We're Losing 600 Preachers A Year
“We’re losing 600 preachers a year.” I first heard this stat referenced a little over 20 years ago. I’ve done as much research as I can on tracking down both the original source of this quote as well as the research to prove it and after a pretty exhaustive search, I have concluded that it is mythical. Some preacher somewhere said it and it became respected lore and then quotable “fact.” It’s not. Not only are we not dropping 600 preachers a year, even if that many were dying or dropping out it does not take into account how many are entering the work on an annual basis. If we had been losing 600 a year now for 20 years that would be 12,000 and would basically mean that NO congregation would have a preacher. And, as the keeper of The Scoop Blog, that’s nowhere close to accurate. Yet, we do have some who out of frustration leave ministry and we do need more preachers of Truth than perhaps we have ever needed.
How do we get more preachers?
When we reach more souls who were lost and are now found we’ll in turn “find” more preachers! Teach the beauty of the grace of God so well. Nothing will motivate a person to want to preach more than grace realized in their lives.
Leaders must teach their congregations to speak more highly of their ministers in the homes of the members: Dad used to talk about members having “grilled preacher” for lunch. If in your home preachers were always skewered and seen in the most pessimistic of light, a preacher will not come from your home. If leaders/elders in the local church do not treat the preacher with respect and the role of the preacher with respect the members will not either.
Our churches must treat God’s men better: If he makes a dollar less than the lowest-paid breadwinner in the church, while he may be sacrificial, how can we expect young men to crave that role? It is not a sin to do something other than sin but it is a sin to not provide for your family.
We must respect what we do: My first three imperatives are on the church, my last three on those of us who preach. If you respect the work you do by doing it with excellence, by treating it like a divine mission it will only attract others to that work.
We must be joyful in our work: If WE look like we were weened on persimmon juice and our attitudes and disposition is always negative. If we act like our “job” is a chore and a burden we will run others away from this role. The best way to attract young men in your congregation to preaching is to make the job look worth doing. And it is. We are involved in the greatest work in the world. If you do not believe that you need to find another work to do, one you can believe in.
We must invite others into this work: The vast majority of those who preach were simply encouraged by another preacher or family member to preach. When we invite the brightest and best of our kids to embrace this role it will make an impact. They will be encouraged, but they must have an opportunity and, perhaps, a little bit of a push.
What a blessing to preach. Let’s equip the next generation to be better than we are. Let’s help our people to respect this role. Let’s encourage our young men to preach and our young ladies to marry preachers.