Clergy Appreciation Weekend is the 2nd weekend of October; National
Clergy Appreciation Day this year is Oct 14 (2nd Sunday in Oct)
Get Your B.A. Degree For Free!
Bishop CD Miller
Copyright 2007.
All Rights Reserved.
To My Dearest HerSpace Women In Ministry Subscriber Carla~
"But then there comes the times for me when I feel as though my work is in vain. Now, I KNOW rationally that that is not true. I know it's not in vain. But, it hurts when it appears that your work is not appreciated. Attacks come from every angle, and I know that they are spiritual in nature, as I'm aware of the spiritual warfare.
I guess I'm just going through a rough day today. Disappointment and dismay from one of my "assignments". For a fleeting moment, I wondered, "Now, why am I doing this? Can someone tell me why?"?
Curiously, October is the month to receive your B.A. Degree For Free! Be Aware of Breast Cancer; Think Pink! Be Aware of Domestic Violence; Remember the Battered Woman! Be Aware of Trick or Treat; Ban Halloween! Be Aware it's Clergy Appreciation Month~Hug A Pastor! October is a month of completing quite a course of study to earn your B. A. Degree for free!
The nature of any form of pastoral ministry is thankless! Sorry to report! I recently have visited two churches where during the service a few members received kudos for longevity in church membership. One organist had served the church 50 years and one church clerk had been a member since childhood. They were celebrated. Yet, each church respectively had had several pastors. Church membership out lives the pastoral tenure typically. Ever thought why?
I believe the one thing that makes for pastoral departures is the lack of appreciation! On a recent church visit, I noted the worship service was perfect! During the announcement time, the clerk read beautiful announcements covering everything, every event and everyone in the church. October birthdays were listed in the bulletin; Happy Birthday was sung!
There was something missing for me! The bulletin noted with enclosures and handouts, "October is Pastor's Appreciation Month-Hug A Pastor!" Unless I had missed it, NOTHING WAS PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGED! Clergy appreciation month was a note in the bulletin for you privately to figure out something to do! The entire month is for acknowledgements not just a DAY!
In this a familar bible passage. One of ten lepers needed healing was a Samaritan. As a Samaritan, he was one who supposedly didn't know godly worship yet thanked the Lord for His service. The Samaritan leper, who is outcast in the biblical arena, expressed the tithe of appreciation to Jesus for his healing. One of the ten lepers returned to say thank you. Imagine how the Lord felt as only one returned to say thanks!
Luke 11&ff: "And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan."And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.
Think on these things! Women In Ministry~have you ever had a sever infection, sinus attack, urinary track attack, yeast infection, upper respitory infection, strep throat?! Panic stricken, you QUICKLY run to ANY DOCTOR, CLINIC, EMERGENCY ROOM or to ANYONE who would give you a prescription for an antibiotic!
All you want to do is for the doctor to hand you the prescription or even better, call in the script to your pharmacist! You RUN to take the first dosage or pill! Now, do you even finish taking ALL of your pills? Do you EVER CALL YOUR DOCTOR BACK AND SAY THANKS FOR SAVING YOUR LIFE? Vary rarely, if ever! It's no different in pastoral ministry~very few return to say anything at all!
Dearest Carla, Jesus gives the tenth TO US FREELY! He loves you and thanks you this day for His Service to His Sheep. He is reaching out to you right now! Why? Carla, I was awakened at 4:30 a.m. The Spirit said, "Arise, GO to the internet! Read your network posts! REPLY to my servant Carla!" He stopped everything to reach YOU TODAY! He woke me up to write this reply especially for you!
Luke 15:4 "What WO/man of you, having an hundred sheep, if s/he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
Dearest Carla, I want to be very open, candid and genuine when I share this. Take a moment and let this video minister to you. This is my former church's 10th Anniversary Banquet. You will clearly and quickly note it was quite an event! We celebrated a decade of labour. My husband and I established the church, October 13, 1998. We served it FULLY! This TODAY is the church's 11th anniversary; I no longer am serving this church.
During the course of a three day celebration, NOT ONE MEMBER privately or openly said, "HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, Pastor!" Dearest Carla, to say HAPPY ANNIVERSARY is not even to say THANK YOU! So you know, if I didn't receive a HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, you know I didn't received a THANK YOU! This had not been a first time oversight! Shortly after and crushed, I left the pulpit for a period of rest and reflection. I drudged back by the Christmas Day Service to finally resign my service this past June.
In a final departure from the church, NO ONE SAID GOOD BYE~NOTHING, no card, no dinner, no plaque, no flower, no gift card, no note and of course NO THANK YOU or I LOVE YOU PASTOR...I just faded into the sunset of a day's work finished! I am sure the Church never believed I would leave...but this one flew over the coo coo's nest! Why? A general lack of appreciation concluded my tenure!
So Be Advised today, we serve freely but not with out cost! Congratulations, you have earned your B.A. today for free! Carla, set boundaries and expect the Lord to reach back as well as thank you HIMSELF! Next time and going forward, expect nothing in return from the journey and you won't be hurt! The Lord gave me these scriptures to hold onto. I am taking Him at this Word that He is RIGHTEOUSLY REMEMBERING MY WORK AS I HAVE MINISTERED TO THE SAINTS! I am holding the Lord to this scripture!
Corinthians 15:58~ "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. "
Hebrews 6:10~ "For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister."
Do you feel like an outcast today? So did the Samaritan leper, yet he returned to Jesus to say thank you! Let the Lord use you to say to a minister, pastor or clergy person, " I thank God for you, I appreciate you! AND SO DOES THE LORD!" Be the Lord's tithe in the life of a Pastor. Let Him use you TODAY, the one who will reach back to a loving Pastor who has blessed you in your ministry! He needs you to HUG one of His Servants and Say Thanks For Him!
It will help you to feel better in the midst of your disappointment in serving God's People!
Elder Miller, a pastor's son and knowing more about living with a pastor than I, is my pastoral coach! He always encourages me with a smile, Bishop, "Sheep ain't easy to shepherd...the are like hearding cats!"
Blessings,
Bishop
FACTS From Hallmark:
October is National Clergy Appreciation Month.
Clergy Appreciation National Day of Honoring Oct. 14 is always the second Sunday in October.
According to The Barna Research Group, 47 percent of American adults attend church in a typical weekend, not including a special event such as a wedding or a funeral. (2005)
Barna also reports that 84 percent of Americans describe themselves as Christians. (2006)
Hallmark first offered Clergy Appreciation cards in 2002.
Visit Theses Links For Some Ideas To Express Your Appreciation To Your Pastor!
Let your arms be His arms Hug~A~ Pastor
http://www.parsonage.org/cam/index.cfm
http://www.christianitytoday.com/holidays/clergy/
Send an E-card!
Show your pastors and leaders how much you care.
E-cards from ChristianityToday.com
E-cards from CTLibrary.com
Visting Today At HerSpace Women In Ministry Preachers' Network?
Hug~ A SISTER IN MINISTRY~
Bishop's Private Storage of Web Ministry "Comments~HUGS!"
http://bishopcdmiller.fotki.com/hugs/
I Appreciate You!
Clergy Appreciation Weekend!
Hug A Pastor!
Hug A Sister In Ministry Clergy Appreciation Day! Appreciation Gift For You!
Five Fold Ministry Comment Tags...Want One Like Mine! It's Yours! Pick Up Your Gift Here: http://bishopcdmiller.fotki.com/herspace-gifts!/
