What Do Ministers Do?

It seems to me that most ministers don't work like most people do. I'm not saying they don't do enough work; I'm talking about their work environment. Most ministers I know work by themselves, or maybe with a secretary, a few on a staff.

I work out of my home which creates a whole different environment. Many of the guys (and a few women) work in country churches so their offices are in the middle of nowhere. Even the staff guys seem to get A LOT of alone time. Is this good? We might say it gives us more time and quiet to pray and study, but I suspect a lot of that goes out the door to human nature and nobody watching.

Most offices are open and many of the people who frequent them are "needy" people and aren't always the best use of the pastor's time. Leaders need much more time than I suspect they get from their pastors. "Visit the sick, counsel the troubled, ..." Accomplish little.

Most people work with at least someone in sight. At IBM, I shared an office. At Solomon Software, we all had cubes. There wasn't any privacy except by arrangement. At Findlay Computer, we all just worked together. For a while, I had a space upstairs. It made some sense since I started programming up there, but I wouldn't say I was more productive.

I've started sharing this home office with Gil Rowe a couple days a week. That has been good. Being that I've worked alone for 7+ years, it is definitely an adjustment. But someone to joke with, pray with, share life with is healthy. I would say more pastors would be better off with this kind of environment and less "privacy."

Privacy can also get you into a load of trouble, especially with the internet. That is a whole other subject, but we need to start treating our pastors as human beings and monitor their internet interactions just as we would in any other business environment. They would welcome that as it would eliminate much temptation. "But surely a pastor can be trusted..."

Pastors need to get out more.