Excellence from the Start

Several years ago, some of the key persons in the Presbyterian headquarters decided to do something about the alarming desertion of Presbyterian pastors from the ministry - especially relatively "new" pastors who migrated out of ministry at disturbing rates.  Truth be told, this was not merely a Presbyterian problem.  Research from the Lilly Foundation and the Alban Institute (two agencies committed to the health of congregations in America) showed decreased longevity and effectiveness in ministers' tenures.  

What eventually emerged from the Presbyterian Church were a few initiatives centered on three very basic practices.  First and foremost:  nourish the souls of young pastors by encouraging them to practice their faith, particularly through study, prayer and worship.  Second:  place them in a community of other pastors who can provide accountability and encouragement.  And, third:  place them under the care of mentors, pastors with many seasons of ministry under their belt who can provide perspective and guidance.  

The first such group begun by the PCUSA was a program called "Excellence from the Start", and the follow up initiative was called "Company of New Pastors".  By God's grace and some helpful encouragement from a few friends at Fuller, I was fortunate enough to be selected to participate in this second initiative.  

Apparently, the issue of professional integrity and sustainability is not relegated to ministry alone.  I read today a wonderful article in The New Yorker titled "Most Likely to Succeed" by Malcolm Gladwell (click here to read the article), which looks at various attempts to measure and discern who are the best teachers, the best quarterbacks and the best financial managers.  For all three professions, there is no clear indicator of what will make someone competent, let alone excellent.  Even more perplexing, having specific, master's level training in all three professions does not seem to be a real predictor of success either.

Take for instance the opening anecdote about an NFL professional scout and his quest to find a good quarterback for some NFL team.  No position is harder to predict, and as the article points out many "sure thing" quarterbacks have been chewed up and spat out by the NFL.  The moral of the quarterback dilemma is that no one can tell if a quarterback can be an NFL quarterback until they play a game as an NFL quarterback.

Similarly, no one can tell if a teacher can teach, until you put him in a classroom with a bunch of "wiggly Janes, Lucys, Johns, and Roberts".

Towards the end of the article, the attention turns to the financial sector and Ed Deutchslander, the co-president of North Star Resource Group in Minneapolis.  You come to find out that Ed interviewed about a thousand people last year.  He selected forty-nine that he liked.  But, there's more.  To truly find out if they were qualified, he put them into a "training camp", which then weeded out another twenty-six people.  Then, the remaining twenty-three people were given an apprenticeship, an opportunity to learn this trade and to see if they could handle the responsibilities and demands.  Deutchslander hopes that he'll be able to hang on to "thirty or forty per cent of that twenty-three."

Interestingly, another new initiative within the PCUSA is to send freshly "degreed" seminary students into churches as apprentices - to learn the trade of ministry.  A long time pastoral influence in my life strongly encouraged me to consider one of these apprenticeships, which I did not opt for.   But, two and a half years into ministry, I can see the value of such an approach.  For, in truth, much of my experience in Owensboro has been something of an apprenticeship, of coming to learn this trade and to learn how I am qualified for it (and, in what areas I need to gain further training).

Ultimately, the search to find out predictors for success is quite important.  Ed Deutchslander says that "most financial firms sink between a hundred thousand dollars and two hundred and fifty thousand dollars on someone in their first three or four years."  I imagine that First Presbyterian Church has sunk the minimum of those two figures in my "formation" already.  As I prepare to step into another ministry position, similar investments are now being made in me.  But, bigger than the financial investment football teams, churches and schools make in their talent, there is the more important matter of finding the right people for the job.  Having a great teacher - one that can "teach a year and a half of material in a year" - is priceless, just as being able to work in a position that you truly enjoy is priceless.

Wes