Just thought maybe we could share about what we find personally the most difficult in fulfilling this calling, in church ministry. I would be curious what your biggest struggle is.
There are many for me and some struggles have changed throughout the years due to location, circumstances, etc. I have noticed the things I struggle with today are completely different than years ago...(and that's for the better). But...
As for me, one of my biggest struggles are "goodbye's". I don't do well with them. And I hate them when they are not necessary! I do not do well when people move away, leave, etc. It breaks my heart The worst for me is when people get transferred or laid off and they really don't want to relocate, but they have to, to survive. I just feel like screaming when that happens, and sometimes, I do.
Right now there is a couple in our church...he's a chemical engineer without a job. If something doesn't happen here, we could lose them to "anywhere USA" and you know, it will just break my heart. I really believe they were heaven sent to our church.
All the platitudes of, "God will send someone else in to replace"... and "all things work together for good"...don't seem to do the trick when you really love & miss people. You don't just want "anyone"...you want "them"!
Oh well, now that I've told you that, please pray for Mickey to get a job. Thank you!
This is really a great topic. I am very interested to know what others struggle with.
I think that the hardest thing for me is dealing with "church folk" who are not concerned about souls being saved. My husband recently sat down a SS teacher who is totally rebellious against leadership. She also tries hard, and has successfully planted seeds of rebellion in others in the church. She is controlled by one of those "resident demons" in our church. Anyway, the new teacher is doing an awesome job. After 3 weeks 2 young people have been saved. I cannot ever remember anyone being saved with the other teacher. In spite of this, the person who leads SS told my husband last night that some of the youth told him that the new teacher doesn't "break it down" like the old teacher did. The old teacher has told the SS leader point blank that she knew that she was in rebellion against the pastor, and she was going to continue, yet he is pushing to get her back as a teacher. This boggles my mind.
We have had several Sundays when people got saved and my husband had to tell the people to clap or rejoice or do something. Sometimes I think that maybe I am going to wake up and discover that I have just been having a bad dream, this could not be real. As of yet, this has not happened. My husband and I have been trying to preach and teach the importance of fulfilling the great commission. That is what we are here for. It just grieves me that so many of our people don't care about that. They only want to push their own agenda. We have been trying to go out more and more and do evangelism, but it is hard when the new people come in and the existing people treat them like stepchildren.
This has been really hard for me. I guess there may actually be more than one thing that I am saying here. I don't know. Anyway, I don't see how people can be so used by the devil that the very thing that we are here for is not a concern or a priority for them.
I don't know if this will help. Misery doesn't all like company. LOL! But you situation is sadly too comment. Everywhere I go churches are struggling with the same situation and not knowing what to do. They have become accustomed to allow sin to hide in their hearts and rebel against leadership and still understand that what they are going is wrong. Their service is in vein. It's about a positive more than service God.
I wished I had a answer because it's really sad to see churches struggle with this. But I wanted to let you know that that's a big issue everywhere today.
So does that make you feel better! LOL! I know it doesn't. Just joking!
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Serving Together For HIS Purpose,
Leah
www.joyfulsoundrecords.com
www.worldvision.org
Boy, that's a really hard question because I don't think I can pin-point one thing. But right now I'm finding that security in the church is hard to deal with. What I mean is...with a secular job, although it isn't secure, it is different because by the world's standards you have a trade or experience of some sort to find another job. Which I know could still be difficult. But with the church..., if the people really get upset with their pastor and decide that they don't want him anymore, he and his family could be left without anything but their faith and finding another church to pastor under the direction of the Holy Spirit could be very hard. Because ultimately God gives everyone a free will and the place where God is telling you to go could be bound by rebellious people who do not want to yield to the Spirit. I've seen my dad go through this time and time again and go through a terrible burn-out. I know that my faith truly lies in God and that He will take care of His people, however I would be lying if I didn't say that I do struggle with this from time to time. This is our first pastoring position and both my husband and I worked in the secular field while working at our previous church. So we had a sense of stability to some degree. Now sometimes it feels as if we're flying without wings.
But to end on a lighter note, in spite of my struggle, the one thing that keeps me going is the sense of satisfaction we feel because we are finally operating in the will of God completely. When I see the people changing and others giving their hearts to God, it gives me such a satisfied feeling that can't compare with anything else. -And when I do start to worry, God replays the pictures of people's faces who have come so far in our church and I have to smile because of the warm feeling I get inside. Just to know that should the time come for my husband and I to leave this church, there has been a permanent change in some and their salvation is not based on us but is secure in God. That's awesome!!! :
What a topic. The hardest thing for me is holding back! I want to jump in with both feet and see things happen. I want to be involved with people and hands on ministry. Having young children curtails a lot of involvement and so it is hard to balance sometimes. Also a hard thing for me is coming to a new place of ministry and figuring out what God wants from me for this season and time.
I think I just have to remember God will let me know in His time His way! LOL
LadyT, I also struggle with "church folk" I really want to say to them - WHOSE PLACE IS THIS ANYWAY. GET OUT THE LORD'S WAY, YOU ARE HOLDING THINGS BACK!
Ladies, I have struggled with all of the above over the years, in varying degrees dependent upon where we were at the time.
Sometimes God's people forget that we're in it for souls!!! I find that my husband and I have to remind our congregation (wherever we are) that this is foremost on a constant basis. If not, they FORGET. They begin to turn inward and focus more on internal concerns than the lost. My husband has a statistic that after it's 12th year in existence a church basically makes a decision (albeit sub-consciously) to either become inward focused or outward focused.
More than ever I have learned that CHURCH HEALTH is so important. What is the people's focus? A healthy church is focused on reaching the lost and caring about people. An unhealthy church is focused on internal petty concerns and who's doing what, and who said what, and all kinds of other stuff besides Kingdom business.
Don't be weary in well doing, ladies! Keep calling the people to the "outward" focus, and as Lady T once said, "keep loving the hell out of them!" (literally!!!!!)
I know one thing that's difficult here in FL is that it's "conference country" and basically there is every type of meeting you can imagine going on. The people travel around to experience spiritual goosebump after goosebump, and keep going until they get the next biggest thrill. As one of our staff members says, they just keep running to and fro for the "latest and the greatest." Oh, the thrill when you find spiritually mature, rooted, grounded, planted, flouishing SAINTS! Halleluiah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Keep lovin' em' and keep getting them looking more out the window than in the mirror...this is our goal.
HI! It's Cassandra. I know..I know it has been way too long. I can't begin to list the things that seem hardest...it's kind of different on different days. Trying to juggle kids, house work, and church work and a husband who isn't home alot because of working a part time joba nd full time church job is hard. I feel torn alot. That I should do one or the other. Take care of MY family or everyone else's. I feel like my family is so shortchanged, has no structure and is suffering and that is hardest on me. Feeling like a failure because I just can't do it all is hard. I want to be able to do it all. And well. But it just "ain't" happening. The next to hardest thing is when dh is lacking direction and is feeling like he's in limbo. I want to be encouraging and all but it's hard sometimes. Those are my two hardest areas. Feeling like I'm selling out my kids and dh having to find his place in ministry and provide at the same time. It's enough to make me seek counseling!
Hey Cassandra ~ it's really good to hear from you. Wow...sounds like you are dealing with some overwhelming things. How does your dh feel about everything? I remember the last time I heard from you...we talked about you finding a PW there that you could get together with for support. Have you been able to find anyone there close by?
I will be praying for you. We all have overwhelming times...times where we are in limbo...times we wonder, "is it all worth it"?
You are called & anointed even in those times! Press on!!!!
First of all - I can't believe it but it is true - I have been gone from you for two weeks! OH THE AGONY! I missed you all!
For me the hardest thing in ministry is kind of like what was hardest for me in dealing with my daughter - knowing what needs to be done and how to get it done, but having to step back and let some things fall just so people will learn how to work for themselves...
Now of course they are the special members that act or show that remind me of the old song - Everybody talking about heaven ain't going there... But they don't stress me as bad now as they used to... What gets me more than anything is lazy people...
I read today in Proverbs that where there are many words that sin is not absent... I guess the other thing that presses me is people who do a lot of talking and very little substantive work... I can't take that! But again my struggle is people who don't take responsibility in ministry and then my general need to see things get done which means that I sometimes put myself in an overworked state, where I am overstretched and underrested... BUT I AM GROWING IN THAT AREA!!!
The hardest thing about my ministry is that many children with HPE( a rare brain disorder, my daughter has it) will die, and many have since my ministry began 8 years ago. I try very hard to keep the Moms going, and I help them help the babies that most Docs have turned away from. Some do well for a while,then suddenly, they get a little head cold, it becomes pnuemonia, and they die. Or, they get a bad shunt infection, and they die. There is little you can do for a parent who has lost a child. And I always want to do something! I listen to them when they need to talk, serve as a go between if needed to help them find doctors and other services. But mostly, I am just there for them. It may not seem like enough, but when my little girl is not doing well, having someone to talk to is a gift from God! Please pray for these kids and thier hurting Mommies and Daddies. Three babies have passed away in the last few months. Thanks all! God Bless! L.W.
-- Edited by LW at 06:42, 2004-09-20
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...... Then they came for the Catholics, and I was a Protestant, so I never said anything. And then, they came for ME, and there was no one left to speak up. Martin Neimoller, German Pastor, WW2
The worst for me is when people get transferred or laid off and they really don't want to relocate, but they have to, to survive. I just feel like screaming when that happens, and sometimes, I do. 
You don't just want "anyone"...you want "them"! 
