I’m a pastor and I’ve read a number of blogs and articles
talking about pastors and how hard it is to be a pastor and how little pastors
get paid and how much people complain about pastors and so on. Is some of it true? Sure.
Is a lot of it true? Probably. However, what doesn’t get talked about so
much are the positive aspects of being a pastor. I’m going to try about counteract the
negativity a little and talk about some of the highlights of being a
pastor. You’ve probably had some
negative thoughts about your job too.
Instead of focussing on the negatives, see what positives you can find. (If you can’t find any positives, it might be time for a new job.)
Pastors get a lot of flexibility in their schedule. I get to go out for coffee with someone from
the church and talk about life. I meet
with volunteers in the evening to talk about youth ministry. To the average 9-5 worker the pastor’s job
schedule probably looks like a joke.
However a lot of work is done outside traditional office hours. I can change my schedule pretty quickly and
easily. Don’t get me wrong, most pastors
work very hard and certainly put in their fair share of hours but pastoring is
a lifestyle not a job so that means you can ditch the office sometimes and go
be with people or do something fun. The
lifestyle factor means you are always on call (hello crisis on my day off), but
you get to be flexible with your schedule and that’s a luxury not everyone gets
to enjoy which I am thankful for.
Pastors get paid to serve people. It might sound kind of funny to say that, yet
I believe it’s a privilege to get paid to serve God’s people. Many articles and blogs complain about how
little pastors get paid. Do most pastors
get paid a lot? No. Is the job all about
the money? No. I believe God can work
beyond the paycheque. If someone is in
ministry for the money, something is wrong.
I think the thing that gets pastors upset sometimes is comparing what get
paid in ministry to what they would get paid in the secular world for the same
skill set they bring to the table in their ministry position. Pastoring is a high challenge job requiring a
wide variety of skills and education. I
think if most pastors took their pastoral skill set to the secular world they
would instantly double their salary. Yet
in any job it’s not about comparing to what others do or get (that’s a great
way to breed dissatisfaction), it’s doing what God has called you to do and
trusting him to provide what you need. I
get paid to do what I am passionate about and serve in ministry that has
eternal value. That’s cool.
Perhaps you’ve had similar thoughts about your job or your
life situation. Instead of thinking
about all the negatives, think about what you are blessed with and the benefits
of your current job or life situation.
You just might find yourself enjoying life a little more!
