Solo Pastor (Week 10 Replacement Post)

I interviewed Aaron Cloud on Sunday, March 22 about the difficulties and joys of being a solo pastor. Aaron is on a staff of one person. He is the senior pastor, youth pastor, and small group pastor. While this may seem like a blessing to many people who are constantly involved in arguments amongst the different staff pastors in a church, there are certainly downsides to being a solo pastor. What makes Aaron's situation unique is the fact that he not only is the only pastor at the church, but is also the youngest person who attends the church. Aaron finds himself in a difficult situation every single day that he wakes up. He isn't able to "bounce" ideas off other pastors. He isn't able to relate relevant information to peers his own age. He simply is alone. The term "solo" pastor takes on a whole other meaning. It is difficult for someone who has constantly been surrounded by people his own age for the past 22 years and then all of a sudden have the exact opposite. So, some of the positives of a solo pastor are listed here:

1) You make your own schedule and there is no scheduling conflicts with any of the other pastors on staff, because you are the only one.

2) You are free to be as clean or messy as you want in the office because you are the only one there. Obviously if the Board asks you to keep a clean workspace, then you would follow those wishes, but for the most part, you are free to do whatever.

3) You have no conflicts with anyone else about issues that you normally find in a typical office space. You only conflict with yourself.

However, as I mentioned before, there seem to be more negatives than positives when it comes to being a solo pastor (at least in Aaron's case):

1) It is lonely. We were created to live in community, and when that is taken away from you, you find yourself missing a huge hole in your body and soul. So, there is a tremendous sense of loss and a need for community.

2) It is narrow focused. Without the ability to bounce ideas off others, you tend to only listen to your own points of view. When that happens, you begin to travel down a slippery slope of only believing yourself.

3) It is lonely. Seriously, this is the worse part.

4) It is easy to become stagnant. When there is no one there pushing you to do better, you become pretty stagnant and not able to move very quickly. I think our natural inclination is to go slow and not progress. Without someone there pushing us, we become stagnant and don't progress.

These are just a few thoughts....