Jon Thompson on Discovering, Embracing, and Sustaining Your Pastoral Calling
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Jon Thompson joins Jason this week for a unique conversation about calling in pastoral ministry. Based on a talk from a 2018 church leaders gathering, Jon shares what he believes is the foundation for long term, effective church leadership.
Jon’s own journey led him to question what biblical calling looked like. Experiencing a sense of supernatural leading and divine intervention in his twenties, he came to believe pastors without that “moment” might not be called. However, after stepping back to evaluate the scriptures, he came to see four biblical models for calling that he called: 1) “I have no choice”, 2) gift-based, 3) family-based, and 4) community affirmed.
Based on biblical figures, Jon shares with Jason how most pastors experience one or a combination of these before or in their early years of ministry. The reason he believes talking about calling is so critical is because without it, pastors will struggle to persevere in challenging seasons and their leadership will miss the rooting required for spiritual authority.
“If your calling gets really clear, you’re going to have freedom to not look at other leaders’ yards.”
Throughout the conversation, Jason presses Jon on common objections or hesitations people might raise from seeing the idea of calling misused in church circles historically. The key to all conversation on calling, Jon explains, is ultimately “1 Corinthians 13 love”. Without love and obedience, our callings can be removed or disqualified. Moses, Saul, and multiple companions of Paul are examples that should remind us of the essentialness of spirit-empowered love in our pastoral ministry.
As you continue in your leadership, our prayer is that this conversation will help you reflect on your calling and evaluate how God may be leading you to serve His Church. We hope you are encouraged by this week’s conversation with Jon Thompson.
Jon Thompson
Jon Thompson serves as the Senior Pastor at Sanctus Church (formerly C4 Church), just outside of Toronto, Canada. He has been on staff for more than 20 years. Sanctus is a regional church with a community of over 3,000 people that gather in multiple locations in the Greater Toronto area. Under Jon’s leadership, Sanctus is characterized by dynamic Biblical teaching, vibrant community groups, compelling media and powerful times in worship. Jon has a Masters of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. Jon is husband to his wife Joanna and Father to three kids - Hannah, Emma and Noah.
Coming Up Next
Episode 64: Ho-Ming Tsui
Ho-Ming is the Lead Pastor of Richmond Hill Christian Community Church, a multi-generational, multi-lingual church just outside of Toronto. He completed his undergraduate degree at Queen’s University, and went onto graduate studies at Tyndale Seminary in Toronto, and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Boston. Ho-Ming speaks frequently at conferences in Toronto and has traveled to Asia, Europe and Africa to teach as well. He is an avid guitarist and loves all things sci-fi. He is married to his high school sweetheart, Katie, they have three children.