-Means that people may drop by your house (or call) at any given hour. We’ve only gotten a midnight call maybe one time, but there was one time somebody stopped by and we were NOT in the mood for visitors, so we quickly ducked and crawled back to the bedroom where we hid. I know! We are SO BAD!
-Means that you better be nice to everyone, because you never know who knows you – even if you don’t know them! (That driver you just screamed at – yeah, they visited the church last week!)
-Means that everyone watches your children for the slightest misbehavior, but you don’t care because they are KIDS, people! You let them be who they are.
-Means that your children may get overwhelmed by all the people who want to touch them and hug them, so you don’t make them go to every single thing.
-Means that sometimes it is fun to hide out in the nursing mothers room and lock the door, and then just watch people milling about outside the room with no clue you are in there ☺
-Means that you know ALL the nice hiding places in the church if there’s ever a person you want to avoid ☺
-Means that there will be some nights you feel like a single mom, because your husband is gone AGAIN, but then you feel convicted because you have nothing to complain about. You are not a military wife or anything (well, in a different military)…
-Means that there will be “needy” people who try to suck the life out of you, and you have to be really good at setting boundaries.
-That when you’re husband is having a bad day, someone may come and complain to him about yet another thing he’s not doing and you need to be able to throw open your arms when he comes home.
But it also means…
But it also means…
-There are amazing blessings that come with the territory – emotionally, spiritually, and materially. Some people are so loving and giving it is unbelievable.
-His schedule is so flexible, he can be there for (almost) everything.
-You have the opportunity to serve the people in the church which is very rewarding.
-You are often showered with wonderful food, especially at Christmas or after you have a baby.
-Your kids are growing up with a built-in “family.”
-Some people may even offer to watch your children for FREE! (My favorite)
-You get lots of hugs on Sunday mornings
-You have the opportunity to see and help people grow spiritually
Because I am also a pastor, I could write a whole separate post about that – “What it’s like to be a Pastor who is married to a Pastor,” but I’ll wait on that for now…
This post came about because I have noticed that the craziest things happen before a “Big Day” (in this case, Sunday). Martin was scheduled to preach at both services AND lead worship for those services (which happens only a few times a year). He had slightly hurt his back a few weeks ago, but this Sunday morning, at around 4am, he woke up yelling out in pain. I’ve never seen the man in so much pain, and he seems to have a pretty big pain tolerance. His back was hurting him so bad he couldn’t move. I tried massaging it, putting Ben-Gay on it, putting heat packs on it, etc… It was not making it any better. He knew that he could not go to church in four hours if this did not get better FAST. We talked about going to the ER but knew they would make him wait for hours and then just give him a muscle relaxer or something.
The only thing I knew to do was to call my old chiropractor’s office (who I hadn’t seen in two years) and see if they do emergency appointments. When I called, a message said that if you had an emergency, to press “0” and the doctor would call you back within 5 minutes. I pressed “0” and then had second thoughts and hung up after it rang about 4 times. I went back to report to Martin what I had done and if I really needed to do it, and he said yes. I called again. “Um, hi doctor, I haven’t seen you in 2 years, and I’m so sorry for calling you at 4am, but my husband is in horrible pain and he is a pastor and has to be at church in 4 hours. We don’t know what to do…” After 45 minutes, he called back very sleepily. I felt SO bad. “I’m sorry I called so early.” “Yes, it is VERY early,” he replied, sounding annoyed. I went on to explain. To make a long story short, he ended up talking to Martin and told Martin to come in right then. So at 5am, Martin left and had an emergency appt. for about an hour. He said the doctor was amazing. He was kind, took x-rays, treated him in a few different ways, gave him a back brace, and they even had a good conversation about church and the Bible. (The chiropractor is a Christian).
Martin went to church, was on time, and was able to lead worship and preach with minimal pain. He went back to see the chiropractor yesterday and found out that ALL of his treatments will be FREE, because they have a policy to treat clergy-members for free. We are just so thankful. Another adventure on a Sunday morning, but God was watching out for us.
Because I am also a pastor, I could write a whole separate post about that – “What it’s like to be a Pastor who is married to a Pastor,” but I’ll wait on that for now…
This post came about because I have noticed that the craziest things happen before a “Big Day” (in this case, Sunday). Martin was scheduled to preach at both services AND lead worship for those services (which happens only a few times a year). He had slightly hurt his back a few weeks ago, but this Sunday morning, at around 4am, he woke up yelling out in pain. I’ve never seen the man in so much pain, and he seems to have a pretty big pain tolerance. His back was hurting him so bad he couldn’t move. I tried massaging it, putting Ben-Gay on it, putting heat packs on it, etc… It was not making it any better. He knew that he could not go to church in four hours if this did not get better FAST. We talked about going to the ER but knew they would make him wait for hours and then just give him a muscle relaxer or something.
The only thing I knew to do was to call my old chiropractor’s office (who I hadn’t seen in two years) and see if they do emergency appointments. When I called, a message said that if you had an emergency, to press “0” and the doctor would call you back within 5 minutes. I pressed “0” and then had second thoughts and hung up after it rang about 4 times. I went back to report to Martin what I had done and if I really needed to do it, and he said yes. I called again. “Um, hi doctor, I haven’t seen you in 2 years, and I’m so sorry for calling you at 4am, but my husband is in horrible pain and he is a pastor and has to be at church in 4 hours. We don’t know what to do…” After 45 minutes, he called back very sleepily. I felt SO bad. “I’m sorry I called so early.” “Yes, it is VERY early,” he replied, sounding annoyed. I went on to explain. To make a long story short, he ended up talking to Martin and told Martin to come in right then. So at 5am, Martin left and had an emergency appt. for about an hour. He said the doctor was amazing. He was kind, took x-rays, treated him in a few different ways, gave him a back brace, and they even had a good conversation about church and the Bible. (The chiropractor is a Christian).
Martin went to church, was on time, and was able to lead worship and preach with minimal pain. He went back to see the chiropractor yesterday and found out that ALL of his treatments will be FREE, because they have a policy to treat clergy-members for free. We are just so thankful. Another adventure on a Sunday morning, but God was watching out for us.
I think you are my soul sister! Finally there is another PW who hides from people... lol! :) I love the story about the chiropracter too. God is so good to provide for us!
ReplyDelete