I was just looking at a new picture of my 14-year old daughter. It seems that just yesterday my wife and I brought her home to our two-bedroom apartment. In reality, it was 1994. As I consider how quickly she is growing and as I watch her develop into a young adult, the reality that she will soon be off to college, that she will soon begin her own family, smacks me abruptly in the face.

My time with her is short. Does she know how much I love her? Will she serve God with her life? Will she marry a godly man who loves the Lord and desires to raise children that will serve God, too? Too many questions, too little time.
 
As a parent and a pastor, sometimes life goes faster than I want it to. How about you? When you have time to be at home, do you just want to relax, prop your feet up, and find some mindless activity? I empathize. Even so, ministry does not end at our front door. While we minister to the congregation, who ministers to our wives and children?

What approaches have you found helpful as you “press on” in ministry to both your members and your family? Do we need to just buckle down? Or must some needs be ignored? Will we find our day of rest only when we all get to heaven? Or . . . ?

We’d love to hear from you! The newer pastors out there would appreciate thoughts and observations from those with more experience. Those with experience who still struggle (don’t we all!) will benefit from the encouragement to think this through one more time. Comment! And let’s get the dialog going. (You need not sign your name.)

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