Eric Spangler writes

Had a great weekend with a band of brothers seeking the Lord. On Saturday we all got on a zip line and took a flyin' leap. I must admit, with some vertigo/balance issues, it took a bit of courage on my part. Reminded me of the following quote:

"Professional ministers are at their best (and they do excellent work) in a churched culture. But put them in an unchurched culture, and they are lost. In an unchurched culture, they do a reasonably decent job of presiding over stable and declining and dying churches. They maintain a sense of presence, dignity, decorum and decency — with a quietly sad regret — much like the thoughtful undertaker who sees to keeping things in good order throughout the funeral...

New understandings of doing ministry must be created with each new generation for the church’s mission to move forward... The day of the professional minister is over. The day of the missionary pastor has come." (emphasis mine)

— Kennon Callahan, Effective Church Leadership (New York: Harper and Row, 1990)

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