best practices for pastoring in a quarantine

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been privileged to connect with numerous leaders across New York to learn how they are shepherding their people during this quarantine. Video conferences with pastors, presbyters, and credential holders as well as conversations with business professionals and community leaders have helped to define some “best practices” for pastoring in a quarantine.

MAINTAIN YOUR SPIRITUAL HEALTH
Don’t neglect your relationship with Jesus. This is a season of stripping and refinement. God is allowing us to be isolated from the supports we’ve relied upon for years. He’s reminding us that our strength is only in Him. Don’t pull back from prayer, don’t neglect the scriptures. Lean into God. Study the Word. Memorize blocks of scripture. Now, more than ever, our people need pastors who hear from God and bring a in word in season from the Holy Spirit.

GET OUT IN FRONT
Be visible, be heard. Leaders communicate more in challenging times. Failure to get in front, frame the dialogue, and explain the strategy can damage your credibility for years to come. Leaders need to be seen and heard. Hold Zoom conferences, record videos, make phone calls. There’s no excuse in today’s media driven environment for leaders to not be seen and heard. For more about this, check out Leading Through Crisis.

GET BUSY WITH PHONE CALLS
Organize your leadership teams (pastors, deacons, board members) to get on the phone and connect with people. Everyone in the church should get a call—and more than once. If you can’t get a hold of people by phone, then send a text or Facebook message. Somehow, make the effort and keep trying until you connect.

MEET REGULARLY WITH MINISTRY STAFF, DIRECTORS AND KEY INFLUENCERS
Meet regularly with the people you’re leading—and those who are influencing others. Provide opportunities for updates, feedback, team collaboration and creative problem solving. Failing to communicate and keep key leaders informed is the number one reason why leaders are criticized during crisis. Never underestimate the value of communication.

PROVIDE FREQUENT UPDATES TO YOUR CHURCH
You don’t need fancy equipment, just use the camera on your phone. Record a general greeting, or an update about your church and post it online—and do it regularly. It’s a great way to remind people of your online services, media for children and encourage them to remain consistent in their giving. You can upload these videos to YouTube and send the link in an email, text it, or post it on social media.

OFFER ONLINE MINISTRY
Many churches are feeling the urgency to provide an online or “Livestream” format of church services. If you’ve chosen to simply to “wait it out” and are expecting the Coronavirus quarantine to end soon, I hope you’re right and respect your decision to do so. But if you’re among those looking to expand their ministry to an online format, there is help. The NYMN website provides some excellent resources at this link.

PRE-RECORD MEDIA FOR FUTURE BROADCASTS
For the present, most counties in New York State are still allowing churches to gather small teams (10 or 20 depending on where you are) for the purpose of recording services or facilitating livestreams. In addition to the streaming format, some churches are pre-recording extra worship sets and sermons in the event our state escalates the quarantine and we are no longer allowed to gather small teams. Having a stockpile of media will allow you to facilitate ministry for future seasons—kind of like Joseph who stored up grain for times of famine.

REMEMBER THE YOUTH AND CHILDREN
Many families are looking for their church to provide ministry to their kids. They appreciate when their children can find a familiar face—such as their children’s pastor or youth leader—who provides a lesson or devotional through YouTube or social media. The key is to inform the parents as most moms and dads will eagerly engage their children and youth in these efforts. Even better is when ministry leaders conduct video conference calls with kids. The children love it and the parents will love you.

ENCOURAGE GIVING AND TITHING
In seasons of struggle, people need to be reminded that this not the time to pull back their faith and doubt the promises of God. Encourage people to be confident and trust God’s Word. The principles of tithing and generosity are not merely for the “good times” when incomes are high, and our lives are cozy. True faith is demonstrated in the lean and difficult times. Be careful, however, not to use pressure tactics, guilt or condemnation. Be sensitive to how people are struggling and need to be encouraged and inspired, not pressured and berated.

PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR ONLINE GIVING
In this digital age, online giving platforms have become a safe and popular option for congregations. More and more people are moving away from carrying cash or writing checks and are paying bills through electronic means. While it’s true some people may never trust online giving, the vast majority of congregants under 40 are already doing it. If you want to maintain consistent levels of income, especially while church services are suspended, digital giving is a vital tool. Check out this article by Outreach.com that explains the options.

CONNECT WITH TOP GIVERS
Don’t assume your top supporters are connected, committed or even concerned. Reach out to them and stay in touch. Assure them of your prayers and availability during times of stress. This is a crucial task for the primary leader or lead pastor to undertake. Be sure to tighten the bonds with those who enable your ministry. Remember, the enemy is not practicing social distancing and is actively seeking ways to pull your team apart.

VIRTUAL CONNECT GROUPS
Conference platforms such as Zoom, WebEx and GoToMeeting offer opportunities for churches to facilitate regular meetings online. Churches can organize their pastors, leaders and small group hosts to meet regularly (via video) with networks of people throughout their faith community. The purpose of these meetings is not to conduct ministry business or conduct strategy, but to connect personally, convey concern, discover needs and pray for one another. It’s simply a way for people to stay connected and build relationships.

POINT PEOPLE BACK TO CHRIST
As we endeavor to provide ministry to our people through social media and online formats, let’s remember that the most important function of a spiritual shepherd is to point people to the Great Shepherd, Jesus Christ. Let’s be careful not to create a greater addiction to social media or a deeper reliance on pastoral personalities. This is a season when God has allowed a separation to occur—even an isolation. Let’s remind people that before they seek us out on Facebook or tune into our clever sermons, that that they need to connect to Jesus—personally and privately. Remind people to feed themselves with the Word, to be regular in the discipline of prayer, and worship without someone leading them. This is a time when faith is being refined, the lukewarm are being tested and the hot will burn hotter for Jesus Christ. If we want revival, it’s not going to happen because of our great preaching; its going to happen because people learned how to go deeper in Christ without depending on us.