NPPN
interviewed
Bill
Zipp,
Professional
Coach
===>Click
headline
to
access
website.
. .
.
NPPN
~
Bill,
you
served
as a
pastor
for
18
years
before
becoming
a
professional
coach.
Why
has
coaching
become
so
popular
in
recent
business
literature?
Bill
Zipp
~ I
think
because
it
produces
permanent
change.
Both
the
business
world
and
the
church
world
have
become
frustrated
with
endless
seminars
and
sermons
that
get
people
all
fired
up
but
leave
them
no
different
a
mere
few
weeks
later.
Coaching,
because
of
its
intensity
and
its
focus
on
getting
things
done,
actually
works.
NPPN
~
How
is
the
role
and
responsibilities
of
pastoring
a
congregation
similar
to
those
of a
coach?
Bill
~ A
pastor
is
called,
according
to
Ephesians
4:11,
12,
to
be
an
equipper
of
leaders.
This
is
not
a
calling
to
be
the
one
doing
the
work
of
ministry,
but
to
be
the
one
motivating
and
mobilizing
others
to
do
the
work
of
ministry.
That
is
exactly
what
a
coach
does.
In
fact,
best-selling
author
Bill
Hull
suggested
20
years
ago
before
the
current
coaching
boom
in
The
Disciple-Making
Pastor
that
for
our
modern-day
culture
the
word
coach
is a
better
word
for
what
a
pastor
does
than
the
more
agrarian
image
of a
shepherd.
NPPN
~
What
are
4 or
5
key
coaching
principles
that
have
direct
application
to
pastoring?
Bill
~
Here
they
are,
in
this
order:
Asking
Questions,
Active
Listening,
Action
Planning,
Providing
Accountability,
and
Giving
Affirmation.
In
short,
coaching
is
NOT
giving
people
a
weekly
pep
talk!
It
is
interacting
with
them
as
Christ
did
with
his
disciples
with
great,
open-ended
questions
that
get
people
to
think
on
their
own
and
solve
their
own
problems.
The
coaching
process
helps
people
land
on
specific
steps
of
action
they
fully
own
and
follow
through
to
completion.
As
they
do,
coaching
holds
them
accountable
for
achieving
those
actions
and
provides
generous
amounts
of
positive
praise
along
the
way.If
we
believe,
truly
believe,
in
the
power
of
the
indwelling
Holy
Spirit,
and
if
we
believe,
truly
believe,
in
the
priesthood
of
every
believer,
then
we
will
honor
those
beliefs
as
we
facilitate
people
to
grow,
not
force
them
to
grow.
At
the
end
of
the
day,
I
believe
this
approach
results
in
permanent
change.
NPPN
~
Agree
or
disagree:
Pastors
should
not
only
employ
coaching
in
their
leadership
style
but
they
should
also
train
church
leaders
in
coaching
techniques.
Bill
~
Agree,
if
what
you
mean
by
"train"
is
model.
What
we
do
not
need
is
another
evangelical
flavor
of
the
month
to
pass
through
our
pews.
I
think
a
pastor
should
start
learning
coaching
skills
and
use
them
so
others
observe
them
in
real
time.
Coaching
is
better
"caught
then
taught."
A
good
place
to
start
is a
book
by
Tony
Stoltzfus
called
Leadership
Coaching.
Tony
works
exclusively
with
pastors
and
Christian
leaders
and
his
book
is a
thoroughly
evangelical
treatment
of
the
discipline
of
coaching.
I
have
also
written
a
book
called
The
Business
Coaching
Toolkit.
Please
don't
be
put
off
by
the
word
"business,"
I
have
had
many
ministry
leaders
use
the
content
of
this
book
to
help
them
better
lead
others.
NPPN
~
What
do
you
see
as
they
major
obstacles
most
pastors
face
when
it
comes
to
integrating
coaching
principles
into
their
ministry.
Bill
~
Most
pastors
have
only
been
trained
in
one-directional,
declarative
means
of
communication.
That
is,
most
pastors
are
only
comfortable
communicating
truth
through
preaching
and
teaching.
These
are
very
important
tasks,
but
a
pastor
must
be
more
than
a
talking
head
if
the
church
is
going
to
be
vibrant
and
strong.
Especially
in
the
training
of
leaders,
more
interactive,
two-way
communication
is
needed,
and
few
pastors
know
how
to
do
this.
Fortunately,
it
is
teachable,
especially
for
those
who
are
serious
about
becoming
equipping,
disciple-making
pastors.
NPPN
~ So
...
if
you
were
pastoring
today,
share
with
us 3
or 4
practical
ideas
of
how
you
would
implement
a
coaching
approach
to
congregational
pastoring..
Bill
~
The
first
thing
that
comes
to
mind
is
leadership
development.
The
main
thesis
of
Bill
Hull's
book,
The
Disciple-Making
Pastor,
is
that
a
pastor
should
spend
more
time
with
the
strong
than
with
the
weak
so
that
the
strong
(not
just
the
pastor)
can
minister
to
the
weak.
Doing
this
means
making
leadership
development
one
of a
pastor's
highest
priorities.
Leaders
are
best
developed
in a
collaborative,
coaching
context,
like
Jesus
did.
Remember
the
words
of
Mark
3:14?
"He
appointed
twelve—designating
them
apostles—that
they
might
be
with
him
and
that
he
might
send
them
out
to
preach."
In
other
words
"being
with"
Jesus
is
what
empowered
these
men
to
preach,
not
being
in a
classroom.
A
second
idea
involves
learning
how
to
teach
the
Word
in
more
of
an
interactive
style.
This
did
not
come
easy
to
me
at
first,
again,
because
all
I
knew
as a
pastor
was
one-directional,
declarative
methodology.
But
as I
learned
how
to
teach
in
small
group
settings,
creating
meaningful
discussion
and
dialogue,
I
consistently
heard
comments
like,
"We
enjoy
your
preaching,
but
we
really
like
it
when
you
have
workshops
where
we're
able
to
interact
with
you.
We
learn
so
much
more!"
This
is
perfect
for
a
Sunday
evening
service,
a
mid-week
service,
a
Saturday
morning
workshop,
or a
seminar
series.
Finally,
I
think
every
pastor
needs
to
seriously
think
about
being
coached
themselves.
Sadly,
most
ministry
education
ends
when
seminary
ends
and
pastors
are
on
their
own
for
the
rest
of
their
life.
This
is
not
a
good
thing!
I
believe
the
lack
of
lifetime
learning
opportunities
has
contributed
to
much
of
our
recent
pastoral
fallout.
A
good
coach
will
help
a
pastor
grow
"as
iron
sharpens
iron"
and
can
restore
vigor
and
vitality
to
ministry,
not
to
mention
integrity.
I
have
been
fortunate
over
the
years,
among
the
many
executives
and
business
owners
I
have
coached,
to
always
have
a
pastor
or
two
working
with
me
as
well.
NPPN
~
Can
you
explain
how
a
pastor
would
approach
prayer
differently
from
the
coaching
model?
Bill
~
Sermons
on
prayer
are
notorious
for
making
people
feel
guilty
for
not
praying
more,
but
never
actually
getting
people
to
pray
more.
Like
humility,
when
can
you
ever
be
humble
ENOUGH?
So
too
the
average
person
in
the
pew,
convinced
they
can
never
pray
ENOUGH,
give
up
praying
entirely.
Jesus
just
prayed.
When
his
disciples
had
watched
him
pray,
and
saw
the
amazing
results
that
happened
when
he
did
pray,
they
finally
asked,
"Teach
us
to
pray."
Here's
a
classic
coaching
moment,
modeling
something
to
such
a
degree
that
a
person
actually
asks
you
to
teach
them
how
to
do
it.
That's
what
we
must
do
with
prayer!
NPPN
~
Bill,
please
write
a
prayer
for
pastors
who
need
to
incorporate
coaching
into
their
life
and
minstry.
Bill
~
Lord,
teach
us
how
to
lead
with
our
ears
and
not
just
with
our
mouths.
Teach
us
how
to
mobilize
your
church
from
being
consumers
of
spiritual
products
and
services
to
being
active
participants
in
your
kingdom.
Keep
us
from
replacing
the
powerful,
inner
work
of
your
Holy
Spirit
to
change
lives
with
mere
human
charisma
and
teach
us
how
to
facilitate
real,
permanent
life
change.
Teach
us,
dear
Lord,
how
to
make
disciples
as
your
Son
did
while
he
was
on
this
earth
and
may
we,
too,
turn
the
world
upside
down!
==>Click
here
to
access
additional
Inner~Views
. .
.