Still Not Professionals
Ten Pleas for Today’s Pastors
Still Not Professionals: Ten Pleas for Today’s Pastors is a celebration and extension of John Piper’s Brothers, We Are Not Professionals. With two brief exhortations from Piper and eight others from veteran pastors, this short ebook aims to strengthen and challenge Christians in general, and pastors in particular, for the labor of everyday life and ministry. The contributors were asked to express their “heart of hearts” for fellow leaders. You’ll find these chapters tap into profound human themes, in both the pastor and his flock, and will be of use, we hope, beyond the North American context of the contributors.

by John Piper Modal , Daniel L. Akin Modal , Thabiti Anyabwile Modal , Mike Bullmore Modal , Sam Crabtree Modal , Ray Ortlund Modal , Jeff Vanderstelt Modal , and Douglas Wilson
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Full Text:
PREFACE
February 4–6, 2013, we will gather in Minneapolis, God will- ing, for the annual Desiring God Conference for Pastors. The theme is “Brothers, We Are Still Not Professionals: Reclaim- ing the Centrality of the Supernatural in Ministry.” Just days prior to the conference is the scheduled release of John Piper’s revised and expanded book Brothers, We Are Not Professionals:
A Plea to Pastors for Radical Ministry.
This short ebook is a celebration and extension of that
book—born not only from an effort to whet the appetite for the coming conference, but in a hope to bless pastors and other Christian leaders beyond the book and conference.
In October 2012, Desiring God issued invitations to a hand- ful of ministry friends—all of them seasoned pastors whom we deeply respect—to contribute to this ebook. As the chapters came in, we posted them at the Desiring God blog; now that they’ve all arrived, we are publishing them together in one place as a resource we hope might have a long electronic shelf life.
We asked the contributors to express in these chapters their “heart of hearts” for fellow pastors—what comes to their minds first, or most profoundly, when they think about influencing
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fellow ministers. Given their unique involvements and con- texts, what one thing would they want other pastors to hear?
We readily admit that the experiences and perspectives of our group are limited—the group is made up entirely of pastors in 21st-century North American contexts. However, we believe that the substance of these chapters taps into profound human themes, in both the pastor and his flock, and will be of use for Christian leaders far beyond our limited North American con- text. This is our prayer.
One more thing to address in this preface: why this ebook is addressed to “brothers” and not to “sisters.” Here’s how John Piper addresses that question in the preface of his Brothers book:
To those who want me to write for “brothers and sisters,” I say, let everyone be fully convinced in his own mind. As for me, the biblical teaching is clear: God calls spiritual, humble, Christlike men to lead the family as husbands and to lead the church as elders (Ephesians 5:20–33; 1 Timothy 2:12–13). I believe, and I have experienced for thirty years, that godly, gifted, articulate, intelligent, ministering women flourish in such families and churches.
We, too, in addressing this ebook to the “brothers,” believe that it is not at the expense of our wonderful sisters, but for the sake of their undiminished thriving. We believe that as Christian men step forward to fulfill their callings as Christlike men in the family and the local church, Christian women will flourish.
David Mathis
Executive Editor Desiring God
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CONTRIBUTORS
Daniel L. Akin is president of Southeastern Baptist Theologi- cal Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. Akin is married to Charlotte, and they have four sons (Nathan, Jonathan, Paul, and Timothy), three daughters-in-law, and eight grandchildren.
Thabiti Anyabwile is senior pastor of First Baptist Church, Grand Cayman. He is a native of Lexington, North Carolina. His wife is Kristie, and they have two daughters (Afiya and Eden) and a son (Titus).
Mike Bullmore is senior pastor of CrossWay Community Church in Bristol, Wisconsin, where he has served since 1998 (when the church was launched). For 15 years, Bullmore was associate professor of homiletics (preaching) and pastoral the- ology, as well as chairman of the practical theology department at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois.
Sam Crabtree is executive minister at Bethlehem Baptist Church (Twin Cities, Minnesota) and a board member for Desiring God. Sam and his wife Vicki have two married
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daughters and four grandchildren. Sam is the author of Practic- ing Affirmation (Crossway Books, 2011).
Raymond C. Ortlund, Jr. is lead pastor of Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee. Ray is married to Jani, and they have four children.
John Piper is founder and teacher of Desiring God and chan- cellor of Bethlehem College and Seminary. For 32 years, he was senior pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church. He is author of more than fifty books, including Desiring God and Don’t Waste Your Life. John and his wife Noël have a teenage daughter, four married sons, and twelve grandchildren.
R. C. Sproul, Jr. serves through Highlands Ministries, Ligonier Ministries, and Heritage Covenant Church. He is the widowed father of eight children, one of whom has gone on to her reward.
Jeff Vanderstelt is a pastor of Soma Communities in Tacoma, Washington. He leads a missional community at the downtown expression and serves all of Soma in the areas of vision and teach- ing. He is a coach and trainer for church planters and serves on the board of the Acts 29 church-planting network. Jeff and his wife Jayne have three children (Haylee, Caleb, and Maggie).
Douglas Wilson is pastor of Christ Church (Moscow, Idaho), an author, and faculty member and Senior Fellow at New Saint Andrews College. He is also the founder and editor of Cre- denda Agenda magazine, and serves on the governing boards of New Saint Andrews, Logos School, and the Association of Classical and Christian Schools. Doug’s wife is Nancy, and
they have three grown children.