A Pastor's work is never done,
from early morning till setting sun.
Oops... I forgot to add "and the hours in between, 7 days a week, 49 weeks a year."
One thing I love about Pastoring is my flexible schedule. Since technically as a Pastor I have no "weekend" like most who work "normal" jobs, our two days off can come just about any time except the weekend. Sometimes the days off come in a day here or there, and sometimes it comes in a half of a day here or there. To the dismay of my kids and wife sometimes it does not happen at all. Many times spending time with Daddy means riding along to Erie to get supplies and hoping he treats them to a $5.55 Hot and Ready Pizza from Little Ceasers.
Saturday for a Pastor is just another busy day like Sunday in preparations calling and the most important sermon preparation that has been brewing all week in prayers and devotions. Many times after long busy days, late nights are spent gathering sermon illustrations, trying to de-cipher scribbled notes from thoughts that have come during the day, and as usual the three fingered typing of sermon notes. Usually by the time the Sunday sermon time has rolled around the sermon has been re-tweaked many times.
Sunday starts off very early in the morning like 5:00 a.m. and even earlier 3:00-4:00 a.m. in the winter time to check the church furnace and make sure the heat is on and the proper vents have all the rooms warming for Sunday School. The bulletin has been typed, but gets added to and then copied and folded, the church gets a once over to make sure it looks as presentable as a country can. I think I forgot to add Sunday School class preparation and teaching before worship service begins. Sunday afternoon is met with phone calls to a few who did not make it to church, an occasional visit, continued preparation for the evening service and then if time permits...a blog entry or two. Then after the last person is talked to after church on Sunday night, the pastor and his wife go home and usually are in one of two moods. They either are excited about what has happened that day or are ready to submit the already prepared but never used resignation letter. It happens to the best of us. Then once in awhile like yesterday when at least 4 people tell the pastor that the sermon that morning was not only the best that they had ever heard, but were so helped in their spiritual life, the pastor feels ready to re-preach that same sermon the next 3 Sundays. As they say "A blind squirrel gets a nut once in awhile." It is days like that end like that, that keep the country pastor going. Even if a small negative comment is thrown out during the course of the day, the feeling of thanks to God for His help seems to override it.
Everyone gets a couple of days off, but when does the pastor? Some times there are weeks after laboring 70 - 90 hours that you get none at all. The overtime is not compensated for, no pat on the back, but just the satisfaction of eternal treasures that make it all worth while. Of course there are the days that the compliments come and the pat on the back is given....yes and those fuzzy warm feelings. In a normal job setting I don't get complimented for doing what I am paid to do, so when it happens to me it is a big bonus.
In every church setting the methods of outreach can be vastly different. Many use door to door calling, which in some communities can be very effective. Although I am not sure of the reasons, our church has shown growth by various methods including door to door visitation. Just recently an older couple started attending our church. The reason they came - recommendation from one of my neighbor friendships. Although the neighbor has his own church, he recommended to his father ours. We were very happy at that.
There has been a great amount of work that has been put into this method: helping put on pool covers, mowing hay, use of my backhoe, helping cut down a tree, plowing someones driveway in a blizzard so they could get to work on time, hanging out and listening and sharing stories of hunting or the surrounding community, pulling someone out of the ditch, giving electrical advice or just helping out with it, lending tools, being there in emergencies and death, and the list goes on. It all is accomplished through my flexible schedule.
The blessing our church has received from this schedule are amazing. God has used my gift of gab and working with my hands to make friends that have ended up helping the church out just when we needed it. I guess if my schedule had not allowed for the flexibility, many "helps" might never have happened. God is good!
It is the flexibility of the schedule that makes pastoring enjoyable and the effort so worthwhile. This week I choose to take my time to not only help my church by becoming a better person, but also to take my two days off. I will head off with a group of Pastors and men from their churches to Beulah Grove Camp to the Men of Integrity Retreat This retreat which the conference strongly encourages their pastors to attend is one that helps christian men in their personal lives. I wish some of my church congregants would be able to attend but their work and schedule won't allow them to go. They all said as the Cleveland Brown's fans say "Next Year!"
Well since this is my day for the church I will leave to go help a man that I have been working on to come to church for the last 4 years. I have nursing homes to visit, and the church rental to work on.....
Since my earthly goals have eternal values I keep plugging away.....
....just loving doing what I do!!!
So in retrospect, what I love about pastoring is my flexible schedule.
