养。
健康的教牧团队是教会做好牧养的关键
"You can feel whether a church is healthy or not if you stay there," said Pastor Wang of a church in City A. "You can get a feeling of happiness here in my church, as it is a place where you can settle down and enjoy being here to worship with communion with each other."
Pastor Wang's words echo the sentiments of this church’s congregants. Take this elderly female believer, for instance, who after attending the Sunday morning service is waiting to attend the afternoon service as well. "I want to learn more about the truth, so I’m happy to stay at church," she said.
According to Pastor Wang, the worship atmosphere at this church wasn't always this way. The change happened four years ago when a new team of staff workers was established during a leadership transition.
This new church worker team, made up of people born between the 1990s and 2000s, includes the church affairs department, research department, and training department. They are specifically responsible for regular church meetings, holiday events, weddings, funerals, and following up with new believers and their baptism and discipleship.
Currently, this church holds seven services over the weekend, with four services on Saturday and three on Sunday.
The church has six full-time staff members, and there is a bulletin board outside the church office that displays the staff's daily status, marking whether they are "on duty" or "out." Congregants are free to talk with pastors, and there are cases where believers reflect concerns about a pastor's performance. In such instances, the office members step in to have a conversation with the pastor, understand the situation, and provide feedback to congregants.
Friday is the fellowship day for the staff with morning and afternoon schedules, and every team member must participate. The morning consists of a study session and an office meeting. The afternoon is reserved for fellowship activities, where the team might go outdoors for some fresh air, Christian men may play sports together, and Christian women may have tea and chat. "Fellowship shouldn't just share God’s love; we also pointed out each other’s problems."
This church, located in City A of a provincial capital, provides its staff with a fixed salary. Recalling his time in seminary, Pastor Luo mentioned, "We all studied theology with faith in God. Our parents and seminary teachers would say, 'God will meet all your needs in the future.' We don’t place importance on a high salary, but in the city, you need to rent a house, get married, and at least afford to buy a new set of clothes each year." In 2020, the church referenced local public institutions to establish a salary system, including base salary and performance bonuses and plans to incorporate educational qualifications in the future to encourage further studies.
Additionally, the weekly sermon is required to be submitted to a staff worker. Pastor Wang explains, "This isn't for inspection, but to avoid laziness. You must take each service seriously." The division of labor among the church staff is clear. Pastor Wang spends half his time on administrative matters, such as preparing materials and handling diverse inspections. He mentions that these tasks are relatively quick to complete, which allows other staff to focus more on pastoral care.
"When a pastor is healthy, you can feel their bright and positive side." The positive attitude of church staff leaves a deep impression. As they say, this is largely thanks to the church's well-established system, which in turn builds an effective pastoral team and nurtures the congregants.
- Edited and translated by Abigail Wu
Healthy Pastoral Team Is Key to Effective Ministry
