Thank You, Father, for my time with family today. May we seek and follow Your guidance in all things. Amen.
********
I’m going to pause this evening and ask, “Do you pray for your pastor?”
I’m sure you realize that just because God has placed a call on their lives to serve the church, that does not mean that we are of heartier stock than other beings that walk the face of this planet. We struggle. We get weary. We get overwhelmed. We get depressed. We can be anxious. We are human in all aspects of our lives as well.
Sometimes when I sit down to write each day, it comes readily. Thoughts populate my mind and when I type the sentences just flow onto the screen. (I want to make it very clear, that I truly believe that it is God working through His child. He has gifted me certain abilities and when I make myself available to Him, He uses me as He sees fit.)
Preparations for Sunday services are tasking – it is an investment of heart, soul, and mind. For me, journaling is made of the same components. This week on top of service preparation and writing, I also have two funerals for which to prepare. Once again, I want to make it very clear that I am not complaining – it is a privilege and an honor to do all these things…but it has nothing to do with the fact that all that work is taxing. It takes its toll on me.
It’s hard for many to understand, but pastoral ministry is not just about the physical. Having done it now for many years…watching my dad do it for many years, one has to push themselves on Sunday afternoons and even Mondays to accomplish simple tasks. Preaching and striving to have meaningful interaction with those with whom we minister, pulls at the very fibers of our beings. Again, it’s not just physical. It is spiritually exhausting.
When I preach it is not just reading off my notes. Every statement I make, every passage of Scripture I read, is not a mere action on my part. I cannot tell you how many times my mind goes out to my congregants…I wonder are they listening? Are they taking what God has given me to heart? I wonder if the way I am communicating things is hurting someone unintentionally… Am I being insensitive? Am I inadvertently hurting someone or stomping on a very sensitive part of their lives through some well-meaning illustration in an attempt to drive home a point?
Some things are strongly communicated. Others are withheld. Some things are my own and though I strive to be transparent, I don’t share some things because they would benefit no one by sharing them. It may only cause anger and division. It may unintentionally drive a wedge deeper between them and their Creator, all because I feel the need to share my opinion…
All that being said, please pray for your pastor. Pray that he or she will remain faithful in their relationship with God. Pray that they will continue to find strength in that relationship. Pray that if they stumble or fall that they, with God’s help, will stand up, dust themselves off, and continue to be determined to serve Him, to love Him with all their heart, mind, soul, and strength and that regardless of how the world treats…or mistreats them, that they will love the world as God does. (Mark 12:30-31)
Pray for your pastor…
July 24th, 2023, Mon, 8:45 pm
