Okay, I know of some great pastors who have huge preaching staffs. But they have "One church, 5000 locations." These pastors fly in by helicopter, some even fly across the country, and they preach and wave at the flock and run back to the heli-pad to travel to the next location. Some have cut back on their expenditures and simply "feed" their sermons in by video. Usually, these churches have 400 preachers (of course I'm exaggerating), but apparently none of them is good enough to go pastor one of these 5000 churches.

What's up with that? I don't know whether to be 1) annoyed because the pastor is running himself in the ground for money or ego or 2) to be saddened that such a prolific pastor apparently isn't training his staff to lead.

What do you say?

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I call this the new franchise opportunity. Pastors who want to "enlarge their territory" can do so without any permission from other local ministries that may be as or even more effective than that new franchise church.

I was once invited to serve on the staff of a church that was multi-locational. The pastor planted a new congregation only after learning that several other black church's attempt to buy a used Southern Baptist Church building fell through. He swiped up the property worth over 1 million dollars and started weekly services. Within 3 months, he was asking the new congregation to help purchase a helicopter because the hour drive was just too inconvenient for him twice a week. To further persuade them of this need, he planted four other churches each within 75 miles of each other while also building a new main sanctuary headquarters. His ministry was now one church in 6 locations. The churches eventually purchased the helicopter for him but he no longer attends each service at every church every sunday or midweek.
When I asked him why he started all the churches, he told me because the churches that were already affiliated with him were not doing ministry and that as an Apostle, it was his Apostolic Unction to do so. It came across to me as arrogance, pride and a major insult to the pastors in the area who had already affiliated their ministries with his. After a few months of assisting him at the first franchise location, I left highly confused, angry and of course disappointed. I could only imagine what the ministers who were affiliated with him felt.

On the flip side, there are churches who use this to their advantage and get away with it like Ed Young, Jr, Andy Stanley (Charles Stanley's son), Craig Groeschel and many others. They have several campuses where each campus has a local pastor of worship and administration but the entire sermon is streamed via satellite to the various locations.
Pastor: I appreciate you sharing your experience. That's deep. I'm in the Dallas metroplex where we have a number of multi-location churches. With Stanley, Young, Jr., Groeschel, Davis and others leading multi-location congregations, my question is this: Why are these large ministries producing only "worship pastors" for these congregations? If these communities need a church (hence the new location), why not send a pastor who understands the philosophy of ministry and plant one. Let's be honest, we all love good preaching, but for real? are they the only ones who can preach? We are not training leaders and ultimately I think it will affect the Body.
No doubt. I agree.
I agree. I had the opportunity to assist several pastors plant churches once. In one case, I stayed on the staff for several months before leaving to assist another pastor plant a church. I only have a problem when pastors start churches in the same city (especially when the city is less than 75,000 people). I see that more as a power move than a spiritual move. I once lived in a small city with over 300 black churches and a couple had two locations (unnecessarily). That comes across as vanity and egotistic to me.

I understand that some associates never venture out beyond their local assembly. I was always fortunate to have great mentors who trained me to be ready to go out. I have yet to plant another church, but I know that when I do, each minister I train will be prepared to go out and do the same anywhere in the world (thats the purpose of the mission church).
I agree. If a pastor is humble, he/she will train pastors (not start a new fellowship and have other pastors join it so they can be trained). In the AME church, every Itinerant Elder (after completing seminary) is trained for pastoral ministry upon being licensed. Its a five year process (not including seminary). Each of us are trained to know the liturgy and polity of the church so that we can enter any church in the world across our connection and pastor. Even as a young Baptist pastor I was blessed to have pastors to teach me the same.

I honestly believe that people who attend multi-site churches are not fully benefitting from the pastoral leadership. Today pastors act more like CEO's than shepherds and the preaching takes a back burner to the overall experience people expect. In other words, people go to church to be served and do not leave to serve.
This is nothing more than greed, pride and vain glory!!!
This type of Apostolic work is totally flawed! Flying back and forth to preach and you never really train up anyone??1 Thats an embarrassment to all true Apostles and leaders. Leaders like either 1) are just plain greedy for fame, 2) don't trust the men/women under them, 3) know to train new leaders but are spreading themselves thin, or 4) a combo of 1 & 2. Its performances like this that cause true, wise Apostles to be insulted and ranked amongst the fake and/or foolish ones.
What can you expect. That is one reason why I havent ventured out into the field as a church planter as I once did while in college. Many pastors enter the field simply because of the benefits of being a pastor, prophet, evangelist, apostle. They don't do the teacher thing because its not as lucrative. LOL.

I remember attending a tent revival as a teenager. During the meeting when the offering was being taken, the Evangelist stated that "this aint just the church, its a business!" I had only heard of stuff like that after my grandmother would come home from a church business meeting and gossip about all the fussing that went on. LOL. Thats when I realized that running a church meant something and starting a church meant even more. As long as the American church promotes this business structure, that will always be the end result.
The Teacher spot is actually more lucrative than the Apostle or Prophet spot! Its now called "Life-Coach" and "Motivational Speaker"! LOL

The Church is not to be run like a Fortune 500 company, but literally like a Theocratic government
That's too many churches and too many locals for one church. Sounding like "Bishop Secluar"on the Yolanda Adams Morning Show who is a "G for Jesus"......LOL
What's up with that? The mighty dollar; that's what's up with that! I am not annoyed with the so called pastor who happens to be such a prolific speaker, I pity the fool who has made a mockery of the Word of God and is using the sacred profession to get rich. We all remember the rich young ruler who stated that I will build more barns for all my stuff and the result of his actions; also we must remember that the serpent was very prolific as he spoke to Eve in the garden.

My heart and prayers go out to the people who have been bambozzled by the speech and mannerism of these hirelings because they are being fleeced and don't even realize it. But God has already spoken this.

Where does it end? It is so sad that we who were raised up on the Word have become the possessors of itching ears, being driven to and fro by every wind and doctrine of cunning and deceitful men and women who profess to be of God.

God is too good to me to attempt to play Him the way some of these people are doing. I have chosen to just pray for them and the people who are being carried away because of their own lusts and desires. Also, I must continue to remind myself that God said this would be so.
Your words are laced with nothing but TRUTH! Each section of the world that the Church occupies has a particular enemy. The Western Church (us Americans) are like the Greeks: we sit around the Aristotle's and Socrates of our time listening to great philosophical words. Paul said that he came not with excellence of speech, but demonstration of GOD's power.

Because of this reason, I can understand why you feel how you feel about our other topic (Should Pastors Get Paid?).

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