I sometimes come across churches that are offering training roles for potential pastors and workers. Sometimes what that means is that the person will work part time for the church whilst studying part time for the rest of the week.
It may be that at that stage the church can only afford to pay someone part time. However, if possible, I would encourage the church to pay a full time salary. Why? Well because training is part of the job. Consider the approach that a professional footballer would take. Are they only paid for their actual appearances? No, they are paid a full time and generous salary even though a significant proportion of their time is to be found on the training pitch. The training is essential to their performance come Saturday afternoon.
Taking this approach also helps with our thinking about longer term ministry. Training is not simply something you do at the start of your calling, prior to or into the early days of ministry. Training is something that is happening day to day, week to week in ministry as you ensure that you are equipped and prepared for that talk, Bible study, leadership meeting or pastoral counselling session. This also means that ongoing training is not just about applying to go on courses but is about how you spend all of your working time when you are not directly engaging with others. Training therefore is about your prayer life, Bible study and wider reading.
Training is not about preparation before starting the job, training is part of the job whether you are a young pastor learning the ropes or a seasoned church leader seeking to stay spiritually fit and fresh.
Faithroots 