Jesus and the Three and a Half Year Run
My last blog (Three and One-Half Years: The Perfect Ministry?) was a somewhat tongue-in-cheek tour de farce. In it, I listed some reasons why I (or any other pastor these days) shouldn’t have a ministry similar to that of Jesus.
As I wrote it, I couldn’t help but think some readers would take it the wrong way and begin to pray for my salvation. If that indeed happened, please rest assured. My ending remarks were satirical in nature. They were expressed as such only to make a point. I won’t try to remake that point here, but if you’re one of those of whom I speak, I urge you to go back and read it with a different mindset.
“My thinking may have been skewed.”
Shortly after writing it, it caused me to think about the length of my three turns as a pastor. My first was nine years, my second was four, and my current one is in its twenty-second year. I’ve always strived for an extended tenure thinking that local congregations needed the constancy and stability of a lengthier pastorate.
For the first time ever, it has dawned on me that my thinking may have been skewed. In each place I’ve served, we have seen growth, fruitfulness, and at least a modicum of success (depending upon how one measures success in ministry). If a lengthy tenure equals greater success, my present situation should yield the greatest harvest. I’m still serving in my third appointment, so I can’t fully judge the results yet.
Still, as I compare the three stints, my second stretch far outweighs the other two in terms of pure church growth numbers. This was the one in which I spent the least amount of time.
“I really don’t want to compare myself with Jesus…”
I left that pastorate prematurely because of a personal issue that was draining me emotionally and debilitating my ability to be effective. During the last six months of that four-year period, I was virtually gone (present physically, but mentally checked out). So, in effect, it was a 3½ year run. Coincidence?
I really don’t want to compare myself with Jesus—it’s obviously no contest. But I can’t help noticing a couple similarities when it comes to length of service.
Jesus left by way of death. Even before that, however, he knew he had accomplished all he needed with his group of disciples. I left to take a leave of absence because I was emotionally spent. I just couldn’t function anymore. The handwriting was on the wall, and I would have been foolish stay any longer. Three and one-half years…
As I look back on it, I did what I needed to do in those 3½ years. While Jesus knew when it was time to leave, I did not. Had I not experienced the draining personal issue, I would have undoubtedly stayed a long time. A longer pastorate, at that point, may have been a mistake. The point is debatable for sure. Nevertheless, it seems I was there for exactly the right length of time. (To be continued)
[Dave Zuchelli is a graduate of Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and is currently the pastor of Smith Chapel, in Great Falls, VA.]
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