Editor's Note: Pastor L (pseudonym) has a pastoral experience of nearly 30 years. It was in rural churches that he accepted and worshiped Christ, then devoted himself to God. Later, he was sent by the Lord to do pastoral ministry in a city. At that time, he confessed, "I don't want to grow an urban church in rural church style." His meaningful words embodied his persistence and insistence on the proper function and positioning of the church.
Specifically, what kind of persistence and insistence is this? The Christian Times, an online Chinese Christian newspaper, interviewed L to share the similarities and differences between rural churches and urban churches.
Christian Times: In your opinion, what are the similarities and differences between rural churches and urban churches?
Pastor L: My hometown is in a rural area where both my grandparents and my parents grew up in a rural church. I also grew up in the countryside. Since 1996, I have spent three years preaching in the rural areas of Northeast China. Then, a month after I got married in 2005, my wife and I came to pastor in a southern city where I found that the difference between urban churches and rural churches is not a matter of environment or geography, but of different pastoral philosophies.
Differences Between Rural Churches and Urban Churches
I have summarized some of the characteristics of rural gatherings based on my personal experience. Firstly, during gatherings, it’s a prominent phenomenon that believers come late and leave early for rural Christians lack the concept of time. Secondly, the environment of the meeting venue is not very pleasant. Some would meet in a huge shed. Believers with a rural background are used to this kind of environment. When praying together, they don’t even have a cushion to kneel on.
During the holy communion, in rural churches, all believers drink grape juice from the same cup, which is very unhygienic. It's also hard to know for sure how much one should drink.
In addition, in the management of donations, the elders of rural churches and the host families don’t strictly supervise expenditures. There should be two or three people responsible for financial management. The style of the rural church is that people trust each other. Sometimes, there is no more money left when it is time to pay bills. But no one clearly knows how the money has been spent. I think this management model of only relying on trust among people is not right.
Another notable phenomenon in rural churches is that rural pastors generally do not study, do not read books, and even have nothing to do with theology, for they believe that knowledge makes one arrogant. Once, I was invited to preach. Unfortunately, I said I was not prepared, so I couldn't do it. However, the pastor said to me, "The Bible says: don't worry, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say. (Luke 12:12)" Many rural pastors have personally experienced much God’s power and miracles, so they rely on this to serve all the year round, and they are not willing to continue to grow or know more about God Himself.
Here is another example. In rural churches, I find that some pastors preach well, but have problems with the interpretation of the Bible. Many of them handwrite the Bible and preach as much as they have written. When I was young, I heard a pastor read the Acts (of Apostles) as "Acts of the Stones." Some believers asked, how could the stones be able to do the Acts? The rural pastor replied, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26). When hearing them recite Acts 1:8, I didn't even understand what they were saying at all. For example, when they said “burning Mary”, it was actually burning Samaria. These pastors do not understand the literal meaning of the scriptures, let alone the spirit of the scriptures. Rural pastors need to improve their personal qualities in culture and theology.
First, in general, rural pastors have a low literacy level. Second, they are not equipped to study. Third, a large percentage of rural pastors are actually opposed to studying theology but emphasize more on personal experience. I believe that theology is the foundation of serving. However, many church staff who serve passionately in rural areas cannot sit down and be willing to study humbly, and even fall asleep listening to sermons. Many of them lack the learning ability.
This is my summary of the characteristics of rural churches.
Since arriving in the city, I have been facing groups of very different characteristics in the cultural and social status and background from before. If we don't grow and change, it will be difficult for us to influence people with high social status, good knowledge, and powerful position. One pastor from my hometown started serving in a city. In an apartment rented as the church venue, he collected wooden boards at a construction site to make blackboards with black paint, and many stools of various shapes. Although he lived in an urban building, it still felt like a rural gathering venue. He would rather save money than invest in important hardware.
Another church rented a very small venue, just because it was cheap. It was not a rectangular-shaped apartment. The living room had an oblique angle. When I knelt down on the concrete floor together with a senior female believer to pray, I felt my knees were really hurting. But this elder believer thought it was impious to pray with a cushion. I said to her: "You need to change your perception. On the one hand, it is clean and hygienic to pray with a cushion under the knees, on the other hand, it is more comfortable so that those who participate in prayers don't have to pray for you hoping you will end the prayer meeting sooner." Following my suggestion, she changed the gathering venue and bought cushions for praying on her knees. Such small matters were in fact the concept in one’s heart about how to serve the church.
In my opinion, regarding the hardware of the church, it is necessary to have chairs of the same design, excellent lighting for meetings, and screen projection from mobile phones or computers. Although our church is not very large, it makes the churchgoers who attend gatherings feel that it is a church and a formal meeting venue where they are taken seriously.
The church has an invisible soft asset which is the pastors.
Pastors' education level and hospitality manners make the first impression on the church. Pastors who have little knowledge can easily be despised by believers. A pastor needs to have basic common sense and read many various types of books. If a Buddhist finds out you know more than he does as a pastor, he will slowly feel interested in you, so that you become a bridge.
When it comes to preaching and pastoring, the first thing to pay attention to is that some people will not accept the faith you preach because they cannot accept you as a person. Second, knowing that your cultural knowledge and values are wrong, they can’t embrace your faith either. I think that pastors need to improve in both areas.
Being settled in the city, I focused on developing the gathering environment and facilities, for which I spent much money on renting and decorating a whole floor with no separations, buying good equipment, building a reception room, a library, etc. Such a venue makes people feel they are treated seriously. I always teach that you should be ashamed if your home is better than God's home. We rent office buildings for some meeting points, which are public places and more convenient for gatherings. Some believers are afraid of gatherings in private homes and feel safe going to office buildings.
Christian Times: How can your church grow under the pandemic?
Pastor L: We are very focused on relational outreach in difficult circumstances. There will be a love feast after our church services. We invite churchgoers and their friends and relatives to mountain hiking together, to have meetings on the mountain, tug-of-war competitions, and parent-child activities, etc. With such opportunities, we can influence those parents so that they will have a good impression of the church. In the city, a relationship is very important. We need to build a relationship first, then talk about faith. Hanging out and dining together, we start a relationship with which they begin to accept us. Then, we can visit their homes, counsel and help them with real marriage and family problems, and parent-child problems. At these moments, they naturally want to get close to the church and God. Then we introduce the faith, teach the Bible, help them run their own marriages and families, and teach them how to tutor their children better.
Christian Times: Currently, how do you train the co-workers and group leaders in the church?
Pastor L: Our church has always kept doing the discipleship ministry. Believers who eat the loaves and have their fill have no burden or offering to the church. Co-workers always come early and leave late working on the ministries needed by the church. It’s very important to develop disciples. The Lord Jesus spent most of his time with his disciples during his stay on earth which lasted more than three years. My disciple-making method has four stages. "You observe how I do it. Then, you do it with me. Later, I observe how you do it. Finally, they observe how you do it." Paul taught Timothy so that Timothy could teach others who continued teaching the next generation. We call this the four-generation model.
During the holidays, we gathered the brothers and sisters who were thirsting for the truth, and also had had adequate education, to train for 3-4 days. After the gathering, they went home and studied a course, so as to equip themselves. After the Sunday services, we asked them to stay for an hour for the discipleship course after which they left after having lunch together. Over the years, we had been practicing this. Later we also added group discipleship training on Wednesdays during which I provided those believers with some lessons to learn.
Afterward, I set up a WeChat group in which I distributed the course materials. Following each lesson, there would be ten questions to be answered. Participants must study the courses, read the lecture notes, do the homework, and think for themselves. I wouldn’t know if they had learned the materials even if they showed good interest. But I could supervise their answers which they couldn’t give without reading all materials well.
In terms of the truth, after finishing the online study, we also teach courses about pastoral service, how to practice preaching, and how to lead people to the Lord. In pastoral studies, we teach how to pray, how to read the Bible and equip them with basic teachings. I have been running this course for more than three years. There are more than 100 students in three classes at the same time. They are divided into different classes according to their educational level, ministry engagement time, and experience. After achieving passing grades and graduating, I will issue them certificates, and keep supervising and motivating them. Later, whenever I see some young people, I will encourage them to be leaders, leading the Bible reading and the worship. I will also let them join the ministry in the church, such as preaching the gospel to others or practicing preaching in small groups with my speech notes. Later I will set up deacons, elders, and assistant pastors in the church, who would be responsible for different groups.
Assistant pastors and elders participate in leading the holy communion. I can also bring co-workers of the preaching ministry together to do preaching exercises during which we will grade them on the courage and content of the preaching. I'll give them important advice such as making eye contact during preaching. We will discover the gifts of different people and make them group leaders, and entrust them with positions and missions.
Christian Times: At this stage, what problems do you encounter in pastoral care?
Pastor L: There are five aspects to these problems.
1. Pastors need to grow themselves by learning, including myself who aim for constant improvement. We must ensure that there is always fresh blood in pastoral staff so that we need to keep reading and making disciples.
2. Believers often have to work overtime in factories. Sometimes, it is difficult for the whole congregation to attend gatherings.
3. There are many urban churches. Some believers cannot commit themselves to one church but run around to several churches. We will encourage believers to notice the importance of being committed to one church, and not go back and forth with gossip.
4. Regarding the marriage of believers in cities, there are long-distance marriages, many single mothers with one child in divorced single-parent families, and older single believers who cannot find suitable partners. The disproportion between men and women in the church is also serious.
5. There are many single brothers but few unmarried sisters in our church. A few older brothers remain single with no access to suitable partners.
- Translated by Shuya Wang
编者按：L牧师是一位有近30年牧会经验的牧者，他从接受基督信仰到敬拜与委身于上帝都是从农村教会开始的。后来，他被上帝差派到一所城市做牧会工作，那时候，他的告白便是，“我不要在城市里面做农村的教会。”在他这句意味深长的感慨中，饱含着他对教会的应该有的功能和定位的追求和坚守。（==当summary）
具体的是怎样的一种追求与坚守呢，基督时报同工与这位牧者关于农村教会与城市教会的异同做了一个交流和分享。
以下是对话的摘要部分：
问:在您看来，农村教会与城市教会之间的异同是什么呢？
L: 我的老家是农村教会，祖辈和父辈都是在农村教会成长起来的。我从小在农村长大，我个人是从1996年开始，有3年的时间是在东北农村宣教过的。后来，我结婚一个月后，2005年，我们来到了南方的一个城市牧会。我发现，城市教会与农村教会之间不同，不是环境和地理的问题，而是其牧养理念不同的问题。
农村教会与城市教会的区别
我看到的农村聚会的特点，第一个是聚会的时候，大家缺少时间观念，迟到早退的现象比较突出。其次是聚会场所环境很差，有的在大厂棚里面聚会，大家都是农村来了，就习惯了这种环境。大家一起祷告的时候，连垫子也没有。
在圣餐礼的方面，农村教会里，大家都喝一个杯子里的葡萄汁，这也是很不卫生，同时这也很难度量我喝多大一口是合适的。
另外在农村教会的奉献管理上，教会的长老和接待家庭花费多少没有严格的监管，应该要有两到三个人做财务管理。农村教会的风格就是大家都相信彼此。到了该支出的时候，发现钱早就花完了，不清楚具体情况，大家都是彼此相信。我认为这个管理模式是不正确的。
农村教会的另外一个显著的现象是，农村传道人普遍不学习，不读书，不碰神学，认为是知识是让人骄傲的。有一次，一个人邀请我去讲道，我说我没有预备，我做不了， 这个传道人对我说：“经上说了不要忧虑，圣灵会赐给你当说的话。” 有很多农村传道人经历了很多神的大能和神迹，所以他们常年靠着这个去事奉，而不愿意继续成长和更多的认识上帝本身。
再举个例子来说，在农村教会里面，我发现讲道人，道讲得是对的，但是解经有问题。很多人是手抄的内容，抄一些讲一些。小的时候，我听传道人讲道，他们把使徒行转读成“石头行传”，有人问，石头怎么能行传呢？农村讲道人回答说：“在人不能 在神凡事都能。” 那时我听他们背诵使徒行转 1:8节，我都不知道他们背的是什么。比如 ，他们说火烧玛丽亚，其实是火烧撒马利亚。对经文的字意都不懂，更别说经文的精意了。农村传道人在个人文化和神学素质方面需要提高。
农村传道人一个是本身文学水平不高，其次，他们缺少装备学习，第三有不少比例的农村传道人反对学习神学，更加强调注重经验和经历。我觉得神学是服事的基础，很多农村火热服事的人，他们是坐不住的，不愿意谦卑学习，甚至听道瞌睡。很多人缺少学习的能力。
这是我对农村教会的特点的一个总结。
到了城市以后，面对人群特点就很不一样，文化和社会地位、背景也都与从前不一样了。如果我们不成长，不改变，我们是很难影响有身份，有学识，有地位的人。有一个老家传道人在一个城市里服事教会，他租了房子，教会里的黑板是建筑工地捡的木板，刷了黑色漆，捡了木板拼成了许多凳子，凳子的样式繁杂。虽然他是住在城市的楼房里，但是里面仍然是农村聚会的感觉。他宁愿把钱省下来，也不愿意在硬件上的投资。
另外一个教会，租了一个很小房子，这个房子是不是方正的格局，是带代斜角的客厅，只是为了房租便宜。 我跟一个阿姨跪在水泥地上祷告，膝盖真的很痛，这个阿姨认为用了垫子祷告就不虔诚。我就跟她说：“阿姨需要改变一下，用垫子祷告，一个是干净卫生，一个是舒服些，这样参加祷告的人就不用为你祷告，希望你快点结束祷告会了。”后来她听了我建议，她重新换了地方，买了垫子跪着祷告。虽然这是很小的事，但是这个是人心中事奉教会的观念的问题。
我认为，教会的硬件方面，需要买整齐款式凳子，聚会的灯光好一点，手机电脑投屏， 虽然我们的教会不是很大，但让来聚会的人感受这里是教会，是正规的聚会的场地。让来这里的弟兄姐妹感受到被认真对待了。
教会有看不见的软实力，那就是传道人。传道人，他（她）的文化水平、接人待物的水平、他的第一印象就是对传道人的印象。如果传道人没有文化，容易被信徒所轻看。传道人，需要懂基本的常识 多读书 读多种类的书。 如果佛教徒发现，你比他了解的比他还多。慢慢他会对你有兴趣，这样你才是个桥梁。
在传道牧养上，第一个要注意的是，有些人不能接受你这个人，也就不会接受你所传的信仰。第二个，你的文化知识和价值观是错误的，他也没有办法介绍你的信仰。我觉得这两个方面都是传道人需要提高的部分。
我进入城市以后，着力发展聚会的环境和设施，花很多钱租房子 装修。租一整层，打通买设施，建立接待室、图书室等。让人感觉到被认真对待。我常教导，如果你的家比神的家更好，你应该感到羞愧。我们有的地方租的是写字楼，更是方便聚会，是公共场合。有的人说你来我家聚会，他们就很害怕，但是去办公楼，就会有安全感。
问那疫情处境下，咱们教会怎么拓展呢？
在环境艰难的条件下，我们非常注重关系性拓展。我们教会结束后会设有爱宴。约大家一起爬山，山上聚会、拔河比赛和亲子活动等，我们借此影响孩子的父母，使得他们对教会有好的印象。在城市里，关系很重要，先有关系，再谈信仰。一起活动，吃饭，当他接受你的时候，去家里探访，辅导和帮助他们切实的婚姻家庭遇到的问题，亲子的问题，这样的时候，他们就自然想亲近教会和上帝了。然后我们介绍信仰，教导圣经，帮助他们经营自己的婚姻家庭，教授更好的教导孩子的功课。
问: 对现在教会里的同工们，小组长们，您是怎么培养他们呢？
我们的教会一直坚持做门徒训练的，培养门徒。吃饼得饱的信徒对教会没有负担和事奉。来到早，走的晚就是同工，参与到教会的需要中去，训练门徒很重要。主耶稣在地上三年多，大多数时间是和门徒在一起。我这边就是，“我做，你来看；你跟我一起做；你做我看；你做，他们看，这样的四个层次。” 保罗教导了提摩太，提摩太能教导别的人，他所教导的人再教导下一代，我们把这个叫做四世同堂的模式。
在节假日里，我们把渴慕的真道的弟兄姐妹，按照文化程度符合标准的人，带领他们集训3-4天，聚完会回家，学习一个课程，这样装备他们。我们在主日的时候，结束后，我们让他们会留下来一个小时，开始门训课程，学完后，他们吃完午饭再回去。这些年，我们都是这样做，后来我们也有周三的小组门徒训练，我会给弟兄姐妹们提供一写可以学习的课程。
再后来，有了微信，我建立了微信群，把要学习的课程，发到微信群里，每个课后面有十个问答题，读课程，读讲义，做作业，自己思考。即便，他觉得讲的好，他不看，你也不知道。不好好读讲义，他们就回答不出来的。
真理方面，学习完之后，教牧服事课程，如何操练讲道，如何领人归主。进入教牧学阶段。怎么祷告，怎么读圣经。基本的教义 交给他们。我已经开这个课程三年多了，学生有100多，三个班同时开，我会根据他们的文化程度，服事年限和经历分到不同的班。成绩合格后，毕业后，我会发给他们证书，督促他们，激励他们。后来我看到一些年轻人，我就设立他们做同工，带领读经，带领敬拜啊，我也会让他们在教会有操练，比如说，给人传福音，或者把我讲稿发给他们，在小组里操练讲道，再后来在教会里设置了执事、长老、有助理传道，让他们负责不同的小组。
助理传道和长老可以参与带领圣餐。我也可以把他们讲道同工聚在一起，做讲道练习，我们给打分，讲道的勇气、内容。目光交流，我会给他们提出中肯的建议。我们会发觉不同人的恩赐，建立他们成为组长，给他们位置和使命。
问:现阶段，您再牧养上遇到的难题是什么？
L:实际的问题有五个方面吧。
1.传道人，他们自身需要学习，我自己也要不断地提升，保证传道人们要有活水流进来，不断的读书和培训。
2. 聚会信众的工厂加班，有的时候，整体的聚会很难到齐。
3. 城市的教会比较多，有些信徒不能很好的委身一个教会。他们到处跑，我们会在教会里多讲在一个教会委身的重要性，不要来回传是非。
4. 关于城市信徒的婚姻的问题，两地分居的婚姻，有离了婚了的单亲家庭，单身妈妈带一个孩子也很多，还有大龄的弟兄姐妹找不到合适的对象。教会内的男女比例失调也很严重。
5. 我们教会未婚的弟兄多，未婚的姐妹少，我们有几个大龄弟兄，没有找到对象。
专访｜一牧师：从农村教会到城市教会牧会转型的经验与思考
Editor's Note: Pastor L (pseudonym) has a pastoral experience of nearly 30 years. It was in rural churches that he accepted and worshiped Christ, then devoted himself to God. Later, he was sent by the Lord to do pastoral ministry in a city. At that time, he confessed, "I don't want to grow an urban church in rural church style." His meaningful words embodied his persistence and insistence on the proper function and positioning of the church.
Specifically, what kind of persistence and insistence is this? The Christian Times, an online Chinese Christian newspaper, interviewed L to share the similarities and differences between rural churches and urban churches.
Christian Times: In your opinion, what are the similarities and differences between rural churches and urban churches?
Pastor L: My hometown is in a rural area where both my grandparents and my parents grew up in a rural church. I also grew up in the countryside. Since 1996, I have spent three years preaching in the rural areas of Northeast China. Then, a month after I got married in 2005, my wife and I came to pastor in a southern city where I found that the difference between urban churches and rural churches is not a matter of environment or geography, but of different pastoral philosophies.
Differences Between Rural Churches and Urban Churches
I have summarized some of the characteristics of rural gatherings based on my personal experience. Firstly, during gatherings, it’s a prominent phenomenon that believers come late and leave early for rural Christians lack the concept of time. Secondly, the environment of the meeting venue is not very pleasant. Some would meet in a huge shed. Believers with a rural background are used to this kind of environment. When praying together, they don’t even have a cushion to kneel on.
During the holy communion, in rural churches, all believers drink grape juice from the same cup, which is very unhygienic. It's also hard to know for sure how much one should drink.
In addition, in the management of donations, the elders of rural churches and the host families don’t strictly supervise expenditures. There should be two or three people responsible for financial management. The style of the rural church is that people trust each other. Sometimes, there is no more money left when it is time to pay bills. But no one clearly knows how the money has been spent. I think this management model of only relying on trust among people is not right.
Another notable phenomenon in rural churches is that rural pastors generally do not study, do not read books, and even have nothing to do with theology, for they believe that knowledge makes one arrogant. Once, I was invited to preach. Unfortunately, I said I was not prepared, so I couldn't do it. However, the pastor said to me, "The Bible says: don't worry, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say. (Luke 12:12)" Many rural pastors have personally experienced much God’s power and miracles, so they rely on this to serve all the year round, and they are not willing to continue to grow or know more about God Himself.
Here is another example. In rural churches, I find that some pastors preach well, but have problems with the interpretation of the Bible. Many of them handwrite the Bible and preach as much as they have written. When I was young, I heard a pastor read the Acts (of Apostles) as "Acts of the Stones." Some believers asked, how could the stones be able to do the Acts? The rural pastor replied, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26). When hearing them recite Acts 1:8, I didn't even understand what they were saying at all. For example, when they said “burning Mary”, it was actually burning Samaria. These pastors do not understand the literal meaning of the scriptures, let alone the spirit of the scriptures. Rural pastors need to improve their personal qualities in culture and theology.
First, in general, rural pastors have a low literacy level. Second, they are not equipped to study. Third, a large percentage of rural pastors are actually opposed to studying theology but emphasize more on personal experience. I believe that theology is the foundation of serving. However, many church staff who serve passionately in rural areas cannot sit down and be willing to study humbly, and even fall asleep listening to sermons. Many of them lack the learning ability.
This is my summary of the characteristics of rural churches.
Since arriving in the city, I have been facing groups of very different characteristics in the cultural and social status and background from before. If we don't grow and change, it will be difficult for us to influence people with high social status, good knowledge, and powerful position. One pastor from my hometown started serving in a city. In an apartment rented as the church venue, he collected wooden boards at a construction site to make blackboards with black paint, and many stools of various shapes. Although he lived in an urban building, it still felt like a rural gathering venue. He would rather save money than invest in important hardware.
Another church rented a very small venue, just because it was cheap. It was not a rectangular-shaped apartment. The living room had an oblique angle. When I knelt down on the concrete floor together with a senior female believer to pray, I felt my knees were really hurting. But this elder believer thought it was impious to pray with a cushion. I said to her: "You need to change your perception. On the one hand, it is clean and hygienic to pray with a cushion under the knees, on the other hand, it is more comfortable so that those who participate in prayers don't have to pray for you hoping you will end the prayer meeting sooner." Following my suggestion, she changed the gathering venue and bought cushions for praying on her knees. Such small matters were in fact the concept in one’s heart about how to serve the church.
In my opinion, regarding the hardware of the church, it is necessary to have chairs of the same design, excellent lighting for meetings, and screen projection from mobile phones or computers. Although our church is not very large, it makes the churchgoers who attend gatherings feel that it is a church and a formal meeting venue where they are taken seriously.
The church has an invisible soft asset which is the pastors.
Pastors' education level and hospitality manners make the first impression on the church. Pastors who have little knowledge can easily be despised by believers. A pastor needs to have basic common sense and read many various types of books. If a Buddhist finds out you know more than he does as a pastor, he will slowly feel interested in you, so that you become a bridge.
When it comes to preaching and pastoring, the first thing to pay attention to is that some people will not accept the faith you preach because they cannot accept you as a person. Second, knowing that your cultural knowledge and values are wrong, they can’t embrace your faith either. I think that pastors need to improve in both areas.
Being settled in the city, I focused on developing the gathering environment and facilities, for which I spent much money on renting and decorating a whole floor with no separations, buying good equipment, building a reception room, a library, etc. Such a venue makes people feel they are treated seriously. I always teach that you should be ashamed if your home is better than God's home. We rent office buildings for some meeting points, which are public places and more convenient for gatherings. Some believers are afraid of gatherings in private homes and feel safe going to office buildings.
Christian Times: How can your church grow under the pandemic?
Pastor L: We are very focused on relational outreach in difficult circumstances. There will be a love feast after our church services. We invite churchgoers and their friends and relatives to mountain hiking together, to have meetings on the mountain, tug-of-war competitions, and parent-child activities, etc. With such opportunities, we can influence those parents so that they will have a good impression of the church. In the city, a relationship is very important. We need to build a relationship first, then talk about faith. Hanging out and dining together, we start a relationship with which they begin to accept us. Then, we can visit their homes, counsel and help them with real marriage and family problems, and parent-child problems. At these moments, they naturally want to get close to the church and God. Then we introduce the faith, teach the Bible, help them run their own marriages and families, and teach them how to tutor their children better.
Christian Times: Currently, how do you train the co-workers and group leaders in the church?
Pastor L: Our church has always kept doing the discipleship ministry. Believers who eat the loaves and have their fill have no burden or offering to the church. Co-workers always come early and leave late working on the ministries needed by the church. It’s very important to develop disciples. The Lord Jesus spent most of his time with his disciples during his stay on earth which lasted more than three years. My disciple-making method has four stages. "You observe how I do it. Then, you do it with me. Later, I observe how you do it. Finally, they observe how you do it." Paul taught Timothy so that Timothy could teach others who continued teaching the next generation. We call this the four-generation model.
During the holidays, we gathered the brothers and sisters who were thirsting for the truth, and also had had adequate education, to train for 3-4 days. After the gathering, they went home and studied a course, so as to equip themselves. After the Sunday services, we asked them to stay for an hour for the discipleship course after which they left after having lunch together. Over the years, we had been practicing this. Later we also added group discipleship training on Wednesdays during which I provided those believers with some lessons to learn.
Afterward, I set up a WeChat group in which I distributed the course materials. Following each lesson, there would be ten questions to be answered. Participants must study the courses, read the lecture notes, do the homework, and think for themselves. I wouldn’t know if they had learned the materials even if they showed good interest. But I could supervise their answers which they couldn’t give without reading all materials well.
In terms of the truth, after finishing the online study, we also teach courses about pastoral service, how to practice preaching, and how to lead people to the Lord. In pastoral studies, we teach how to pray, how to read the Bible and equip them with basic teachings. I have been running this course for more than three years. There are more than 100 students in three classes at the same time. They are divided into different classes according to their educational level, ministry engagement time, and experience. After achieving passing grades and graduating, I will issue them certificates, and keep supervising and motivating them. Later, whenever I see some young people, I will encourage them to be leaders, leading the Bible reading and the worship. I will also let them join the ministry in the church, such as preaching the gospel to others or practicing preaching in small groups with my speech notes. Later I will set up deacons, elders, and assistant pastors in the church, who would be responsible for different groups.
Assistant pastors and elders participate in leading the holy communion. I can also bring co-workers of the preaching ministry together to do preaching exercises during which we will grade them on the courage and content of the preaching. I'll give them important advice such as making eye contact during preaching. We will discover the gifts of different people and make them group leaders, and entrust them with positions and missions.
Christian Times: At this stage, what problems do you encounter in pastoral care?
Pastor L: There are five aspects to these problems.
1. Pastors need to grow themselves by learning, including myself who aim for constant improvement. We must ensure that there is always fresh blood in pastoral staff so that we need to keep reading and making disciples.
2. Believers often have to work overtime in factories. Sometimes, it is difficult for the whole congregation to attend gatherings.
3. There are many urban churches. Some believers cannot commit themselves to one church but run around to several churches. We will encourage believers to notice the importance of being committed to one church, and not go back and forth with gossip.
4. Regarding the marriage of believers in cities, there are long-distance marriages, many single mothers with one child in divorced single-parent families, and older single believers who cannot find suitable partners. The disproportion between men and women in the church is also serious.
5. There are many single brothers but few unmarried sisters in our church. A few older brothers remain single with no access to suitable partners.
- Translated by Shuya Wang
Interview: Pastor's Experience, Reflections on Pastoral Transformation From Rural Churches to Urban Churches
