I hear all the time that pastors are over-worked.

Yet most pastors I know have the largest libraries I know of.

Is reading work?

Most pastors I know are also fat or bordering on it (I'm "bulky" myself). ....And a few pastors I know have soft, girly hands that do not have callouses.

Also, most spend a large portion of their time reading and studying the Bible - things that most devoted laymen do AFTER work. Is studying Scripture work? Do we need a break from it?


When in the military I did 12-hour shifts. Then read the Scriptures after work. I know many others who work secular jobs and then fit in their reading and studying at night (instead of sleeping 8 hours per night they sleep 6 hours per night in order to study 2).

Right now, the "ministry" I am in is supported by a base of donors who do stuff like lift drywall or work at Walmart for 10 hours per day to help support me.

Much of my recent "ministry" has been home-based due to family sickness. Many pastors I know get to eat all 3 meals with family and only go to a separate office to actuallly get away from family so that they will not be interrupted (i.e. they have to make efforts to work).


Plus, most folks in the US would also probably state that they, too, are over-worked? Why should we feel sorry for pastors who are in the same lot as the rest of Americans who often work 60 hour weeks?




So, my questions:

--Are we over-worked?
--How do we know we are over-worked?
---Can and should we slow down?
---How do we slow down without looking lazy? Especially when the members of our churches work 60 hour work weeks and then come hear us on Sundays?
--How do we balance a "calling" and an "all-consuming passion" with rest and relaxation?
--How do we gauge productivity, hours in office and other measurements of how much we work, which seem necesary pre-requisites to proving that we are actually over-worked?


And, if we are not over-worked, what about ministry burnout and depression?

Why is the ministry so much more stressful than "normal jobs"?

Ministry is the hardest thing I have ever done, even if it is physically easy?

Any thoughts?

__________________
Pergamum


"If a commission by an earthly king is considered a honor, how can a commission by a Heavenly King be considered a sacrifice?"
-- David Livingstone