Hi. My name is Allan. I am a bi-vocational pastor.

I enjoy watching the facial expression of people when they learn I am a bi-vocational pastor. Sometimes I sense people are thinking, "so you can't get a full-time church, huh?" Currently, I am intentionally bi-vocational. That is, I choose to work in a non-church related job, in addition to serving as pastor. Originally, the bi-vocational role was necessary. Now I have fully embraced it. I remember reading about the great church-planter, Paul the apostle. He was intentionally bi-vocational at times. Was he a second-rate church planter? Certainly not!!! Read about his intentionality in Acts 18:1-4, 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9.
    
Here are the benefits of being bi-vocational that I have experienced.
    
1) I stay in touch with "real" world living. Some times pastors forget that their people work 40-50 hours a week, have a family, maintain a dwelling, coach their kids football (basketball, softball, baseball or all four) and sometimes work a second job to make ends meet. They are busy. Life is busy. Right or wrong, that is the way people live. Therefore, I try to have fewer, shorter, and more efficient meetings. General busyness is reduced. Responsibilities are spread over a larger people pool.
    
2) I have the opportunity to live incarnationally more consistently. Jesus established an incarnational model for living. Working alongside people, the opportunity to listen, serve, demonstrate compassion, and model Jesus presents itself daily.

3) I have the opportunity to live on mission more readily. Jesus made it a point to hang around people from many different walks of life. He had meaningful, spiritual conversations with many of them. When you work with or beside people daily (and do it well), you earn the privilege of speaking Jesus into their lives because they have seen you live Jesus before them during both the good and difficult times.

4) I feel like my preaching is richer. I can say phrases like, "the other day at work. . . " or "my boss did this. . . " or "I had a conversation with a co-worker. . ."  Those experiences add credibility to your preaching. Of course the names must be changed to protect the innocent guilty.

5) I have learned to plan and lead toward more reasonable goals. Most people have been exposed to the SMART acronym when setting goals. Goals must be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely to be effective. Being bi-vocational, my frame of reference is a little different. Realistic has taken on a whole new meaning.

6) I am learning to delegate more. Prior to my current ministry, I thought I delegated pretty well. Let's face it, we all think that. But as my current ministry grows, I can not take on more and more responsibility. Therefore, for the ministry to continue to grow, I must share responsibility with others that are gifted and willing to serve.

Will I finish my vocational ministry career in a bi-vocational role? I have no earthly idea. I yield to God on that one. For now, I'm still learning how to balance a ministry and a job. When I learn a couple of more lessons, I'll share them.