About Bi-vocational Ministry

 Before I get into this, there might be someone wondering, "What is bi-vocational ministry?" Good question and glad you asked. So, allow me to talk about bi-vocational ministry. Bi-vocational ministry is basically someone who works in the secular field full or part time and also holds a ministry position. The most common type of bi-vocational ministry is that of a pastoral type position. I'm not sure if it was just me or also the opinion of others, but it appeared that bi-vocational pastors were looked at as a lower caliber of minister. "He must not have what it takes to get staffed full time at a local church."

I can't say that was an across the board opinion but it seems I heard that here and there. I spent many years in bi-vocational ministry; I used to ask God why He never allowed me to be in a staffed full time position. I thought for many of those years that I was not good enough or I just didn't have what it took. But even as I might have thought those things, I worked as hard as the full time person in ministry. It was only after years of ministry that God showed me the benefits of bi-vocational ministry and why He had me there. 

As He had me look back on those years, I was then able to see how the Lord used me in those secular positions. In all the years of my career, I only spent three years staffed full time in ministry and it wasn't a church. It was an inner city rescue mission type ministry. And, I wasn't in a counselor or pastoral position. I was a facility manager and was responsible for the building maintenance regardless if I did it or hired a contractor. But even in this position, I was still in a type of bi-vocational ministry. While there, I was able to witness to contractors, teach after hours Bible studies and answer many questions during the day. It was like being in bi-vocational ministry while being employed by a ministry. During this time, I was also a Men's Pastor at a local church which was also a bi-vocational ministry.

As a bi-vocational minister/worker, God used me at the secular job site as a counselor, Chaplain, Bible teacher and Pastor. There were times when I was busier with ministry at the job site than I was in the church. At those times, I loved it; yes, I still was curious why I never was called to a full time church position but I never lost my love for the ministry at the secular job site. There were common questions about the Christian life from other believers and questions about salvation from unbelievers. I spent a lot of hours talking to men about their marriages or financial accountability, how to talk to their children about God and so many other topics. Discipleship was a big part of that ministry; just helping men who were still somewhat immature in their faith or men who had recently been saved was a blessing. Now, you're probably asking how I was able to do all this on the job. Well, I wasn't working in a factory or on an assembly line. I was working in an environment which had a lot of down time. It wasn't time in which we weren't being productive but time when we might have been in a type of wait mode. I don't want to go into the details of the job but I will say this was all legitimate and we weren't cheating the employer. God used that down time for His purpose and had me there for those reasons.

Many times, I was asked this question, "If you have a degree in Theology, why aren't you pastoring a church full time?" And, my response would always be, "Because I'm right where God wants me." Yes, I questioned God about why I wasn't staffed full time but I always knew He had me where He wanted me. (I wasn't asking in a complaining way but more of a curious way) This is what I was able to realize after all those years: God had me in a mission field of sorts. I was where the rubber meets the road as some might say. If a man is in a full time pastoral role, he will not be among as many unbelievers as a man who isn't. I was given an opportunity by the Lord to spend time among nonbelievers and talk with them about Jesus. I never forced anyone to listen but God always opened a door. 

Sometimes, it might be a person I was familiar with and other times it would be someone I didn't know. I taught Bible studies and invited anyone and everyone to attend (these were done during the lunch hour). There is a great advantage to being bi-vocational; it will keep you busy for sure. There are pastors who prefer bi-vocational ministry. It's not for the extra money but for the reasons I have already stated. Some will work full time and some part time in a secular position and refuse a salary from the church or take a reduced salary. 

If you read about the Apostle Paul's missionary journeys, you will see that he was bi-vocational. He didn't want to burden those he was ministering to with the responsibility of trying to provide for him. That made perfect sense; he wanted them to concentrate on one thing and that was Jesus. So, if it is possible for a pastor to do that now, it can be a big advantage. 

Now, there are those situations when a pastor or any pastor in the local church will not be able to do this. If a local church is a large church, it might not be wise to attempt this. The day to day business of a large church could possibly demand full time attention of pastors. Also, the church board might not permit this. The other side of this topic is a pastor should be provided for by the church when possible. There are many local churches in this country which are small and cannot afford to pay a pastor a full time salary or any salary. In these cases, the pastor is forced to work a secular job to provide for his needs. But the pastor realizes this when he accepts the position or he should.   

I did some church planting and as a church planting pastor I knew I would have to find secular employment. But I was used to this type of ministry. The worst thing a pastor or Christian worker can do is accept a position which would require that person to support themselves in a secular job and then regret it. When I was involved in a church plant, I had to work a couple of jobs that were terrible but I knew the Lord had me there and was working in ways I couldn't immediately see.

The world doesn't really understand bi-vocational ministry; as far as that goes, many Christians don't understand it. The world has a stereotype of a pastor's job as working one day a week, Sunday. They don't understand everything a pastor really does. They don't understand that a pastor might put in ten to twelve hours on a given day. They don't understand the emotional and spiritual strain a Sunday can have on a pastor. Many Christians don't know or understand these things!

They is no shame in working as a bi-vocational pastor for the Lord. I have always believed that God has us right where He wants us, doing what He wants us to do. Of course, I'm referring to the Christian who is in step with Jesus and not in a rebellious state. He knows who He can put to work in a full time position and who He can't. He knows who He can use in bi-vocational ministry and who He can't. No one should ever be ashamed or embarrassed by being in bi-vocational ministry. That is worldly type thinking and we should never allow the world to influence us.

If you are a pastor or Christian worker who is bi-vocational, God has you right where He wants you and you should take advantage of it. If your pastor is bi-vocational, don't think of him as less than a full time pastor and support him in whatever way you can. There is a place in the Church for bi-vocational minsters and they work every bit as hard as those in full time positions and are probably reaching more people on a weekly basis.

-Bill Petite