When discussing our vacation for that year, we reviewed many of the dates on our calendar to see if we could take two weeks off at any time. Because of my husband's new job in the new church he was pastoring, taking off the time needed to have a good vacation would be impossible. I found myself getting easily irritated at his hesitance to find time to take off to observe the weeks he had earned.
After almost 25 years in ministry, I had made plenty of sacrifices. We'd moved several times. We planted a church that closed, causing us to lose our homes. We had to fix our credit several times because of insurmountable debt due to pay cuts and other things we had to buy for the church.
“Same old story, huh?” I retorted to him. When he inquired what I meant, I replied about how many sacrifices he was making again because of his job. At the same time, it’s one thing to have a secular job where you take home a weekly paycheck. But ministry is a whole other ball game. Much like a doctor on call, the pastor must be available if someone unexpectedly passes away or needs him for an emergency. Depending on the church, finding a suitable replacement for him while he's away may also be challenging.
This can cause him not to take as much time off as he would like. Although he has earned 4 weeks off a year, he rarely takes them. This causes me frustration as it would be nice for a family to take a vacation and be unplugged from the cares of church ministry. During my many years of pastoral ministry, it's been challenging to embrace sacrifice. But as I've grown older, I realize that sacrifice is a gift, not a curse. Here's how I learned sacrifice is a gift:
Photo Credit ©Getty Images/Martin Herzog
When discussing our vacation for that year, we reviewed many of the dates on our calendar to see if we could take two weeks off at any time. Because of my husband's new job in the new church he was pastoring, taking off the time needed to have a good vacation would be impossible. I found myself getting easily irritated at his hesitance to find time to take off to observe the weeks he had earned.
After almost 25 years in ministry, I had made plenty of sacrifices. We'd moved several times. We planted a church that closed, causing us to lose our homes. We had to fix our credit several times because of insurmountable debt due to pay cuts and other things we had to buy for the church.
“Same old story, huh?” I retorted to him. When he inquired what I meant, I replied about how many sacrifices he was making again because of his job. At the same time, it’s one thing to have a secular job where you take home a weekly paycheck. But ministry is a whole other ball game. Much like a doctor on call, the pastor must be available if someone unexpectedly passes away or needs him for an emergency. Depending on the church, finding a suitable replacement for him while he's away may also be challenging.
This can cause him not to take as much time off as he would like. Although he has earned 4 weeks off a year, he rarely takes them. This causes me frustration as it would be nice for a family to take a vacation and be unplugged from the cares of church ministry. During my many years of pastoral ministry, it's been challenging to embrace sacrifice. But as I've grown older, I realize that sacrifice is a gift, not a curse. Here's how I learned sacrifice is a gift:
It Makes Me More Christlike
Jesus made many sacrifices during his time on Earth. He emptied himself of all his power to become like us. He didn't have a house, a wife, or a family. He spent his time serving others within the community. Even though he was selfless in his giving, he still had people who hated him.
The Pharisees hated him and wanted to kill him simply because they were jealous of the attention he received. When people started following him and not them, it sent them to the point of plotting his murder. Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice when he died on the cross. But his willingness to sacrifice caused us to have salvation for many generations.
We may not always understand the purpose of sacrifice here on earth. We may make sacrifices begrudgingly, not fully understanding its purpose in our lives. But when we make sacrifices for God, he is honored. For example, when a pastor’s family chooses to give up their vacation time to be with a congregation member who has suffered a tragic loss, God is glorified, and they are rewarded spiritually, emotionally, and mentally.
God's purpose is still for us to enjoy rest, but we must take adequate time throughout the year to rest appropriately. However, with the nature of our position, it's now not always possible. Making sacrifices to demonstrate compassion or empathy to someone is its greatest reward.
Teaches Me Humility
When I sacrifice my creature comforts, time, or resources for another person, I am learning humility. Pride can no longer be a part of that equation. However, I can sacrifice grudgingly and not cheerfully when I choose to. Even when I don't feel like it, God is honored. God is pleased with that offering because he knows we are giving up what we think we deserve and trusting in God's ultimate plan for our lives.
Because of this, it isn't easy to rid ourselves of pride and humble ourselves to help others in their time of need. Missionaries understand the gift of sacrifice well. They sacrifice everything, including their security, to travel to third-world countries where persecution is high.
They often must learn a different language, interact with people, and learn about another person's culture. At the end of their lives, they usually have little money and little to show for it. Yet, their most significant rewards will await them in heaven. God stores their treasures in heaven, and there is no doubt they will reap the benefits of their great sacrifice on earth. When we sacrifice ourselves for others, we learn humility and understand what Christ endured on the cross.
We Refocus our Hearts on God
In America, many things distract us. We can easily drown out God's voice in our lives by simply turning on a television using an iPhone, iPad, or other device to listen to music, watch TV, or use a screen to waste our time. However, if we choose to sacrifice those comforts and listen to God's voice, we can choose to refocus our hearts on God. When simply staring at a screen, our hearts are focused on ourselves.
We are then bombarded by thousands of messages from various media outlets about what we deserve. We then look at others’ possessions and popularity and wish we were like them. However, we can choose to refocus our hearts on God. The best way to do this if we find we are using screens too much is to use them too fast.
Fasting in and of itself is sacrifice. We sacrifice food, time, or other luxury to become closer to God. God is pleased with all these offerings, knowing his children are trying to reach out to him. In the same way, people of the Old Testament sacrificed their animals to atone for their sins and to get closer to God; we no longer need to do it. However, God is honored when we sacrifice something to get closer to God. We no longer must worry about whether our sacrifice is sufficient or perfect for God.
Christ’s death was the ultimate sacrifice that paid for all our sins. We can then sacrifice ourselves on God's behalf to achieve deeper intimacy. This is a gift because no other people in the Old Testament understood this. However, because Christ died, his grace and mercy cover us, and we can achieve intimacy like never before.
We Learn to Live with Less
It is easy to deceive ourselves into thinking we don't have much. When we compare ourselves to others who have more than us, it's easy to believe we live a minimalistic life. However, when we look and reflect on all our blessings, we realize we were living richer than most of the population. We learn to live with less when we sacrifice our time, resources, or comforts for God. We understand what we truly need and what blessings are in our lives. When we choose to live with less, we know that is precisely what God went through.
He walked the earth with little and relied on the people who knew him and trusted him to care for his needs. He didn't even have a home to lay his head. He accepted the hospitality of others who wanted to house them in their homes. He ate their food and had fellowship with them. Because of that, they were blessed.
God’s example teaches us how little we need in life. If we chose to limit our screen time and start selling our possessions, we would find that we need about 1/4 of what we have. We can choose to sacrifice by getting rid of possessions and giving that money to those who need it. This is a way to understand sacrifice and know that God truly blesses us.
Although sacrifice can feel challenging at the time, we realize that because we can choose to sacrifice something for the Lord, we may find we are giving up something important. Ultimately, we're gaining intimacy, which is much more critical.
