Maintaining Boundaries Insures Balance in the Ministry

The duties of a minister are becoming more challenging with each passing year.  It is so easy to find ourselves “stretched” to the point of breaking, being discouraged, having our priorities out of balance, running here and there, affecting our personal and ministry life. Full article can be viewed and printed with Word or PDF formats at the links located at the bottom of this page.

We are called to do a marvelous work but we must maintain certain boundaries or safeguards to insure our productivity as well as maintain a healthy balance in our personal life.  The very nature of our work seems to extend beyond what is deemed reasonable due to expectations of both our members and us.  We can be our own worst enemy by wanting to be everything to everyone.  People will allow us to work to extreme measures.  It is up to us to maintain a healthy balance in our ministry and personal life!  Listed below are some safeguards to consider to making your ministry more effective:

• Reschedule daily activities to include office times, prayer, hospital visits, etc.
• Schedule regular office hours.  This could be mornings, Monday thru Wednesday, or other times that you can meet with church members, counseling, church planning, business-related activity, prayer, sermon preparation or other study time.  Let everyone know that these times will be kept unless there are emergencies that needed to be addressed. 
• If you have a secretary, allow them to help screen non-priority or needless activity that can rob you of your time. 
• Manage your phone time.  Give permission for yourself to not answer every call, every minute of the day.  There is a voice mail option that every phone has.  Please use this as a screening process, prioritizing the most important calls.
• Allow yourself to eat a meal or have family time together without answering the phone.  Most emergencies can be handled minutes later or be checked with your voice mail.  Your family comes first.  
• Schedule personal days off that do not include church activities.  Advise others to manage the activities/duties of the church while you are away.  Remember, you are just as important as your church members.  They do not have their employers calling them every day they are off.  Neither should you.  Educate your people, in love, that you care for their needs but others can help and you need the time off. 
• Avoid non-stop texting.  It can become addictive and allows you to present yourself to be available 24/7. 
• Maintain an active prayer life.  Activities, responsibilities, and other duties of your ministry are important but so is your health and well being. 

These are only a few ideas that can help you better manage your time and eliminate the saying, “Not having enough time in the day to do anything.”  Remember, it is about placing God first, your family (and yourself) second, and your ministry (and your people) third.  If you need further information on time management please visit our website for related articles.  If you need to get away or have any other needs, please contact Pastoral Care, Inc.  Be blessed, Be healthy!

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