How I Enable My Parishioners to Support Me in Using My Time & Energy Wisely As Their Pastor
11 min 25s
Rev. Joe Graumann
In smaller churches, pastors often spend lots of time on things that parishioners aren’t even aware they are spending their time on – especially things that others could do as well. This, of course, takes time and energy away from things pastors are specifically trained to do and people are expecting them to do. Consequently, the pastor feels overworked and exhausted, leading to resentment by the pastor and upset by parishioners when the pastor isn’t available to do what is expected of them – what they have been trained to do and is in their job description.
In this episode titled, “How I Enable My Parishioners to Support Me in Using My Time & Energy Wisely As Their Pastor,” Rev. Joe Graumann shares how he manages this challenge in a way that all parties feel respected, the pastor’s time and energies are employed well, and the needs of the church are met too.
The Rev. Joseph Graumann is pastor of St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church in Woodbury, NJ. During six years of ministry in eastern Massachusetts, Joe enjoyed developing his passion for strategic planning and governance alongside a commitment to having fun in congregational life. He was a recent fellow of Hartford International University’s Pastoral Innovation Network of New England, and he’s currently on the board of CrossRoads, the joint Episcopal-ELCA summer camp in New Jersey. Joe is a graduate of United Lutheran Seminary in Gettysburg, PA.
- Recorded in July 2023
- Listen to more from Rev. Joe Graumann
