I read a blog post today that compared being a pastor to “cake.” The claim (made by a house church advocate) is that “a professional pastor’s job is mostly cake… By “cake,” I’m referring to the fact that his job is easy.”
The basis for this claim is “2.5 years” as a pastor while sitting in Starbucks a lot studying.
Let me just say, for the record, that while there are pieces of pastoring that are HUGELY rewarding and enjoyable, anyone who would claim that the job as a whole is “cake” is speaking foolishly about something he didn’t engage in long enough to really know. 2.5 years may seem like a long time, but it’s not. It’s just long enough to see most of the high points of ministry without many of the lows.
It’s not enough time to see marriage after marriage unravel as you sit with couple after couple. It’s not time enough to walk through an adulterous relationship and the aftermath as you work to bring reconciliation. It’s not time enough to see the ebb and flow of multiple people’s faith and feel the weight of their walk with God and your responsibility to them. It’s not long enough to make disciples. It’s not long enough to try and do all these things while also equipping people for mission and ministry, encouraging the broken, exhorting the faithful, correcting and teaching the immature and trying to maintain a growing relationship with God yourself. And it’s not long enough to know that the half-assed way you are doing it is not necessarily how thousands and thousands of others who are literally pouring themselves out on behalf of the Gospel, their congregations and their neighbors/neighborhoods are doing it.
Cake? Not by a long shot.
I get the whole bi-vocational pastor thing. After all, I now am one.
But those in the house church movement seem to denigrate what they should be affirming. Just because you have chosen a different way doesn’t invalidate the way others have felt called to go. And your consistent appeal to Paul in his bi-vocationality is both tiresome and misguided.
Paul was not a local pastor. He was an itinerant evangelist/apostle who helped start churches where there were none. As such he worked a job rather than ask for support from those who were hearing the Gospel for the first time. But he also consistently maintained his right and the right of those in full-time ministry to earn their support from that ministry and so be freed into it fully. (1 Cor 9:14)
Are there lazy pastors who are gaming the system? Sure. Show me a job that isn’t true of.
But the vast majority of pastors are in full time ministry for different reasons, and to suggest otherwise is hugely insulting.
This article was sent to me with a question I wholeheartedly agree with: “Why are house church guys so consistently obnoxious?”
oy.
first of all… not entirely comfortable with the title of your post, but that’s just a side issue.
Second – I’m avoiding the comments section of the original article, because it’s a battle I really don’t want to get into for my own sanity.
I do want to make mention of this though… he says “Much of a pastor’s time involves studying and teaching.”
To which I would say: You’re doing it wrong.
Bob, I completely agree with your assessment of Eric’s post about the pastoral vocation being cake. He’s off base, leaning on too little experience, and placing his experience as more valid than other’s experiences.
At the same time, you seem to lump all “house church guys” into the same basket. As one that many would consider to be in the house church stream, I affirm and support all of my full time vocational friends, and it’s not out of the question for me to be in that group again down the road. I”m currently walking down the road I feel compelled to be on, that’s all. Please do engage with Eric and his specific post on this subject, but please don’t sweep us all under the rug with generalizations.
You say “the vast majority of pastors are in full time ministry for different reasons, and to suggest otherwise is hugely insulting.” And that statement is true of those of us in the house/simple/organic/insert buzzword here stream as well.
Joe- Good point and well taken.
Bob, great post. I’d only add that 2.5 years *is* long enough to know that shepherding isn’t cake *if* the person is actually shepherding (in the ways you mentioned and more). 2.5 years is plenty long to feel the appropriate 2 Cor. 11:28 anxiety, given that the pastor has the 1 Peter 5:2-3 obedience.
I probably should have emailed that to you Bob, instead of a public comment. Over several years, I’ve learned from and agree with about 10,000-ish things you’ve written, so this 1 thing is pretty inconsequential. Thanks for your hard work!
Thanks for the post. I’ve heard the “he only works one day a week” comment and sometimes you wonder if people know what it’s like to be on call 24-7. Holidays, vacations, doesn’t matter, you have to be available. It’s a joy, responsibility, & sometimes draining in a physical, emotional, & spiritual way.
The only thing I would say is, 2.5 years is plenty enough time to do what you are talking about. Our church is 2 years and 3 months old and we have walked through all the things you have talked about. Crumbling marriages, adultery, etc.
What I think is the real issue with this particular person is they just aren’t a real pastor. A lot of guys are good with just teaching but they don’t build relationships or love on people. They don’t know what it’s like to be there for people. It seems to me, this person just doesn’t know what it’s like to work and really be “in the ministry.” They are just a hired hand who wants to preach or whatever they are in it for.
Again, thanks for posting.
You are all correct. 2.5 years IS long enough to feel all of that. I think we were extraordinarily blessed NOT to have much of an uphill climb the first few years of our church plant. Though I will say I remember well feeling the weight of it all. It’s taken me 8 years, in fact, to get to a place where I can say I am consistently placing that weight where it belongs- on the shoulders of Jesus.
I wrote this in haste and a bit miffed, so probably should have self-moderated a bit more.
But I also will say that while I probably should have said “most” house church guys, it is true… in just about all my reactions with house church leaders, they almost always seem to come from a place of de-legitimizing the ministry of others whose models they don’t agree with.
Not say I haven’t done some of that myself, but I’m trying to grow up a bit in that respect. I’d urge house church advocates to maybe do some of that as well…
First I don’t think time spent in ministry – full or part time, bi-vocational, paid or volunteer, lay or ordained – has any relevance upon a person’s ability to experience those things you assume 2 ½ years is not long enough to experience, nor their ability to comment upon the experience. (2 ½ years isn’t long enough to disciple someone? Good thing Jesus spent that extra 6 months with his disciples.)
Second – I think what annoys people is when they give their money to a minister and then they see that minister doing things, buying things, and going on trips to places that they themselves would also like to enjoy, but don’t have the time to do, or the money to afford . When a person takes support from others they will be placed under a scrutiny that others may never be subject to. As a result congregants see their pastors hanging out in coffee shops etc. and think boy that pastor has a cake job.
Instead of complaining I give support to those I believe are being good stewards of the resources they have – which includes time and resources. And by the way since I don’t have unlimited resources myself there are many people I’d like to support that I can’t. (Also, this is not a personal attack on you, or your ministry.)
Third – I agree that pastors do difficult and very valuable work.
That said – It would be very nice if pastors would admit that even if they work hard and do difficult work, their job comes with many perks that are very nice. Being a pastor, especially at a church with ample resources, is a great job for those who are gifted at it and many aspects of the job could be described as cake. Just because a job requires much hard work does not mean that it does not also have many aspects to it that are cake. Professional athletes work very hard and their jobs include much cake.
So, let’s stop complaining – that’s not going change anyone’s mind; it just pisses people off more. Let’s just admit that for those gifted to do the work, being a pastor is a wonderful and rewarding job, which even included some cake. Let’s remember that everyone has to deal with emotional distress, and all Christians have to find time to study, pray, disciple and fellowship and then most of them also have to working 40 or so hours a week doing something they may not enjoy or find much fulfillment in. So let’s admit when we are fortunate and be thankful for the people who help give us the ability to perform such fulfilling work. (Unless we are bi-vocational pastors who make all our own money than we don’t have to thank, or answer to anyone. Then if someone says you have a cake job you can just say screw you – just kidding.)
Bob, thanks for these words. The rewards of ministry are many and the heartache is sometimes overwhelming. It’s good to disabuse people of such poor perceptions.
Bob, Thank you. This is strangely affirming.
But…
I want to ask a favor… could you please put a comma after “Cake” in your title. I really don’t want to cake your ass.
No- you are reading that correctly
I knew better, but commented anyhow.
Apparently it is unfair for me to say “If done right, pastoring is messy, heart breaking, and even dangerous work” but completely within bounds to write off the hard work and sacrifices made by pastors as cake.
He can have his cake.