Fran Trascritti God's Goodness, ministry

Ten Things a Pastor Should Do: #3 Take one or two days off a week, and be sure to take vacations.

When I was younger and new in ministry, I used to brag to myself (and others) that I would work constantly without vacations, days off, or breaks. My goal then was that no one would outwork me in ministry- now I can see that this was such a fleshly, prideful mindset!

Truth is, ministry is hard work. The demands of ministry do not end at 5 pm and then begin again at 9 am. Often, the burdens of ministry are with you all of the time, hanging on your shoulders day and night, weekdays and weekends, during and outside of shadow walkingyour family “time.” There are late night phone calls, as well as emails, Facebook messages, text messages, and visits. The clock never stops for sermon and bible study preparations, and the constant dripping of the C.A.V.E. Dwellers can get on your nerves as well. There’s no surprise that statistics show the average tenure of a pastor to be three to four years. It’s true that there’s a high burn out rate in the ministry.

All that said, let me now be Captain Obvious for a minute: you can’t work all the time and not have time for rest. Rest is very important, even vital for the long term work of ministry. Rest is built into God’s creation, when He rested on the 7th day. Jesus often took time away from the crowds to rest and pray in quiet places (see Mark 6:30-31). We are likewise called to the Sabbath principle, a time of rest from life itself and to time with the Lord (Lev 23:3). Basically put, rest is important to God and it should be important to you.

So take that day off (or sometimes even two). Take that vacation with your family, even being willing to miss two Sundays in a row. Date your wife regularly. Break away from the cell phone, your witty Twitter posts, your snarky Facebook comments. Disconnect from the current routine and reconnect with God and your family. Remember that your relationships with God, your spouse, and your family are your prime importance and calling. After all, once you refresh yourself, you will be much more healthy and ready for the demands of your call to ministry. Now go rest!

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti discipline, ministry

Ten Things a Pastor Should Do: #2- Read God’s Word devotionally

When I was in seminary, I often heard the mantra, “Don’t just read the Bible for the purpose of studying, but instead, read it devotionally.” These words, which were seemingly repeated class after class, stuck into my heart and brain. Can’t say I followed this advice every day, because there have been times when I would inadvertently turn my devotion time into a study time- only to later realize what I had done!

That said, it is vital that a Christian take in the Word of God to speak to his or her heart. Pastors even more so. Reading the Word of God cuts through all the white noise that is around in the world today- the noise of pop culture, the noise of sinful pride, the noise of busyness, even the noise of ministry. When you read the Word devotionally, it is just God, His Word, and you. Devotional ReadingGod is speaking to you through words that flowed from His Spirit, living and active (Heb 4:12), cutting into your heart (Acts 2:37), piercing through your hard shell of your ego (Ps 11:4-5), and refining you as silver is refined in fire (Ps 66:10).

Time with God in the Word is time well spent. While schedules, appointments, meetings, and blocked off time for studying will always be on the calendar, setting aside time each day (even multiple times each day) will help a Christian go through the demands of life and ministry.

There are many examples of great preachers who were devoted to the Word of God. One example is John Wesley, the great preacher and theologian of the 18th century and founder of Methodism, who was certainly no stranger to busyness. In his Preface to Standard Sermons, Wesley wrote this wonderful statement concerning his dedication to the Word of God:

I have thought, I am a creature of a day, passing through life as an arrow through the air. I am a spirit come from God, and returning to God: just hovering over the great gulf; till, a few moments hence, I am no more seen; I drop into an unchangeable eternity! I want to know one thing,—the way to heaven; how to land safe on that happy shore. God himself has condescended to teach me the way. For this very end He came from heaven. He hath written it down in a book. O give me that book! At any price, give me the book of God! I have it: here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be homo unius libri (a man of one book). Here then I am, far from the busy ways of men. I sit down alone; only God is here. In His presence I open, I read His book; for this end, to find the way to heaven. Is there a doubt concerning the meaning of what I read? Does anything appear dark or intricate? I lift up my heart to the Father of Lights:—“Lord, is it not Thy word, ‘if any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God?’ Thou givest liberally, and upbraidest not. Thou hast said, ‘if any be willing to do Thy will, he shall know.’ I am willing to do, let me know Thy will.

May it be an example to us all as we read God’s Word with hearts ready to be in tune with God and His Spirit. Set aside time to read, take it in, and let God speak to your heart as you seek to do His will.

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti discipline, ministry

Ten Things a Pastor Should Do to Stay Healthy and Effective

fran and teresaI have been in ministry for twenty plus years (yikes!), either serving on staff or as a senior pastor, and I will admit that through this journey, I have blown it many times. However, I am thrilled that God has given me grace over the years. One of my main struggles has been to manage myself and to avoid burnout. Boy, have I learned! That said, I thought that I would put together a top ten list of things a pastor should and could do to stay healthy and effective, listed in no particular order. I hope it helps:

  1. Pray fervently– never underestimate the need to pray and the power of prayer.
  2. Read God’s Word devotionally– don’t just read for studying purposes, read to take in the Word of God to speak to your heart.
  3. Take one or two days off a week, and be sure to take vacations. And don’t apologize for it, you need time away.
  4. Set healthy boundaries. Cell phones should go off at a certain time. Email and texts can wait. Your kids and spouse should not see your face in front of an electronic device more than they see your face in front of them.
  5. Exercise three times a week, at least. It keeps you in shape and lowers stress.
  6. Eat healthy. Fast food meals catch up to you fast.
  7. Get in a Bible study in which you are not the teacher. You need to learn and grow from a small group, too. I go to a community men’s study and go out of my way to be “one of the guys.”
  8. Date. I mean your spouse. Do it monthly.
  9. Go to special events. If you have kids or grandkids, go to their games, plays, etc. And don’t go as a pastor and talk to others- focus on them as a parent or grandparent.
  10. Have an accountability partner. Find another pastor, preferably outside of your denomination. I have had men in my past who I had as confidants, and it was so rich- and by the way, we never spoke about the nonessentials of theology.

I will be commenting over the next few weeks on each point, but in the meantime, I’d love to hear your comments on all of this, and if you think that there are other things I didn’t write about…

Thoughts?

Fran

Fran Trascritti Uncategorized

One way to stay encouraged: an encouragement drawer!

Everyone goes through ups and downs in life. Sometimes we feel like we’re on a mountain top, looking around in seeing that everything is going right. However, there’s also times when we feel like we are in the lowest of the lows, the valleys, and in those times it seems like nothing can go right!

We can all identify with both perspectives in various degrees, but for now I’d like to speak to the second situation, the valleys of life. No one is immune from being down about our circumstances. When we look at Scripture, we can see many examples of God’s people getting discouraged about things going on around them. Elijah is one example that comes to mind, when he felt as if no one was following God and instead was following the false god, Baal. The Apostle Paul at one point in his ministry was deserted by everyone, and in spite of all of the work that he had done, he felt as if he had almost no one that he could turn to for support in time of need (see 2 Timothy). The point is, that no matter how you serve the Lord, He has called you to ministry. However, sometimes ministry and life’s struggles can be discouraging. So how do we stay encouraged and focused on the Lord?

Of course, we know the need to be in the Word and in prayer. Here’s an additional help: as a pastor, I got some good advice from a member a few years ago to keep an encouragement drawer. An encouragement drawer is just that- a place to store notes, cards, drawings, and other forms of encouragement from some of God’s people. When I get down or discouraged, I open up my encouragement drawer and remind myself that first, God is always with me, and second, God’s people love and appreciate me. Having an encouragement drawer is a visual reminder of the love that God has for me.

Today, my drawer has encouragement from people who have served together with me over the years. Some of these people are now with the Lord. Others have moved away to other places. But one thing is sure, their encouragement still lives on today. Fellow Christian and especially pastors, let me wholeheartedly urge you to you get an encouragement drawer. I pray that it will help you as God has allowed it to help me!

Romans 15:5-6, “May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”