Bro. Tim Preaching Tonight / Vacation and Ministry Trips
God has worked so much in Bro. Tim’s life these past few years, and I am so thankful for his spirit to grow and serve our church. After just one Sunday, he could tell already that we value the preaching of God’s Word around here, and he loves to preach—what a perfect fit!
My wife and I and a couple of Rooted men are hiking in Yosemite this week, so we are praying with you and participating online for this service. I am thankful for the technology to still be connected to our home church, and to be able to still be a part of Bro. Tim’s first preaching service here!
When we lay out our calendar, we are careful with everything we add, and this year, God has allowed us to have a mix of both ministry trips and family trips. We were gone for a Wednesday back in February for the GIBF preaching meeting that we attended in Phoenix, and then in January for the church planting conference. Before that, in October of last year we held the California Church Planting emphasis at Heartland Baptist Bible College, and in September I missed a Wednesday for a pastor’s Sharpening Week. Each of these trips has brought immense value to me personally and has been an extension of our ministry outside of our church. Through reaching outward, I believe God has blessed us inwardly from it, too.
I grew up taking an annual family vacation, and I believe every family should spend some kind of intentional time together. We carve out time to do several day-trips throughout the year, although our generous bylaws allow for much more vacation time than we typically take. Thank you, church, for valuing our family time, too. We enjoyed a family trip to Mexico last April that we still talk about! This year, both my parents and my in-laws are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversaries, and my family vacation this year will be split between a week with each extended family—one in August and one in September.
Throughout July, we have junior camp, Bro. Zack’s wedding, and teen camp, so it may start to feel like, “Wow, Pastor’s gone a lot.” I am sensitive to that, but I wanted to share a couple of thoughts on these trips.
Consider a year, not a season. I am coming up on a busy season, but wanted to consider the season in light of the year. When I reviewed the calendar, it was far less busy than I had first thought.
Ministry trips are not vacation. If you travel for work, you may know how tedious it can be. It seems glamorous, but with the age of my kids and where we are as a family, it is a sacrifice to be away from them and not something I take lightly. If God can use us in areas outside our church, or if God can grow me from a conference that will help me help our church, just like in a secular field, I believe it is good to attend certain trips—to give and to gain.
Vacation is a recharge, and keeps the long term in perspective. Simple but regular trips did more for me when I was a kid than some other kids who took one big vacation every five years. Vacations are essential to unpacking the load for a bit, and that helps us pick it back up with much more strength when we return. My dad was never one to hype up how hard being a pastor is—we all deal with a lot of issues—but the spiritual responsibility is weighty to me, personally, and I want to be able to carry that as long as possible. In that way, the “job” feels different than any other job, and vacations, then, are one factor of longevity.
I love you, church, and I am so thankful for you. God bless you.
-Pastor Ryan