Remember the 80's sitcom, "A Different World?" I have the theme song running through my head today..."It's a different wo-o-orld...than where you're comin' from."
I know and believe that I have been called here, and it is like night and day compared to where I came from, but I just don't know how to work in a church this size. I thought naively that "Hey, since I am paid to work full time as a children's pastor, I'll have plenty of time to get my Sunday mornings together."
HA!! I haven't even looked at it yet. And it's Thursday. And tomorrow is my day off, and I'd really like to be able to actually take it.
Between sending out 200 letters to potential nursery volunteers, sending a reminder postcard about an upcoming meeting to my CURRENT volunteers, splitting up the "visitor" call list between myself and the youth pastor (Is that standard practice, by the way? I feel like a broken record, but I honestly don't know - my former church was not normal by any definition of the word!), I am starting to feel more like a secretary, lol! I know that there is a lot of administrative stuff involved in being a "real" children's pastor, and that kids' church is only a small part of my job - but now that I am officially full time, I feel like I'm drowning.
Will I ever get time for myself...my husband...my extended family (who are scattered all over the Midwest, so we're not exactly talking day trips here!)...my friends...again?
Okay...now that I've gotten that out of my system ...I really am happy here. I'm just suffering from "overwhelming first week" syndrome. my husband would call it melodrama. Please tell me that I'm not going nuts, and that others in my position have felt this way, too!!
It will take some time for you to adjust. To answer your question, yes, it is standard practice in most churches that the staff handle other duties besides just their main portfolio (youth, children, whatever). Our staff all assist in calling back the visitors, in fact every pastor on staff has assignments to stop on the way home on Monday to deliver gift bags that we give to every visiting family. Sometimes each of us have to take two or more if there are a whole lot of guests.
We have a visitation pastor but if he is out or things get too busy, all of the staff help.
Life in a larger church is much busier and the work week hectic. Rarely does anyone on our staff work less than 50 hours. Most weeks for my dh and I it's at least 60 and many times our staff puts in that much. For the most part we do take our day off (Friday) but that's our only day.
Keep in mind that larger churches got that way for a reason...yes, it's the Lord but it's also -- a hard working staff.
It will take you some time to find your balance but I feel confident you will. Keep your chin up!
Like I said, I am really happy here - and happy that my ministry frustrations are things like, "Wow...I'm SO busy this week," or "I really wish the youth pastor would TELL me that the computer in our shared area is broken before 5 minutes to start time!" and not, "Sister so-and-so is offended with me, and we have to have a meeting about it," and the like!
I just haven't worked full time at all since May, and have never worked full time (well...for a full time salary!) in a thriving ministry, and getting back into the rhythm of it is not as much of a snap as I thought it would be. I will definitely be crashing hard on my day off tomorrow...and then getting up to clean the house, lol!
Okay, I really need to stop procrastinating, or I WILL have to just live here!
I'm going to paraphrase here. I read in a recent Evangel that if people in secular jobs work 100 hours a week, everyone tells them, "Your crazy, slow down..." But if we're working for the Lord in a ministry, the person will say something like, "Praise the Lord."
<laughing> Okay, it's not really funny, but have you noticed that a ministry position grows in hours? It does.
I'm going to paraphrase here. I read in a recent Evangel that if people in secular jobs work 100 hours a week, everyone tells them, "Your crazy, slow down..." But if we're working for the Lord in a ministry, the person will say something like, "Praise the Lord."
<laughing> Okay, it's not really funny, but have you noticed that a ministry position grows in hours? It does.
LOL!!! Very true...I am extremely blessed, though, to have a senior pastoral team (My SP and his wife are co-senior pastors) who guard their day off like Fort Knox and INSIST that their staff do the same, as well as amazing church secretaries who assist us in that endeavor. I told our secretary yesterday as she left, "I'm off tomorrow - so unless my office is burning down or something, I'm unavailable!" She answered, "There'd be nothing you could do about that, anyway - so I probably won't even call you in that case ."
Sad thing is, though - I am doing a few "work related" things today on my day off today. It won't take me more than 1/2 hour...it was just a weird week because of Labor Day (and because both me and the new YP started full time this week!).
...I really am happy here. I'm just suffering from "overwhelming first week" syndrome. my husband would call it melodrama. Please tell me that I'm not going nuts, and that others in my position have felt this way, too!!
