What do you think?
Rate this book
Bivo: A Modern-Day Guide for Bi-Vocational Saints
"If the decline in the American church continues at present pace, the future leaders of Gods church will be plumbers, school teachers, stay at home moms, & business owners." Hugh Halter
Very few are talking about it yet, but thousands of pastors are opting for a Bi-Vocational lifestyle. Like the 16th century Trappists discovered, our prayer and our labor go hand in hand in God's economy. Everything is sacred, even our secular work. Bi-Vocational living doesn't have to mean doing two things poorly. It is the pathway of learning how to leverage all of life into one calling.
The BiVO life:
*Gives you natural street-cred with the culture you live among
*Allows you to pastor, mentor, and disciple friends without the pressure of getting anything from them, or growing a church.
*Opens up creative and natural ways to bless the culture and make the kingdom tangible.
*Allows you to live naturally, while God builds His church from your life.
The BiVO way may not be better for everyone...but it may be better for you. Get Hugh's BiVO book, take the free BiVO assessment, and join the growing BiVO Network for coaching, encouragement, and stories of the BiVO life.
Very few are talking about it yet, but thousands of pastors are opting for a Bi-Vocational lifestyle. Like the 16th century Trappists discovered, our prayer and our labor go hand in hand in God's economy. Everything is sacred, even our secular work. Bi-Vocational living doesn't have to mean doing two things poorly. It is the pathway of learning how to leverage all of life into one calling.
The BiVO life:
*Gives you natural street-cred with the culture you live among
*Allows you to pastor, mentor, and disciple friends without the pressure of getting anything from them, or growing a church.
*Opens up creative and natural ways to bless the culture and make the kingdom tangible.
*Allows you to live naturally, while God builds His church from your life.
The BiVO way may not be better for everyone...but it may be better for you. Get Hugh's BiVO book, take the free BiVO assessment, and join the growing BiVO Network for coaching, encouragement, and stories of the BiVO life.
- GenresFaith
Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
25 people are currently reading
67 people want to read
About the author
Hugh Halter
19 books42 followersHugh Halter is a pastor and popular author of numerous books including Flesh, The Tangible Kingdom, And, Sacrilege, and Primer. Hugh and Cheryl are presently enjoying the spoils of empty nest living but love to use their ranch as a haven of celebration, hospitality, and friendship to the lost and least on the south side of Denver.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 23, 2016
I can see myself moving in the direction of bivocational ministry, and I've been inspired and intrigued by Hugh Halter's story as I've read his books AND and Flesh, and listened to online talks. For me, the Bivo book was helpful in that it gave more details to parts of Hugh's story of how they did it at Adullam (such as descriptions of their leadership team members' roles, work, and time commitments), and it also provided a framework to help evaluate whether bivo was a good fit for me. It casts the vision and argues that bivocational ministry can be more healthy overall than the traditional paid pastoral role, but you have to do it as a team. The book also provides short summaries of some of the key points in his previous books about missional community structured church, which makes it a great book to give away to give other leaders a snapshot of all of Hugh's writings. If you're curious and don't want to buy the book, most of the material in Bivo is summarized very well in Hugh's 1-hr talk you can find on the exponential website. For me, I like having the written book so I can pass it around to others.
August 5, 2019
I think Bivo is a good little book on a topic that needs a lot more coverage. I personally think the book is best suited for people already in a ministry context that need to rethink think it. It assumes a biblical foundation for ministry and serves as a gentle critique of the mega church movement.
November 30, 2016
Some interesting and challenging thoughts on our western ecclesiological models!
The book isn't written in a super compelling style and I didn't find the actual content for bi-vocational ministry until the last third of the book. Most of the book seemed like a big warm up. I'd recommend skipping to the end if you're a bi-vo like me!
Hugh uses plenty of scriptural examples to challenge our western ideas on church structure. I already knew Paul was a tent-maker and sought to make his financial burdens on churches light, but Hugh brought up a new point to really stuck out to me: Jesus worked. I think that really means something! obviously he didn't work during his three-year ministry, but it seems that work should be a part of the equation at some point. Just because you go to seminary doesn't mean you have a ticket not to lift a finger at a 9-5 like the rest of us. It's not a one or the other. This seminary or no seminary qualification has divided churches into the schooled, and the consumer. Ministry is not just for staff! It's for the entire church! Every church member is gifted but they seem discouraged because they think they are not qualified to get involved. I've totally felt this in my past experience.
Hugh's comparison with mana and mammon was fascinating and really deserves the center of attention in this book. He contrasts a total daily dependence on God (manna) with the safe self-security of earned wages (mammon).
Perhaps my favorite part of the book is what Hugh calls "cheap church". Hugh explains how at his church the leadership keeps the focus (both time and finances) on missional small groups instead of the Sunday service. They focus on growth and disciple making throughout the week. They still meet in a common place, have a sermon, and worship with music, but it's much less of an expectation. It's not a performance or service produced by a company, it's more of a gathering. Instead of building up marketing, media, and staff, they use the funds obediently to serve the needy they encounter and do justice in their city. This is very inspirational and challenging for us today!
Hugh seems to spend more time reorganizing church structure than he does a bi-vo pastors life! However, the wisdom and experience of bi-vo pastors you're looking for is in here. Ultimately that's why you picked up this book! He mentions a term that may make you cringe, but regardless, it's something leaders need to think about, CPC: "Cost Per Conversion". Now we aren't buying converts here, but we are stewarding finances. Missions around the world can be roughly measured in cost and effectiveness. You wouldn't support a heavy non-profit if it wasn't producing right? Hugh examines some of the larger mega-churches to discover they have CPCs of $80,000 to $1 million! This is something every church really needs to look at. Hugh's ministry boasts on a $2 CPC. Leaders are cheap! Servants are cheap! Discipleship is cheap! Church really is cheap!
I'd recommend this book to anyone desperately looking for materials on bi-vocational ministry. As I'm sure you've realised there is very very little of material on this topic out there. Ultimately I'd also recommend listening to wisdom from those you know who have or currently are bi-vo.
The book isn't written in a super compelling style and I didn't find the actual content for bi-vocational ministry until the last third of the book. Most of the book seemed like a big warm up. I'd recommend skipping to the end if you're a bi-vo like me!
Hugh uses plenty of scriptural examples to challenge our western ideas on church structure. I already knew Paul was a tent-maker and sought to make his financial burdens on churches light, but Hugh brought up a new point to really stuck out to me: Jesus worked. I think that really means something! obviously he didn't work during his three-year ministry, but it seems that work should be a part of the equation at some point. Just because you go to seminary doesn't mean you have a ticket not to lift a finger at a 9-5 like the rest of us. It's not a one or the other. This seminary or no seminary qualification has divided churches into the schooled, and the consumer. Ministry is not just for staff! It's for the entire church! Every church member is gifted but they seem discouraged because they think they are not qualified to get involved. I've totally felt this in my past experience.
Hugh's comparison with mana and mammon was fascinating and really deserves the center of attention in this book. He contrasts a total daily dependence on God (manna) with the safe self-security of earned wages (mammon).
Perhaps my favorite part of the book is what Hugh calls "cheap church". Hugh explains how at his church the leadership keeps the focus (both time and finances) on missional small groups instead of the Sunday service. They focus on growth and disciple making throughout the week. They still meet in a common place, have a sermon, and worship with music, but it's much less of an expectation. It's not a performance or service produced by a company, it's more of a gathering. Instead of building up marketing, media, and staff, they use the funds obediently to serve the needy they encounter and do justice in their city. This is very inspirational and challenging for us today!
Hugh seems to spend more time reorganizing church structure than he does a bi-vo pastors life! However, the wisdom and experience of bi-vo pastors you're looking for is in here. Ultimately that's why you picked up this book! He mentions a term that may make you cringe, but regardless, it's something leaders need to think about, CPC: "Cost Per Conversion". Now we aren't buying converts here, but we are stewarding finances. Missions around the world can be roughly measured in cost and effectiveness. You wouldn't support a heavy non-profit if it wasn't producing right? Hugh examines some of the larger mega-churches to discover they have CPCs of $80,000 to $1 million! This is something every church really needs to look at. Hugh's ministry boasts on a $2 CPC. Leaders are cheap! Servants are cheap! Discipleship is cheap! Church really is cheap!
I'd recommend this book to anyone desperately looking for materials on bi-vocational ministry. As I'm sure you've realised there is very very little of material on this topic out there. Ultimately I'd also recommend listening to wisdom from those you know who have or currently are bi-vo.
March 23, 2016
There is a significant void in the pastoral literature camp when it comes to addressing bivocational elders, particularly within a plurality. I am a bivocational elder, so when I first saw BiVo I thought to myself, "Finally! A book on bivocational elders." However, this book is less about identifying a biblical approach to bivocational elders among a plurality, and more about elevating Halter's vision for Adullam (his "missional" movement in Denver).
I appreciate that Halter admits on page 126 that "being bivocational isn't the goal and it's not necessarily any better or worse than being fully paid for ministry."
I was thankful that BiVo provided a context to think differently about ministry. Unfortunately it didn't provide the context to think biblically. BiVo is thin on biblical exegesis. Instead, Halter highlights his personal experience as the foundation for his numerous principles & exhortations. This is pragmatism. If Adullam can do it, then it must be the way other churches consider doing things as well. Halter even admits that his revitalized motivation for pursuing his bivocational life was not Scripture, but instead his 19 year old daughter's exhortation not to stop being a pastor, because of "how different we are," and "we need our type of church all over the world" (page 15).
Halter presses in on the emergent church movement, including the use of their lingo. He prefers "individual incarnational communities" instead of "church," operating around OT terms like tsaddiqim (righteous), and refusing to emphasize the corporate gathering of the church.
Halter makes several historical claims without providing any sources. One example is on page 71, where he wrote that "history shows us that the gospel got around the world primarily through unpaid saints." Please tells us where history shows us this fact.
As I mentioned, Halter does admit that bivocational life is not for everyone. And I appreciate this acknowledgement. In order to discover if the BiVo life is for you, Halter then proceeds to provide a brief assessment according to "knacks" (Halter's term that he says "I discovered," "I chose"). If only he relied on Scripture for the evaluation & assessment. On pages 115-119 Halter gives a few reasons why you might want to choose the bivocational option. Again, none of these reasons are based on Scripture. There is only a passing reference to Acts 18:3 & 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9.
Rather than expand some of his points or bring further clarity, Halter often self-promotes his other books and refers his readers to find the answers there.
For all the claims that "God's church doesn't really take any money," I found it interesting that Adullam's website has an online giving option set-up. Probably because God's church does really actually need money?
In a book on bivocational ministry I would have expected Halter to interact more with Paul and his tent-making bivocational life. I would also have expected Halter to work with texts like 2 Timothy 5:17 and unpack his theology about paid elders and non-paid elders. Sadly, these, and other texts are omitted all together or simply given a passing reference.
I appreciate that Halter admits on page 126 that "being bivocational isn't the goal and it's not necessarily any better or worse than being fully paid for ministry."
I was thankful that BiVo provided a context to think differently about ministry. Unfortunately it didn't provide the context to think biblically. BiVo is thin on biblical exegesis. Instead, Halter highlights his personal experience as the foundation for his numerous principles & exhortations. This is pragmatism. If Adullam can do it, then it must be the way other churches consider doing things as well. Halter even admits that his revitalized motivation for pursuing his bivocational life was not Scripture, but instead his 19 year old daughter's exhortation not to stop being a pastor, because of "how different we are," and "we need our type of church all over the world" (page 15).
Halter presses in on the emergent church movement, including the use of their lingo. He prefers "individual incarnational communities" instead of "church," operating around OT terms like tsaddiqim (righteous), and refusing to emphasize the corporate gathering of the church.
Halter makes several historical claims without providing any sources. One example is on page 71, where he wrote that "history shows us that the gospel got around the world primarily through unpaid saints." Please tells us where history shows us this fact.
As I mentioned, Halter does admit that bivocational life is not for everyone. And I appreciate this acknowledgement. In order to discover if the BiVo life is for you, Halter then proceeds to provide a brief assessment according to "knacks" (Halter's term that he says "I discovered," "I chose"). If only he relied on Scripture for the evaluation & assessment. On pages 115-119 Halter gives a few reasons why you might want to choose the bivocational option. Again, none of these reasons are based on Scripture. There is only a passing reference to Acts 18:3 & 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9.
Rather than expand some of his points or bring further clarity, Halter often self-promotes his other books and refers his readers to find the answers there.
For all the claims that "God's church doesn't really take any money," I found it interesting that Adullam's website has an online giving option set-up. Probably because God's church does really actually need money?
In a book on bivocational ministry I would have expected Halter to interact more with Paul and his tent-making bivocational life. I would also have expected Halter to work with texts like 2 Timothy 5:17 and unpack his theology about paid elders and non-paid elders. Sadly, these, and other texts are omitted all together or simply given a passing reference.
June 4, 2014
Short, challenging read about rethinking ministry and church structures. Hugh Halter's story and guidance point back to the freedom Jesus offers. As Halter is fond of reminding us: the Good News should be good news in our own lives. Enough of over stretched, over stressed, over spent, over scheduled Christians. Our 'systems' should not look so much like the world's.
This book is essential for anyone thinking of making a big move in career or ministry positions.
This book is essential for anyone thinking of making a big move in career or ministry positions.
April 7, 2014
I enjoyed this book because it affirmed that as a bivocational minister, I'm doing what I was designed to do.
September 7, 2017
I had high hopes for this book. It was recommended and well reviewed and as a bi-vocational pastor myself I thought that I would be edified by the discussion. Hugh Halter and I both serve in very similar ministry roles and, although we come from different theological backgrounds, we espouse many of the same ideas. Unfortunately, I was disappointed that the entire book seemed to be more of a discussion of Halter's missional community in Colorado. In that light, I will review this book.
As a work focused on bi-vocational ministry, the work was a failure. Light on exegesis, data, and sources, the book reads like a long-form blog article. First, Halter's work spends only about 10-20% on bi-vocational ministry while the remainder alternates between describing and promoting his missional community. Missional and emergent themes are heavily espoused, but little Biblical, theological, or research evidence is used in these discussions. In fact, the book seems to be built around common sense data and theology. This, in it of itself, is not a problem, except that Hugh was wrong on a number of points.
I would highly recommend avoiding this book and instead getting "Unfinished Business" by Ogden.
As a work focused on bi-vocational ministry, the work was a failure. Light on exegesis, data, and sources, the book reads like a long-form blog article. First, Halter's work spends only about 10-20% on bi-vocational ministry while the remainder alternates between describing and promoting his missional community. Missional and emergent themes are heavily espoused, but little Biblical, theological, or research evidence is used in these discussions. In fact, the book seems to be built around common sense data and theology. This, in it of itself, is not a problem, except that Hugh was wrong on a number of points.
I would highly recommend avoiding this book and instead getting "Unfinished Business" by Ogden.
May 9, 2019
I enjoyed reading this concise book. It gives you a brief snapshot on how Hugh Halters church is set up. His main objective is really to show his readers that we can run Church with less time and money. their wasn't as much guidance for people already living the bivo life as I would've liked. I felt like he spent more people trying to lay out the reasoning's you should consider bivo.
All in all a good book.
All in all a good book.
September 28, 2023
Helpful Resource
This book is a helpful resource for learning how to live out the bi-vocational lifestyle well as a minister who has more than one calling. This book is also full of examples of people's stories who are bi-vocational. This was a very practical guide for someone like myself who is interested in the bi-vocational lifestyle as a Christian minister.
This book is a helpful resource for learning how to live out the bi-vocational lifestyle well as a minister who has more than one calling. This book is also full of examples of people's stories who are bi-vocational. This was a very practical guide for someone like myself who is interested in the bi-vocational lifestyle as a Christian minister.
May 4, 2021
Fantastic read
Written simply. Thought provoking questions. A must read for anyone seriously contemplating missional communities and a sustainable method to grow and expand in a way counter-cultural to the traditional business-centric model of church.
Written simply. Thought provoking questions. A must read for anyone seriously contemplating missional communities and a sustainable method to grow and expand in a way counter-cultural to the traditional business-centric model of church.
May 8, 2018
Renewing the Hope again
Very relevant aproach about the ministry and the mission itself. In some way, Hugh pastors your heart in the sense that the examples and the applications talk straight to the stressed heart and renew the hope of being fruitfull again in the kingdom
Very relevant aproach about the ministry and the mission itself. In some way, Hugh pastors your heart in the sense that the examples and the applications talk straight to the stressed heart and renew the hope of being fruitfull again in the kingdom
August 8, 2016
Synopsis: The Western church is saturated with paid staff, and losing money more and more every day. This is not sustainable. Furthermore, our current church setup takes those paid staff out of the world and incubates them within the church, which is also not sustainable.
Read this if you: are fed up with the “consumer church” mindset.
The main premise of BiVo is that the Western church has hit critical mass in terms of its ability to support itself. It's like if a biped had to somehow manage to balance a bowling ball on top of its body whilst walking on its two feet; it's a very ineffective design. Eventually we will hit a point, in fact we're hitting it already, where we just won't be able to support ourselves. So to prevent the church from becoming entirely ineffective, how can we change our structure?
Not being a paid staff member at a church, or planning to start a church anytime soon, not everything in this book spoke to me. Although this book isn't so directly applicable to my life, it gives me vision. Much of the content is not just about how current paid church staff can live the bi-vocational life, but also how all of us are called to mission. And it's not just a “witness while you work” sort of mission (I'm not a huge fan of that mindset myself), but rather the day-to-day building of relationships which makes all of life a collection of beautiful opportunities.
I love how Hugh Halter is okay with uncertainty. It makes his writing some of the best ever to read. If we're being real, there is a lot of ambiguity in the Christian faith (read The Bible Tells Me So: Why Defending Scripture Has Made Us Unable to Read It), although it's not always something we want to admit. I think it scares us. A book like this makes me feel like I'm not alone in simply trying to figure things out. Faith is a journey, not a destination. This book illuminates a path for you that you might not otherwise have taken.
5 stars for not being afraid to try new things.
5 stars for the fact that I have actually met the author (are you reading this, Hugh?? It's the girl from Cleveland with the blue hair! Doesn't ring a bell? NOTE: BLUE HAIR).
1 star for being so very short, and yet, 5 stars for being so very short because sometimes I like a quick read!
Read this if you: are fed up with the “consumer church” mindset.
The main premise of BiVo is that the Western church has hit critical mass in terms of its ability to support itself. It's like if a biped had to somehow manage to balance a bowling ball on top of its body whilst walking on its two feet; it's a very ineffective design. Eventually we will hit a point, in fact we're hitting it already, where we just won't be able to support ourselves. So to prevent the church from becoming entirely ineffective, how can we change our structure?
Not being a paid staff member at a church, or planning to start a church anytime soon, not everything in this book spoke to me. Although this book isn't so directly applicable to my life, it gives me vision. Much of the content is not just about how current paid church staff can live the bi-vocational life, but also how all of us are called to mission. And it's not just a “witness while you work” sort of mission (I'm not a huge fan of that mindset myself), but rather the day-to-day building of relationships which makes all of life a collection of beautiful opportunities.
I love how Hugh Halter is okay with uncertainty. It makes his writing some of the best ever to read. If we're being real, there is a lot of ambiguity in the Christian faith (read The Bible Tells Me So: Why Defending Scripture Has Made Us Unable to Read It), although it's not always something we want to admit. I think it scares us. A book like this makes me feel like I'm not alone in simply trying to figure things out. Faith is a journey, not a destination. This book illuminates a path for you that you might not otherwise have taken.
5 stars for not being afraid to try new things.
5 stars for the fact that I have actually met the author (are you reading this, Hugh?? It's the girl from Cleveland with the blue hair! Doesn't ring a bell? NOTE: BLUE HAIR).
1 star for being so very short, and yet, 5 stars for being so very short because sometimes I like a quick read!
November 8, 2014
I can't add much to David's excellent review. My favorite section of the book is 'Manna or mammon: Gut check time'. Halter makes the distinction between Manna, that is, God's provision, and mammon, the currency of a kingdom which, becomes an object of idolatry in its serving of consumerist whims. In his comments on Matthew 6:24 he says: "If you want to serve God with your life, you cannot serve your own interests, pad your wallets, put away enough to render faith irrelevant, or build your own kingdom. God’s kingdom has, and always will, operate on the principle of manna, not mammon. God will always provide for his people as they do his work his way." Halter argues effectively in his book that the bivocational path of ministry operates more on God's principle of manna than the the model of full-time vocational ministry.
December 6, 2016
I just finished reading Hugh Halter’s latest book: BIVO: A Modern-Day Guide For Bi-Vocational Saints. This book’s release is particularly timely, as I’m seeing more and more leaders becoming bi-vocational. Given the practicality of bi-vocational ministry, I expect that it will only continue to grow as we move further into the 21st century.
As I would expect of a book written by a practitioner, BIVO is filled with a lot of good practical insights. There are nuggets of wisdom scattered throughout, but my pick for the best chapter to guide you is “Learning the Labyrinth of Bi-Vocational Life.”
Written in Hugh’s honest and approachable style, BIVO is a great read for anyone who wants to consider this new direction in the church’s future. Highly recommended.
As I would expect of a book written by a practitioner, BIVO is filled with a lot of good practical insights. There are nuggets of wisdom scattered throughout, but my pick for the best chapter to guide you is “Learning the Labyrinth of Bi-Vocational Life.”
Written in Hugh’s honest and approachable style, BIVO is a great read for anyone who wants to consider this new direction in the church’s future. Highly recommended.
December 29, 2014
An excellent book regarding missional communities and not giving to the machine known as church but doing ministry without the cost factor.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews