This is entry can be thought of as an extension of a point I was trying to make in last Thursday's post (where I remarked that we pastors, contrary to the beliefs of folks who put us on pedestals, do not have infinite wells of faith to draw on). See, a number of other pastors have, in the past couple of weeks or so, offered up their own indexes and top ten lists of things they wish everyone would remember about them as human beings, rather than just as the pastor, aka SuperChristian.
This post, then, represents me throwing my proverbial hat into the ring with an attempt of my own at gently reminding everyone--clergy or not--of what is important to know about your pastor, whoever that person may be... (and, to be clear--this post was not catalyzed by any situation in my church at all, but simply by what I've been reading in the Christian blogosphere!)
1. We're human.
This is a biggie, and it's also first because I think the following nine all stem from this singular fact. We're human. We make mistakes, we inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide, we lose the forest for the trees, and we even get angry and jealous and all those other bad things. Try to not simply see past those traits, but to allow us to wrestle with them. We try to guide you, not fix you. Please do likewise for us!
2. We work at all hours of the day (and night).
Just because I keep only 16 hard-and-fast office hours per week does NOT mean that I only work 16 hours a week. I always work a couple of evenings a week, plus Sundays. I may be returning emails at 9 or 10 at night. I do some of my best sermon writing early in the morning, when I've just had my coffee. As an aside, I think stuff like this is also why we're so annoyingly insistent on keeping our days off as actual Sabbaths.
3. We don't have a direct phone line to Heaven.
I never understood that metaphor anyways, because the most famous direct phone line was the Washington-Moscow red phone during the Cold War, and I'd like to think that we're not in a Cold War with God. Either way--communicating with God can sometimes be just as challenging for us as it is for you. We don't have a standing tee time with Jesus...even though that'd be really, really cool if we did.
4. Sermons take a lot of time and energy.
I probably spend ten hours each week on my sermons, easily, and that's to say nothing of the time I spend vision-casting the sermon series themselves. Preaching them is also usually the most draining work-related task I have each week. It's a frightening thing for us--not the speaking in public part (at least, for me), but that I am sharing my innermost beliefs about God, Jesus, and Scripture without any reciprocity--you are under no obligation to share those similarly deepest beliefs with me if you don't want to.
5. We're required to be patient about the darnedest things.
There's a reason why the term "moving at the speed of church" means "slow as molasses." It has the side effect of calling us to moments of utter serenity, even at things that annoy us. Like, right now, I am writing from my office while this Jupiter-sized housefly buzzes around, like he has for days, bonking his head against my window trying to escape. Trying to swat a fly is an exercise in futility for me, and I thought he'd have left or died by now, but nope. I call him Gus. Gus the Housefly.
6. We don't remember anything that you tell us on Sunday.
Both of the outside posts I linked to at the start of this entry mention this one as one of their ten, and it is worth repeating here as well. It isn't that you (or what you have to say) don't matter to us, it's that our minds are racing like mice on Red Bull going through a maze with cheese at the end. And this includes EVERYTHING told to us on Sundays--my complete, utter inability to put names to faces has quickly become legendary at my church (though surprisingly, I never forget Gus the Housefly's name).
7. We may not be as good as you are at a particular part of our jobs.
A pastor, especially a solo pastor like myself, tends to be a jack of all trades but a master of none. For instance, one of my congregants is a professional chef. I know I'm supposed to have a hand in organizing fellowship opportunities for folks, but in creating a welcoming spread (because no church event can take place without food), I am light years behind this guy. Other colleagues of mine may have a congregant who is, say, a Bible professor. I can only imagine the trip that leading a Bible study in that situation might be!
8. We're not necessarily musically inclined.
I know the stereotype is that the pastor (or their spouse) should be able to sing or play a worship instrument, but you know what...nope. I play the saxophone, which I have used in worship before but only infrequently, and my own singing voice is self-taught, so it is relatively rough and not really conducive to the role of lead vocals (plus we have a very dedicated lead vocalist already!). One of my seminary professors told me how he was told to take voice lessons in seminary because "churches expect their pastors to be able to sing." I'm glad many churches have moved past that mentality, but I also preach, pray, and lead communion, so me singing would come pretty close to turning worship into The Eric Show. No thanks.
9. We know when we're on our game and when we're off it.
It doesn't take something as blatant as you playing block breaker on your cell phone, or doodling on your bulletin from the pew. The vacant "Have I bought milk yet?" stare is usually enough. After we have given enough sermons, we tend to pick up a sixth sense of knowing when what we're saying is hitting home and when it is falling flat. I would borrow from stand-up comedy and say that we know when we're killing, but that isn't quite what we go for with a church.
10. We're worldly.
And I don't mean in the sense that we love money--we don't (unless you're a prosperity preacher). But I'd say the ratio of secular to "Christian" music on my iPod is about 85/15. I own very few "Christian" movies. I love following soccer, baseball, and cycling. I live and breathe the church when I'm on, and so when I'm off, I'd just as soon talk about basketball as I would about the Bible. I swear with not uncommon frequency. I love a good scotch, microbrew, or locally grown wine. And I'm a-okay with all of that.
So that's my list. Do you relate to any of these yourself, whether if you're pastor or are in another line of work or ministry?
Yours in Christ,
Eric
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