The 6 Most Pressing Issues for Pastors to Address This Year

As much as some baby boomers and possibly Gen Xers may not like it, we are fully enthralled in the digital age. More and more people are turning away from the traditional forms of communication and engagement and leaning into the digital space. Failing to recognize this means you are potentially missing out on reaching large segments of our population. 

In one sense, digital ministry works well, especially for those who are sick or shut-ins, because it allows them to stay connected. However, most of those engaged in digital communication don’t fall into that category, they simply prefer this style of communication. To do ministry in this era, there must be a healthy balance of online and in-person ministry opportunities. People may want to stay online, but you must create reasons for them not to. The challenge here lies in not just creating effective online ministry, but creating effective in-person ministry that would encourage people to move from behind the screen and show up in the sanctuary. To reach people in this age, you must be intentional in creating digital spaces for people to connect for worship and even discipleship. When you do that and give people a sense of connection, I believe you open the doors to transfer people from your digital space into your in-person community. 

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When I grew up in church, there were never any conversations about mental health. For a person to experience depression or anxiety, it was simply a spiritual attack, and all you had to do was just pray harder or worship more and the depression would go away. After all, in the presence of the Lord there is fullness of joy and depression cannot survive in that environment. This is what we were often told. If that didn’t work, then the prayer team would come around you and attempt to cast out the spirit of depression that had overtaken you. Clearly, these methods were both misinformed and misguided. This mindset devalued the reality of mental health challenges, and many times, it had devastating consequences.

Mental health issues can present themselves in various formats, and it is time the church stops looking down on those who may have these issues and starts taking seriously the condition of those in their congregation. The issue they are facing is not a lack of faith or some spiritual attack but is an actual condition that may require counseling, care, or even medication to assist. Regardless, let’s not just sweep this under the rug because there are probably more people in your congregations wrestling with this than you may realize. It is time to help those people and not ostracize them.

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Over time, it feels as if our culture has been divided into camps. Choices are binary, and if you support the other camp in any way, then you are not one of us. These divides have even crept into the church, where, in many, there is greater emphasis placed on the things that divide us than the things that unite us. Perhaps what is even sadder is there is no longer any room for contrarian opinions. I am not speaking of unbiblical opinions, but just simply another way of looking at an issue. 

While some cry for unity in the church, that does not mean we have to agree on everything. There is room for disagreement without it meaning you are compromising your faith. I know of people who are afraid to voice their opinion on a topic in church or to other believers because they are concerned about the backlash they will receive from their fellow Christians. This is a problem, and we cannot bury our heads in the sand and pretend it does not exist. 

However, the type of environment that allows the full expression of ideas without judgment cannot be created from within the congregation. It must come from the leadership of the church. Your church is (or should be) made up of people from a wide variety of backgrounds, cultures, and experiences. Each of these is valuable to building a church that can reach people who may look different and come from different places. Consider this question. Is it possible that someone can be welcomed in your church who may view some things differently than everyone else? Again, I am not speaking of unbiblical positions but ideas where there is room for various thoughts. If they can’t, then maybe the problem does not lie with them.

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More and more Christians are not engaging with the Bible. In a Barna poll from 2021, 64% of US adults read their Bible once a month or less, with 29% of them never reading it. I even found in the poll the definition of a Bible User was a little disheartening. Here is their definition.

“Bible Users—defined as individuals who read, listen to, or pray with the Bible on their own at least three or four times a year outside of a church service or church event…” (emphasis added)

No offense to Barna because I like the work they do, but three to four times a year outside of church is not a Bible user. That standard is way too low, and we would not use that to describe people in other situations. For example, would you call someone who works out three or four times a year a gym user or someone who reads three or four times a year an avid reader? The answer is no in both scenarios, and it further underscores the challenge of Biblical literacy.

While it is okay to be excited when people show up in the building or even online, we should get equally or more excited if we can get more people engaged in reading their Bible. This is an area where digital apps can help, but regardless of the method, you need to work to create excitement within your congregation about the importance of reading the Bible. Once you create the excitement then follow up to keep encouraging people to continue on this path because people who are not Bible readers will have a difficult time growing in their walk. 

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There has always been a push in every generation of the church to be cognizant of the next generation. Each generation depends on the next one to carry the message of the gospel forward. This means we must train those behind us to carry on. One challenge is that many younger ones, when they are old enough, are abandoning their faith. If we are going to solve this problem, then we need to understand why.

While there are many studies that attempt to address this issue, one study conducted by Fuller Seminary tied leaving the church or their faith to people feeling like they don’t have a place to address their doubts and concerns regarding their faith. They are made to feel like the church is not the place to address their doubts when the opposite of this is true. Church should be the perfect place to do this.

This concern forces us to wrestle with a truth that far too many “mature” believers don’t want to acknowledge. We all have questions, even doubts, and concerns regarding our faith that we often never talk about. One big reason is because we are not allowed to. In many church circles, asking questions or facing a doubt means there is something wrong with you. After all, what kind of Christian are you if you have doubts or questions? At least, that is how you are made to feel. If you look at this honestly, it clearly denies the one thing we all have in common. We are human, and we are going to question things. That must be okay.

According to Jesus, John the Baptist was the greatest person ever born to a woman (Matt. 11:11). Yet after preaching to the masses about Jesus being the Messiah, John found himself in prison and he sent word to Jesus asking, are you the one or should we look for another? (Matt 11:3). If John had questions and a moment of doubt then don’t be surprised if others have them too. 

To reach the next generation, we must present an authentic Christianity that does not hide the struggles or challenges we face, but highlights them and seeks to resolve them. Without this, then many young people and even older people too will see a form of Christianity they feel will never be obtainable and when they fall short, they may simply fall away.

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The challenge of sexual identity is present in the culture, and whether or not you choose to believe it, it is present in the church. I am not referring to churches that are open to affirming all lifestyles, I am referring to those who are not open to that. The bombardment of sexual identity in our culture is affecting those in your churches, and the way you address it can determine whether you draw that person toward Biblical truth or push them further away toward cultural norms. 

Some people might say we just need to stand in the pulpit and pound out Biblical truth whether they like it or not. While that is one approach, the question lingers whether that is the most effective approach. My suspicion is facing this issue is going to take much more grace, much more kindness, and much more patience to help people decipher what they are hearing, feeling, and how they should respond to it. In scenarios like these, the bull in the China shop approach probably won’t work.

While we must stand up for Biblical truth, we must also recognize that we win people by building relationships, not by building walls. Within those relationships, we have room to give people the truth. There is no guarantee they will respond to the truth, but at least the relationship creates an opportunity where they will at least listen to what you have to say.     

One other thought on this, it is easy to be dogmatic when this issue is far from your doors and it is a lot simpler to condemn or reject someone who you don’t share any relational or personal connection with. However, when this challenge affects someone close to you then grace and compassion often replace the dogma. To reach people who are struggling with their sexuality and gender idea we must make sure we apply the same amount of grace that we would to a stranger that we would with those who we have a personal relationship with. It still may be hard to reach those who are struggling but for sure slamming the door, locking it, and throwing away the key is not going to do us much good either.

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