The Places You Go

To be effective, pastors must minister in a variety of settings. Each

setting--whether hospital room, jail, nursing home, funeral home, or even in the

pastor's study--is different. Each setting brings its own unique dilemmas and rules.

The pastor's authority will vary according to the setting as will the expectations

of the pastor by the staff and parishioners in each setting. The pastor must be

comfortable in a variety of settings in order to build Christ-centered

relationships, but comfort comes only with familiarity and some settings can be

intimidating or even frightening. Bailing a parishioner out of jail in the middle of

the night presents challenges to ministry as does helping parishioners plan their

loved one's funeral after a suicide. Context matters, and Urias Beverly gives the

reader concrete steps and illustrations on how to artfully minister in a variety of

common settings as well as how to cope with the dilemmas pastors face in

facilitating ministry in these settings.