This month, I’d like to reflect on some of the privileges and challenges of being a pastor.  I don’t mean privileges, as in special advantages, but privileges, as in being invited into people’s lives.

            I count it a privilege to be invited to be present at both the best and the worst times in people’s lives.  Whether it is being present when somebody takes their last breath, or being invited to bless a newborn baby, both are holy moments.  The same can be said about sitting with a family who has just lost a loved one, or praying for healing beside a hospital bed.  Each one is a holy moment, and a privilege.

            It is also a privilege to baptize people of all ages and to bless those who are affirming their baptism in confirmation.  Witnessing the exchange of marriage vows, and presiding at funerals and burials – these, too, are privileges, and are times when the presence and power of the Holy Spirit are most evident.

            While not all marriages end up being “happily ever after,” I was recently contacted by some couples who were celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary.  I had married them when I was in St. Albert, AB, and it was, once again, a privilege to be included as part of their celebration.

            As a pastor, I sometimes am entrusted with information that needs to be kept in confidence.  This can be both a privilege and a challenge.  The challenge comes when it is something difficult, and the only one to discuss it with is God.  There is also the question of trust, and I pray that I have not betrayed that trust for anybody.  Pastors, unfortunately, can do a lot of damage by proving to be untrustworthy.

            As for challenges, one of the biggest ones is simply finding some sort of work / life balance.  It is frightfully easy to burn out in ministry, and finding ways to recharge and to be renewed spiritually are very important.  Given that a pastor is never actually “finished” work, it is easy to just keep pushing until you can’t push any more.

            A related challenge is rarely having holidays when everybody else does.  In fact, when it comes to Christmas and Easter, pastors usually have more work, not less.  Although people have often asked me if I would be “going home” for Christmas, how happy would the congregation be if their pastor was absent for the Christmas services?

            Meanwhile, people can be both a challenge and a blessing.  Sometimes there are people who demand a lot of time and energy from the pastor, which makes it difficult to have any time and energy left for everybody else.  (And no, I won’t be naming names ????).  Some people are harder to get along with than others, and some people are needier than others.  That’s just the way it is.

            At the same time, I have been privileged to meet many people whom I would count among the saints.  I give thanks for the faithful people who pray for me every day.  I give thanks for the people who strive to be a blessing in everything they do.  I give thanks for the people who faithfully give of their time, talent and treasure to support the ministry of this congregation.  We are, indeed, blessed to be a blessing.

            In Christ,

            Pastor Lynne Hutchison