The apostle Paul was imprisoned in a dungeon a short time before he was to be executed. He sat down to write one last letter. He’d written many letters to many churches and individuals over his long ministry. This final letter was written to Timothy, a younger man that Paul had coached as Timothy began his own journey in gospel ministry.
In 2 Timothy 2:2, Paul instructed his protégé: “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” In other words: Just as I have invested in you and trained you, so you must invest in others and train them–let’s keep this thing going.
How disappointing, then, to see the greedy and carnal route that so many pastor-coaches are taking. Instead of discipling younger pastors as a ministry, the new trend is for pastors of large churches to mentor younger pastors as a business. They charge a hefty fee for their services: One website I saw today charges $4,500 for six coaching sessions! No wonder the church is struggling the way it is today, when pastors are becoming parasites leeching onto other pastors. It makes me sick.
I’d love to see some of these pastor-customers take what they’ve learned through these mentoring businesses and turn around and coach others for free–in other words, as a ministry. Now that would be a biblical movement!
If one pastor is going to charge another for coaching him, the price should be a promise that the student will then become the teacher and take someone else under his wing to pass along what he has learned. Then we can be faithful to the instruction in 2 Timothy 2:2–found in many other places in Scripture, as well–instead of taking advantage of younger pastors of smaller churches. Then the gospel will spread and God will be glorified… even if no one makes a big buck from it.
Just had to get that off my chest.
Surfing the Inner N8 
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