I have spent my last two years attempting to do ministry that is where my heart is. Loving kids, loving the people, helping people come to know how much God loves them in a deeper way. As I sit at my desk today, I am discouraged. Discouraged as I watch more and more churches (including my own) struggle to make ends meet. Discouraged as I watch more and more of my colleauges leave the ministry because they cannot find full time employment. Disheartened because many of the parents of our kids seem to not think that raising their kids in the faith is important.
I worry and wonder about the future of our church, and the future of our world. What will it look like in another 20 years when these people who so DEEPLY love the church aren't here anymore. In my current setting, if you added 20 years to everyone, 95% of those who attend worship would be no longer with us. That not only scares me, but makes me wonder about where the church is supposed to be going, what we are supposed to be doing differently to raise another generation who loves the Lord and loves serving others.
I guess in all, it is just one of those days that I wonder where God is calling me next...and if it is to stay here, how I am supposed to do that, when the very things that feed me and give me life seem to be dying all around me.
I know, every pastor gets discouraged and disheartened from time to time. How do we keep the faith, keep working, keep following God's will...what advice do YOU have for this first call pastor?
2 comments:
Perhaps parents still want to raise their kids with faith but feel the church is no longer the vehicle to achieve that.
I think people still love the Lord and still love serving others but the institutional church has gotten so far away from the teachings of the gospel, that many people just walk away from the hypocrisy.
I mean absolutely no disrespect, but perhaps the very things that feed you and give you life - loving kids, loving the people, helping people grow in their relationship with God - they do not require a church building or a paycheck. Jesus had neither.
Now is the time to lead with prayer. To allow yourself fully to feel the fear and the despair and the anxiety, and to take them to God. In the end all that you can do is continue to seek God's wisdom, witness to Jesus' resurrection, and listen for the Spirit's breath in your life and the life of your community. You're not alone! Many of us are feeling this, and somehow we have to find ways to practice the "mutual encouragement" that Paul writes about in Romans, and trust that God is active in our midst.
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