Relationships

How to Make Your Pastor’s Job a Joy

October is traditionally Pastors Appreciation Month, and it is good to have a dedicated time to honor those who will give an account for the souls of those in their congregation. I am sure that pastors are grateful for the cards and gifts that they receive this time of year, and as Scripture states, we should be generous to those who are members of the household of faith (Gal. 6:10)  and this definitely, and especially, includes our leaders (I Timothy 5:17). 

However, I would venture to guess that more than the notes of appreciation that they get every October, most, if not all pastors, would rather that they serve a congregation who makes their job a joy. After all, they are spending and being spent for the sake of the Gospel (2 Cor. 12:15)! How wonderful would it be that as they do so, as they spend their days serving, teaching, encouraging and supporting the body of Christ, that they could delight in that work? And while it is true that this work is worthy of delight simply because it is the work that God has called them to do, as members of a local church we can either intensify or detract from the joy that they experience. As Christians who desire to honor Christ in all we do, we should desire that we would be individuals who show our love to God by loving well those He has given the stewardship of our care. How can we do that? Here are four suggestions on how to make your pastor’s job a joy.

1. Apply God’s Word to your life

A good pastor spends a considerable amount of time studying God’s Word in order that they might effectively teach it to their flock. This time of preparation can be isolating as well as challenging. However, they labor diligently in this endeavor because they know that the Word of God has the power to transform lives (Heb. 4:12). When they teach us, we should strive to put the truth that they have taught from Scripture into practice in our lives – not “someday” but today! The book of James instructs us to not be merely hearers of the Word but to do what it says (James 1:22).  A loving pastor wants his congregation to apply God’s Word to their lives because they know it honors God and they know it is for their congegration’s good. Therefore, every time we hear the Scripture taught, we should prayerfully and immediately consider how God wants us to put it into practice. In doing so, we not only are conformed into greater Christlikeness, but we bring joy to those who have labored to biblically instruct us from the Word of God. 

2. Pray for them

When they stand before Jesus, pastors will give an account for how they stewarded the souls of those that God entrusted to them (James 3:1). This is a heavy and significant responsibility. It comes with challenges and the Enemy would love it if he could distract a pastor from doing their job well. If we want to make our pastor’s job a joy, we should be regularly lifting them up to the Heavenly Father. We should pray that they would be faithful in their tasks. We should pray for their family. We should pray that the Enemy’s plans would be thwarted, and that God would strengthen them for the work that He has called them to do. God works through the lives and sacrifice of our church leaders for our good. We should be regularly and earnestly asking God to give them all that they need for “life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3) in order that they might not only do their job well, but that they may find delight in their work. 

3. Encourage them specifically 

Pastors often are the first people that hear the complaints and concerns of those in their congregation. They bear the burdens of those in their flock and this can be a heavy load to bear. While the Holy Spirit can and does strengthen them for their task, if we want to make our pastor’s job a joy, we should do all that we can to “spur them on to love and good works” (Heb. 10:24).  This means that we should encourage them in specific and intentional ways. It is one thing to say “I liked your sermon today” and I am sure they would rather hear that than a  mean-spirited critique. However, it is another thing to tell them the specific illustration or point that they made which God used to equip and encourage you in your Christian walk. As much as possible, let’s be specific in our encouragement so that our pastors know we aren’t sharing platitudes but genuine ways that God has used them in our lives. If we can’t think of a specific encouragement to share, we can always share with them the specific ways that we are praying for them (see Point 2 above). This will assuredly motivate them in their service to the Lord!

4. Resist the urge to complain

Since pastors are often the first to hear of the concerns and critiques, we should do our best to resist the urge to add to the chorus by airing our complaints. Of course, this doesn’t mean that if there is an issue of sin, we do not follow the appropriate steps to get it addressed (Matthew 18:15-18). However, too often I fear we conflate “preference” with “error.” Just because I wish that other decisions were made or that things were done in a different way, does not mean that this is a grievance that needs to be shared. Instead, when the concern is about what we desire or what we prefer, we should first prayerfully bring it before God. In my experience, most of the time, when I talk to God about it first, I find that the issue was really about what was going on in my heart, and not something that needs to be addressed on a larger scale. Let’s major on the major and minor on the minors when it comes to perceived issues that we have with our church. No family is perfect and that includes the family of God (at least this side of Heaven). If we do need to bring a concern forward, let’s make sure we are motivated by what is for the benefit of others and for the glory of Christ’s name – and not merely or primarily by our own interests and pursuits. 

5. Strive for unity 

Growing up, whenever my sister and I asked my mom what she wanted for a birthday or Christmas gift, she would say that she wanted “two kids who got along.” As a parent, I now understand why that was at the forefront of her heart and mind. Division can be devastating to a family, and this includes the family of God. Therefore we should strive for unity – to be of one heart and one mind as we serve our one Savior. Not only does Scripture tell us that this is a good thing (Psalm 133:1) but it always will bring joy to those who are leading our specific body of believers. Sometimes this may mean that we need to overlook an offense (Proverbs 19:11), or to recognize that love covers a multitude of sin (1 Peter 4:8). Sometimes this may mean that we need to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). because we need to heal divisions that are being perpetuated. Again, if there are Scriptural, moral or legal issues that need to be addressed, these could rightly be the basis for dividing and should be prayerfully and biblically brought to light. However, far too often there is division in churches for far lesser things. Let’s not consider ourselves more highly than we ought (Ro. 12:3), and let’s do what we can to live at peace with all men (Ro. 12:18) especially those who attend the same church. 

It is appropriate and good to show our pastors appreciation in the month of October. However, just because we do so this month, let’s not neglect to show them appreciation all year long by making their jobs a joy. As we do so, God will be honored, our pastors will be encouraged, and the Church will shine ever brighter for the sake of the Gospel, to the glory of Jesus’ name.

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Purpose

Being Wise With Our Time

There is an old saying that “time is money.” However, as a former boss of mine used to remark, “Time is not money; you can always get more money, but you can never get more time.” Ironically, although many of us are fastidious about considering how we spend our cash, we are a lot less intentional about how we manage our time even though it is a much more valuable resource. For the Christian, it is even more significant that we don’t waste the days that God has granted us because they are a stewardship that He intends for us to use for His glory. In other words, how we spend our time is not only a pragmatic issue, it is also a spiritual one. Therefore, it is helpful for us to consider how we spend our time from an eternal perspective as well as to establish some practical tips of how we may fully use the minutes and hours God has granted us for His glory. 

In this endeavor, the foundational principle that should buttress our consideration of our days is that we should desire to be wise with our time. Wisdom, as has often been stated, is the application of Scripture to our lives. We don’t want to just consider how we can more effectively use our time to do more of what we want; instead, we should desire that our days are increasingly filled with more of what God wants. Scripture teaches us what is important to God and what He desires for our lives. Ephesians 5:15-16 specifically addresses the issue of how we spend our time when it states that we should “Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk – not as unwise people but as wise – making the most of the time, because the days are evil” (CSB). In other words, because evil abounds and our time on Earth is limited, we should strive to maximize our eternal impact through how we spend our time. This will not happen on its own; it requires intentionality and dedication. We have to be committed to wanting to use our time for God’s Kingdom, and then we have to know how to do that. The commitment requires a heart that is surrendered to God and His ways. Once that is in place, here are some practical tips to ensure that we are being wise with our time. 

1. Know how you spend your time 

If we want to make sure that we are spending our time wisely, we need to know how we are spending our time. That might sound self-evident but it is amazing how quickly minutes, hours, and days can pass and we cannot clearly state how we used them. Managing any type of resource starts with understanding how much of that resource we have and how it is currently being consumed. Only then can we create strategies for making sure that we manage it better. 

Most people have some general sense of how their time is being spent but many of them can’t clearly articulate how they have invested the hours that God has given them on any given day. Research has consistently shown that we tend to grossly underestimate how much time we spend watching TV or on our cell phones. Therefore, if we aren’t clear about how we send our time, it would be good to spend some time tracking it. Even the action of tracking our time can immediately help us be more careful with how we are spending it. (Who among us wants to write down that they spent 3 hours scrolling Instagram?) Keep a time journal for a week and then prayerfully and honestly evaluate how you have allocated your days. What are you giving your time to that are “time wasters?” (And a time waster may not be a specific activity, but how much time you spend in that activity. Again, Instagram is a great example.) What should you be allocating more time to? If we are a Christian who is dedicated to growing in the knowledge and love of God, it may shock us to find out how little time we actually spend investing in this endeavor. 

2. Distinguish good from best

After we have tracked our time, we should formulate a plan for how we want to spend it (in contrast to how we currently are). This means reducing or eliminating time wasters, and it also means being intentional about what we invest time in. This can get tricky because there are a lot of good ways that we can spend our time, but still our time is limited. Therefore, we want to delineate what is “good” from what is “best.” What are the ways that we can maximize our particular impact for the sake of God’s Kingdom? 

To make this determination, a few questions may be helpful. First, it is useful to ask what are the roles that are uniquely ours? For example – I am the only wife that my husband has and the only mother to my kids. No one else can fulfill these roles and so, for as long as God gives them to me, I need to make sure that I am dedicating time to each of these responsibilities. 

Secondly, what are some of the specific ways that God has gifted us as individuals? For example – while I can plan a themed birthday party for a friend’s kid (and have done so!), God has not granted me the ability to do that well or with ease. However, there are some other areas where He has fearfully and wonderfully designed me to be especially effective. If I want to use my time well, I should concentrate on spending my time using these gifts. This doesn’t mean that I will never do anything outside my inherent areas of giftedness (again, I have planned a themed party before because there was a need and I could fill it), but it does mean that I will focus my time and attention on using the stewardship of my talents well. 

The third question that we should consider is, “Am I using my time on what God prioritizes?” This is really the most important question of the three but I find it best to ask it last because it helps me further eliminate things that may be in keeping with my roles and may use my gifts, but isn’t what is most God-glorifying. I need to make sure I am managing my time to do what God wants me to do, not other people. Other people may see that we have certain gifts and abilities, and they may ask us to invest them in good ways, but that isn’t what God has for us, at  least not now. For example, you may be a decorator par excellence and a committed member of your local church. A fellow church member may ask you to use your skills and talents to help decorate their new office. This is obviously a worthwhile endeavor and may be an opportunity to use your talents in a way that glorifies God. But if your plate is already filled because you have three young children at home, and you are leading a Bible study group, plus serving in an outreach ministry, you may need to say “no for now” to the decorating post. Of course, you may also prayerfully consider it and God may lead you to say “yes.” But we need to make sure that we are saying “yes” or “no” prayerfully; that we are prioritizing God’s will over our own. 

3. Evaluate your season in life

Sometimes the distinction between what is “good” and what is “best” will be heavily influenced by our season in life, and it is helpful to take this into consideration. For example, I can be a decent cook with some time and effort, and feeding my family is in keeping with my roles. However, my family is in a season of life where elaborate meal prep does not align with the priorities that God has given us. This doesn’t mean that four-star home cooked meals are wrong; they certainly aren’t! But it does mean that for me, in this season, if I focused my time and attention on that it would be about what is important to me, and not what is important to God. I need to prayerfully lay my calendar at His feet and ask Him to make sure that what I think is “best” is aligned with what He does. As even the illustration in the previous point demonstrated, sometimes our answer to “is this a wise way to spend my time?” is “not right now.” It may not be “no” forever. There are good works that God has prepared for us beforehand in this season (Eph. 2:10), and there are good works that God has prepared for us for the next season. We need to consider what season God has placed us in, and say “yes” to the things that He most desires of us given the responsibilities and roles we have at that time. 

4. Resist the urge to compare

Lastly, if we are going to make the most of our days it is important that we recognize that the days God has given us are not the same as the days He has given someone else. Neither has He given all His children the same roles and responsibilities, or the same trials or blessings during the same seasons of life. We have to be wise with our time considering what God has given us – the skills, the talents, the stewardships, and the opportunities. Resist the urge to compare your days with someone else’s. Maybe they can get more done than you because of a capability that God has given them or because they have behind the scenes help you know nothing about. Maybe some else’s day seems less filled to you but in reality, they are caring a heavy burden with their duties at home. Whatever the case may be, each of us will stand accountable before God for how we managed what He has given us – not what He has bestowed on another brother or sister in Christ. Let’s make sure we can stand before our Maker with confidence that we used what He entrusted to us for His glory. Let’s look to Him – not to another person’s calendar or stewardships. 

Managing our time well means that we apply God’s wisdom in how we handle our days. In future posts I hope to provide even more practical tips for how we can make the most of the hours that God has given us. In the meantime, may we lay our calendar before Him asking Him to give us wisdom in what fills our days and what we set aside, trusting that if we ask Him in faith (James 1:5), He will graciously provide the wisdom that we need to do just that.

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