Winning the Game of Pulpits

Pastoral ministry often feels less like a calling and more like a high-stakes competition. You stand in the pulpit, but you are not the only voice speaking to your people. Every day, they are shaped by a chorus of other influences, each vying for their allegiance. How do you lead a church when the cultural currents are pulling in every other direction? This is the central challenge Gary Comer addresses in his book, The Game of Pulpits.

For young pastors, this reality is particularly sharp. The strategies that worked for a previous generation may no longer connect. You are leading in a world where the church is not the center of the community, and the gospel is just one of many options. Comer’s work serves as a field guide for this new terrain, identifying the powerful “voices” that shape our modern world and offering a vision for faithful and effective ministry within it.

The Seven Voices Vying for the Kingdom

Comer identifies seven dominant voices competing for influence in our culture: politics, consumerism, entertainment, education, technology, family, and religion itself. Each voice has its own "pulpit," its own set of values, and its own vision of the good life. The political pundit, the advertiser, and the celebrity are all preaching a gospel of their own.

The Game of Pulpits is a call to understand these competing narratives, not to retreat from them, but to engage them with wisdom. It challenges pastors to recognize that simply preaching a good sermon on Sunday is not enough. The gospel must be brought to bear on the real-world pressures and ideologies that shape your congregation's lives from Monday to Saturday. The book provides a framework for diagnosing how these voices are at work in your community and your church, helping you develop a more robust and relevant discipleship strategy.

This is not a book of despair, but one of hope. Comer believes that by understanding the game, we can learn to play it more effectively. He provides practical insights for creating a church culture that forms people into resilient disciples who can navigate the complexities of a secular age. It’s a crucial resource for any pastor feeling the weight of leading a church that seems to be plateauing or declining.

How to Make This Work for You

1. Identify the Loudest Voice: Spend time this week observing and listening. What is the most powerful competing "pulpit" in your specific community? Is it the pull of partisan politics, the relentless drive of consumer culture, or something else? Naming it is the first step to addressing it.

2. Audit Your Preaching: Review your sermon topics from the past three months. How often did you directly engage with the cultural voices shaping your people? Look for one opportunity in your next sermon to connect the truth of the gospel to a specific challenge posed by one of Comer’s seven voices.

3. Start a Conversation: Share the concept of the "seven voices" with your key leaders or staff. Ask them where they see these influences at play in the church and in their own lives. This opens the door to creating a more intentional, culturally aware ministry strategy together.