Finishing strong in ministry (4)

The fourth issue you find among pastors who quit the ministry is this: They teach others how to build strong families without necessarily knowing how to build one themselves. Or they’re not willing to pay the price to do it, and eventually it becomes a problem. The greatest sermon you will ever preach is at home! Pastors’ wives can slip into despair and depression because they feel like the ministry robs them of all their husband’s time and attention. Their neglected children get tired of hearing, “I’m doing this for the Lord,” so they rebel against God and the church and act out in ways that embarrass the parent who has no time for them. Your wife and children should always be able to reach you. If the church takes up seven days out of your week, it’s not the church’s fault—it’s yours! You need to start making changes! And if you think this is a phenomenon of living in the twenty-first century, think again. Read the stories of leaders like David and Samuel, and you discover it’s possible to succeed on the job yet fail miserably on the home front. Too many preachers value the approval of their peers more than the love and respect of their families. Bear in mind that you won’t always be the pastor, but you will always be the husband of your wife and the father of your children. So be there when they need you—and they will be there when you need them.