5 Reasons Pastors (or anyone else) Should Not Threaten to Quit

"I quit!"
"I'm not doing this anymore."
"You can find someone else to take care of this!"


We've all been there.  We have either been so stressed, frustrated or both and we just wanted to scream at the top of our lungs the old song title, "Take this job and shove it!"  Perhaps quitting is not necessarily a bad thing, as long as it is done with a lot of prayer, preparation and in a loving a graceful way.  But, for those of you (and me!) who have been frustrated enough to say it, without meaning it, here are 5 reasons you might want to rethink letting those words leave your mouth.




5) People Resent It
           Depending on how close you are with someone, and whether or not that person is your boss, you may be able to get away with it once or twice. But eventually, those working with you are going to resent your continued threats.  You may not mean it. You may simply be venting, but eventually those you continue to threaten with this, will grow weary of hearing you complain. Be a fixer, not a griper.  Don't be that person who gives off the appearance of one who throws in the towel when things get tough.  If you're not a quitter, don't make yourself sound like one. 



4) Others Aren't Doing It
          Those people you keep saying this to are struggling as well. No one is always happy with their job. No one is always happy in their volunteer situation.  Face it, no one is always happy, period.  However, for those that hear you "quit" every time things get tough, they might be growing tired of hearing it because while they feel the same way at times, they are working to overcome that feeling. If you're not careful, someone might tell you to either "grow up" or "go ahead and quit."


3) It is the Wrong Response
           If you are a Christian, you are by definition, an overcomer.  You are one who rises up on the wings of eagles. You stand tall above the mountains and you face those giants with nothing more than a sling and a stone.  Because of Christ in you, there is nothing that can defeat you permanently.  Not even your difficult circumstances. However, if quitting is always your first response (even if you don't really mean it when you say it) it takes the place of where your thoughts should be, and that is on the way Jesus would handle it.  Getting mad, frustrated, or upset are normal and often times righteous emotions.  Threatening to take your ball and go home because you didn't get your way, is not. If you continue to do this, you might need to invest in a "crying room," that is, if you are not on a campus that offers them already.

2) It is Childish
            As an ambassador of Christ, we are called to react to struggles with faith and courage.  Paul clearly told us that we are not to act like children, because we are maturing Christians who must live out our faith in Christ every day.  If others are watching your example and you threaten to jump ship when things get tough or your feelings get hurt, what kind of example are you setting?


1) It's Manipulative
           I often wonder if we, as Christians, realize how many times we are being manipulative when we want to get our way.  This is a sobering thought, but any time we try to influence someone else by using guilt, threats, etc we are lowering ourselves to the tactics of the enemy. We cannot do that if we are ambassadors of Jesus.

I have struggled with this in my years and if you are struggling, it's time to make a change! What are some reasons you have for not making idle threats?

5 Things Your Pastor May Be Doing While You Sleep

Do you ever wonder "just what does my pastor do, anyway?"   It is okay, not only am I not offended by that question, I also once asked it myself.  For most of the congregation, seeing the pastor is limited to one or two hours per week and in the case of emergencies.  When this happens, it is not uncommon for people to begin questioning the role, purpose or time that the pastor spends doing, "God knows what!"

From my personal experience, and the experience of my colleagues, here are some things your pastor may be doing, while you sleep!


5) Praying

This may seem obvious, but understand that there are many times when I am up either late or early talking to God. Usually when I am up late doing this, I am doing it on behalf of someone else. Either a sick person, a suffering family, or the church as a whole.  When I am up late talking to God, it's because I can't sleep and when I can't sleep, it may be due to some issue or problem that is weighing on me, either personally or on behalf of others.

4) Visiting

You might be wondering, "who would my pastor be visiting while I am sleeping?"  I would venture to say that more often than not if your pastor is visiting someone late, it is either at a hospital, hospice, or the bed of someone who is about to die. I can't tell you the many times I have gotten up from dinner because the phone rang, kissed my wife and kids goodbye and ran off to the hospital or somebody's home in an emergency.  Your pastor's family will most likely understand this demand on him, but don't be fooled into thinking that it doesn't cost him valuable time with them.  If his family doesn't understand, it may cost him more than you would ever imagine.

3) Reading

I used to believe that being a full-time vocational pastor meant I would have countless hours to sit in my office and read. That is usually not the case.  There are times that I can shut my door and enjoy a good book that helps me become a better pastor, leader, preacher, teacher, scholar, etc.  However, I can't remember the last time I read, at the office, uninterrupted and don't try and do it a coffee shop or restaurant in a small town.  That is an invitation for interruption.  No, the majority of my seminary work (before I graduated), Bible reading, personal development, etc happens after my family has fallen asleep for the night.  Your pastor may be up for hours, enjoying the quiet time that he finally has to sit down and grow, himself.


 2) Thinking

After everyone is asleep and the house is quiet, I tend to do a lot of thinking.  I think about the day today and the day tomorrow. I think about all the things I did wrong and how I could go about them a different way. I think about what is coming in the days, weeks and even months to come. I think about sermons, illustrations, families, tragedies, celebrations, birthdays, the pile on my desk, my family, am I being a good husband, father, friend, the members who are mad with me and the members who are not, and the list goes on and on.  You see, just like many of you, there isn't time to think about all of this during the day, so it gets pushed to the night.


1) Supporting Friends

The statistics are staggeringly discouraging when you look at the number of pastors who either leave the ministry altogether.  Then there are those whose lives fall apart because they are unable to juggle and manage the expectations of their church.  Sadly, a high statistic is those who deal with severe depression and even suicide.  It is sad that among the anointed, gifted, called by God, pastors of our nation, so many are under attack from within the four walls they call their second home.  There have been many times that I've been up late either giving support to another pastor or getting it myself.  Being a pastor can be lonely. There aren't many people who will be your friends and if you've done this long enough, you put up walls to protect yourself. 


Don't get me wrong. On my worst day (although I would never admit this on my worst day), being a pastor is a wonderful and rewarding calling. I love what I do and there is no doubt in my mind that God anointed me for this very calling. I also realize that there are many other jobs out there, some of which you don't get paid well, work in horrible conditions, and never know if you're coming home or not (like our law enforcement officers).  Just remember, even though you don't always see what your pastor is doing, chances are, your pastor is carrying on with his duties as if their boss were watching them carefully, because after all, He is always watching.

What are your thoughts?

December 25th: Church or No Church?

As December 25th approaches, a glance at the calendar will remind you that this Christmas falls on a Sunday.  While this may seem exciting for the average church attender, it raises some interesting questions among smaller congregations and can even become a point of contention between local churches.  The question?  "do we have service on Sunday or cancel it?"


At the sound of this, some of you may be appalled!  You might think, "why wouldn't we have church on Christmas? This is perfect!"  However, just as quickly as that thought came to reader's minds, other readers may be thinking something quite opposite. "Whew! One less thing to do on Christmas" or "now we can go visit Aunt Lula Bell without feeling guilty for not going to church."

The problem with this question is that it comes down to preference and not biblical mandate.  Sure, it almost sounds sacrilegious to not have service on Christ's birthday. Well, that is until someone points out that Christ wasn't actually born on December 25th and we are simply celebrating it that day.  It begs the questions, "why can't we celebrate it on Dec 4th, or what about every day all year long?"  You could also get into a discussion about the pagan celebration of the winter solstice and how Christians joined pagan roots with the timing of the celebration, but that's for another day.

On the other side of this issue, at least for me, is the evangelism card. Let's face it, some people only go to church on Christmas and Easter. These people, while perhaps nice enough, are not walking as closely with the Lord as they could (then again, who is?).  If the church doors are closed on Christmas day, does this prevent a possible outreach opportunity for those who only show up twice a year? Perhaps. With the doors open, there is much more potential to reach someone, than with the doors closed.

So what is a church to do?   I believe it comes down to a Romans 14 issue.  It definitely is not a biblical mandated issue.  So the answer must be decided by each individual church's (or denominations) leadership.  That's really all we can say about this without getting caught up in our opinions.

What about the congregations?

Assuming your church is not having services and you aren't traveling or spending time with family, or maybe you are but you want to attend church first, I suggest visiting another church. Despite what some insecure pastors might think, you haven't committed "church adultery" because you were never married to the church. You are the church and the church is married to Christ. Besides, your church is closed that day.

So find a church that is open on December 25th and enjoy celebrating the birth of Christ with like minded saints.

Or,get up that morning and read the Christmas story with your family directly from the inspired Word of God.

Whatever you do this Christmas, make it something that will glorify the King, not divide His children.