Page 14 - Pastoral Ministries -Student Textbook

Concluding Thoughts

The pastorate is a demanding job and has unique requirements as its prerequisites. Not everybody can be a
pastor – only those who meet the biblical requirements, sense the call of God on their lives, and have the
appropriate gifts needed to make the office a success. Those who lack any of those may find the pastorate
distasteful and disastrous for them. However, those who heed a genuine call from God, examine their lives, and
find that they meet the biblical, subjective, and objective criteria may be exceedingly blessed in ministry. In this
regards, the pastorate may be most rewarding and satisfying. There is no higher calling than the pastorate.

The Pastor’s Personal Life and Study Habits

A pastor’s wife once described her life in the parsonage as “life in the fishbowl.” Of all
the professions, the pastorate may be the least private of all. Not only is a pastor on
call twenty-four hours a day, his life is under close surveillance by members of his
congregation and community. Because the pastor is under such close observation, he
more than any other professional person, needs to work hard to assure that he has
both a private family life and a private personal life. What are a pastor’s obligations to
himself?

Personal Life

Despite the fact that the pastor is a public figure, he is also an individual with his own physical, psychological,
spiritual, and emotional needs. Because of the excessive demands that sometimes greet him in his professional
life, often it is easy for him to become absorbed in his tasks and ignore those important personal needs. As a
result little by little he may lose the vitality and freshness with which he began his work, and eventually he may
experience burnout.

To help prevent burnout, the wise pastor should:

• Schedule a day off each week

• Schedule an occasional weekend away from the church and out of the pulpit

• Have an accountability partner

• Have a daily quiet time with the Lord

Study Life

Integral to any ministry that can be considered truly successful is pulpit exposition of superior quality, the
feeding of the people on God’s Word. In order to feed his people, a pastor must be full of God’s Word himself,
and he must be studying continually, seeking ways to interpret and apply God’s Word to the lives of his people.
To know God’s Word is to spend time in God’s Word.

The following represent suggestions for sermon preparation:

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