Is Ministry a Chore?

There are moments in doing ministry that I feel everything I do is for nothing. What is the point of doing ministry when it seems that all I receive back from ministry is stress?

I have not been in full-time ministry for long. Perhaps at most just over three years. And one thing that I have learned is that ministry can become a chore. It is very easy for us as pastors to get caught up in the "doing" of ministry and forget to "live" ministry. Did God create work for man in order to cause stress in man's life? I think not. "The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it" (Genesis 2:15). From the beginning God saw it as good for the man to work. That work did not become a chore until man made it a chore.

Ecclesiastes 2:17-27 gives an example of viewing work as a chore or as a joy. Yes, we as pastors have a vocation in ministry, but does that vocation have to be a chore or do we make it a chore? In my opinion, we make it a chore just as Adam did in the Garden. Pastors have an opportunity to serve God through our work. The joy is not in the work, but who we are doing the work for.

Next time something in ministry comes up that is tedious (such as making phone calls or planning the next few service orders or talking for a hour with someone while your sermon needs to be finished, etc.) remember that God calls us to be faithful and obey his call to show his glory to others, not spend 30 hours a week on administrative things. Our vocation should not be a chore. If it is then perhaps we need to change our point of view. Work for the glory of God, not the glory of man. In that you will find the ultimate satisfaction. (Even when we are doing tedious things.)