Someone Told Me I Wasn’t a Pastor Anymore

Last week, someone informed me that because I no longer received a paycheck from the church, I was no longer a pastor.

And I guess in the broadest sense of things, that’s right.  Katie and I have been searching for the right church for a long time now – and I haven’t received a paycheck from the church during that entire time.  So if receiving a paycheck defines a call….then I guess I am no longer a pastor.

But I happen to believe being a pastor is more about a call and less about a job.

Being a pastor means taking the middle-of-the-night phone calls of despair.  Yep….still do that.

Being a pastor means having hard conversations with people who ‘don’t wanna hear it.’   Check.

Being a pastor means helping folks see Jesus better, understand Him more completely, love Him better.  Ummmm…..yes.

Right now, my paycheck is illusive.  That doesn’t make me a magician.  (Although, sometimes when all the bills are paid, I do wonder if that might be the next career path for me!)

I am a pastor.  And whether or not I ever see another paycheck from a church, I will always be that.  God created me with that heart.  Ministry is NOT just a job….unless it is.  And if it is, I say to you — you know you can make a lot more money with a lot less heart-ache doing something else, right?

If you’re a pastor -BE THAT – in whatever context (and with whatever paycheck) you find yourself.