About This Book

In the ever-changing landscape of church ministry, practical guidance for pastors and church leaders is indispensable. The Pastor’s Church Manual by Bob Gray, Sr. is a comprehensive resource designed to equip pastors, staff, and lay leaders with time-tested principles for effective church administration, finances, and personal leadership. Drawing from decades of experience and the content of his renowned Soul Winning Clinics, Dr. Gray offers clear, actionable advice to help churches thrive both spiritually and organizationally.

This manual is not just a collection of theories—it’s a hands-on guide filled with real-world solutions to the daily challenges faced by churches of all sizes. Whether you are navigating the complexities of church budgets, developing staff, or addressing personal finances, The Pastor’s Church Manual provides the tools needed to lead with integrity, vision, and biblical wisdom.

What You’ll Learn in This Book

• Church Finances: Discover common financial pitfalls, how to set up and manage a church budget, and strategies for stewardship, debt retirement, and above-budget giving.

• Personal Finances: Learn biblical principles for managing personal and family finances, getting out of debt, and preparing for the future.

• Pastoral Leadership: Gain insights on building loyalty, handling staff and church member issues, and maintaining personal spiritual health.

• Church Administration: Explore proven methods for growing your ministry, organizing staff, managing multiple ministries, and fostering unity.

• Philosophy and Growth: Understand the importance of a soulwinning atmosphere, handling change, and maintaining biblical standards.

• Family and Sunday School: Practical advice on nurturing families and building effective Sunday School programs.

• Soulwinning and Bus Ministry: Step-by-step approaches to church-wide evangelism, follow-up, and outreach through bus ministries.

• Campaigns and Special Offerings: Strategies for organizing successful campaigns, big days, and miracle offerings to expand your church’s impact.

Author: Bob Gray Sr. | Pages: 332 | Chapters: 10 | Format: Paperback

Chapter Titles

• Church Finances

  • Fifty Mistakes Ministries Make with Money

  • Above-Budget Monies

  • Biblical Philosophy of Finances

  • Cost Consciousness

  • Debt Retirement

  • Financial Checklist

  • How to Have a Give-It-All or Miracle Offering

  • How to Keep Up the Tithes and Offerings

  • How to Remove a Financial Curse

  • Setting Up a Budget for the Church

  • Small Church Finances

  • Stewardship Month

  • The Financial Secretary

• Personal Finances

  • Beginning a Monthly Family Budget

  • Biblical Formula of Finances

  • Budget Yeses and Nos

  • Credit Cards

  • Crisis Management

  • Financial Baby Steps

  • Financial Test

  • How to Get Out of a Financial Hole

  • How to Handle Debt

  • Preparing for the Future

  • The Debt Snowball Plan

  • Youth and Finances

• The Pastor

  • Being Loyal to Your Staff

  • Bitterness

  • Counsel to Pastors

  • Do I Hire from the Inside or from the Outside?

  • How to Get Along with Cantankerous Church Members

  • How to Grow a Staff

  • How to Handle Staff Problems

  • How to Move Your People to the Right

  • How to Preach Hard Without Being Hard

  • How to Stand for Right and Keep Growing

  • How to Stay at Your Best or How to Run and Not Be Weary

  • How to Treat Retreat

  • Longevity

  • Multi-Level Organization

  • Pacing Your Ministry

  • Personal Accountability

  • The Preacher’s Personal Soul-Winning Philosophy

  • Salvaging

  • The Pastor and His Children

  • The Pastor and His Staff

  • The Pastor and Statistical Accountability

  • The Pastor-Deacon Relationship and Monthly Deacons Meetings

  • The Pastor-Staff Families Relationship

  • The Pastor-Wife Relationship

  • The Preacher’s Checklist

  • What a Preacher Wants in a Second Man

  • When to Hire and Whom to Hire

• Administration

  • Fifty-Four Pointers for Growth

  • Breaking Attendance Barriers

  • Checklist for Starting a College

  • Conducting Successful Bible Conferences

  • Contentment—The Teamwork of the Ministry

  • Helping Your Staff and Key People Expand and Reach Their Potential

  • How to Fulfill Your Position as a Staff Member

  • How and When to Start a New Ministry

  • How to Handle Multiple Ministries

  • How to Start a Bookstore

  • Management

  • Public Relations for Soulwinning Churches

  • The Art of Administration

  • The Cause and Cure of Staff Conflicts

  • The Paper Trail

  • Timeless Tips for Effective Time Management

  • Vital Statistics

  • What to Do with the Statistics

  • Beginning a Music Ministry

  • What to Do When Starting a Spanish Ministry

• Philosophy

  • A Soulwinning Atmosphere

  • Anti-Growth Factors

  • Apples and Oranges Do Mix

  • Brainstorming

  • Handling the Holidays

  • Homeschooling

  • How to Boost Attendance

  • How to Lead Successfully and Push at the Same Time

  • How to Take the Soulwinning Clinic Home with You

  • Leadership I

  • Learning How and When to Do What

  • Making Adjustments in Your Ministry

  • Motivation

  • Pendulums

  • Plateauing

  • Preparing for the Future Financially

  • Priming the Pump

  • Principles of Being Loyal to the Preacher

  • Proselyting Versus Propagating the Gospel

  • Public Relations

  • Schisms in the Body

  • Small Church Organization

  • The Assistant Pastor

  • The Right Atmospheric Pressure

  • Unity, Not Union

  • What to Do When People Leave

  • Working with People

• Family

  • Dangers for Young Married Couples

  • Soulwinning and the Family

• Sunday School

  • Auditorium Sunday School Class Captain System

  • Building a Base

  • Nursery Department

  • Recruitment of Sunday School Workers

  • Teachers’ and Workers’ Meetings

• Soulwinning

  • Going Soulwinning

  • Practicalities of Soulwinning

  • Soulwinning Phases

  • The Importance of Church-Wide Soulwinning

  • Winning a Soul to Christ

  • Getting Your Converts Baptized

  • How to Boost Your Baptisms

  • The Unseen Factors of Baptizing Great Numbers

  • Altar Workers

  • How to Get People Down the Aisle Consistently

  • The Truths About Getting Converts Down the Aisle

  • Baptizing Children

  • The Church Service

  • Order of Service

• Bus Ministry

  • Bus Campaigns

  • Bus Ministry Forms

  • How to Grow Bus Routes

  • How to Start and Maintain a Bus Ministry

  • Maintenance and the Bus Ministry

  • The Bus Ride to Church

• Campaigns

  • Fall and Spring Campaigns

  • How to Have a Big Day

The Pastor’s Church Manual is an essential guide for anyone seeking to lead a church with excellence, stewardship, and a heart for reaching people1.