by “Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who minister by night in the house of the Lord.
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord.May the Lord bless you from Zion, he who is the Maker of heaven and earth.” Psalm 134:1-3
I know that the psalmist didn’t have part-time or bi-vocationals pastors in mind when he wrote, but when I read it last week, it seemed to fit so well.
I am a pastor who ministers “by night in the house of the Lord;” I work five days a week as a public school teacher and come into the office twice a week to get work done, after school, and then serve on Sunday’s and Wednesday’s.
I love what I do, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that it’s incredibly frustrating. I’m doing two jobs (teaching and pastoring) that really should only be attempted full-time because both require so much mental (lesson-planning, sermon prep, research, reading, writing, etc.), emotional (counseling—big part of both jobs), and physical (pacing, walking, standing, lecturing/preaching) effort. And yet, here I am.
I don’t know how much longer I’ll keep doing both, but I do know that God blesses (and will continue to bless) all who serve Him, both now and into eternity.