The Marathon

I've never run a marathon but I ate plenty of the candy bars that had that name when I was a kid. Do you remember the long, twisted, chocolate-coated caramel? It was about a foot long! If they had just found a way to put nuts in it, it would have been the most awesome-est candy bar ever. As it was, it was pretty good.

My interest in candy bars probably explains why I've never run a marathon.

I browse through a few blogs each week to glean nuggets of news, perspective, and ideas. Michael Lewis (@Pastor4pastors) works for the North American Mission Board (@NAMB_SBC) with responsibility for encouraging pastors. He does a good job. His post from last Friday says, "Ministry is not a hundred yard dash, but it is a marathon to be run with endurance."

I can run a hundred yards. Takes me about a minute but I can do it. But the 26.2 miles of a marathon course takes more than a dash. More training. More stamina. More energy. More determination. More.

Ministry takes more than I thought it would when I started. Preachers just work two days a week, right? And those are half-days.

We may preach for a total of 2 hours or so a week but that doesn't include the preparation time. And most pastors do more than preach. We make hospital visits, we visit shut-ins, we meet with committees, we're on the phone with members who complain, we counsel those with life issues, we write notes or send email to encourage members, we update church's social media and website, we prepare and print the bulletins for Sunday's service. And we have a family.

Some ministers have jobs away from the church.

THIS WEEK (the dash) is tough for a minister, much less the entire lifetime of ministry (the marathon). Too many men and women who start in ministry quit before too long. They get tired of it, distracted from it, bored with it. There are probably dozens of reasons a person is willing to run a dash rather the marathon of ministry.

Runners in a marathon don't do it alone. They have people who train with them and run the race with them. They have people along the route encouraging them. They have event personnel at intervals on the route providing nutrition. Maybe a man can train for and run a marathon all alone but surely it's better to do it with these others I've mentioned.

Pastors need the influence of others as they run the marathon of ministry. Someone to train with. Someone to run with. Someone to encourage them. Someone to support and refresh them. Yes, God does all that but God also uses people to do all that.

I'll be honest with you: I've not been the best at surrounding myself with that kind of support. And I'm reluctant to jump in and support others - I blame it on being an introvert. That's not good for any of us.

If you are a minister, you need folks around you to help you. Do you have them? Are these good and beneficial relationships? Are they mutually beneficial relationships? Iron sharpens iron. Three strands are better than one or two. Jesus sent his disciples out in pairs for a reason: they needed each other to be most effective. I guess that's the same for us, don't you?

If you aren't a minister, you can (and should) be part of the support system every minister needs. He needs friends and accountability partners and golf buddies. He needs to talk about current events while drinking coffee and the local cafe. He needs to coach third-graders in soccer. He'll be a better pastor with you alongside him. He'll be much more likely to finish the ministry marathon.