The Ongoing, Everchanging Stewardship of Time
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“ ...if you love the mission of Christ, there will be times where you feel ‘burnt out.’”
I Was Weary and Unwise
Ten o’clock on a Tuesday night about four years ago, I was just driving home from the prayer meeting. While I don’t remember the details of what I was thinking, I do remember my mind was racing. I suppose, if it was like any other typical prayer night, I was probably thinking about a counseling situation or a conversation I had. Specifically, though, I recollect a feeling of helplessness, a sense of complete inadequacy, the types of feelings that often precede a few days of depression. This felt a little different though, these emotions were of a greater immediacy. I pulled up to the house, walked inside, looked at my wife and fell down to the living room floor and started weeping.
Now, for anyone who knows me, I am often characterized as unafraid of showing emotion, but this type of emotion is a bit unique to me. I often display passion in the pulpit, but those feelings are generally reserved for my affection for souls and my adoration for Jesus. As it concerns general emotional vulnerability, I tend to meet the male stereotype...but these emotions had caught up to me.
My wife Eva was there and she sat down next to me and calmed me.
“What’s the matter?” she asked.
I didn’t know.
“Did something happen?” she said.
“Nothing in particular,” I responded.
As we continued to talk, I began realizing that I was simply overwhelmed. Overwhelmed by my commitments, my schedule and my lack of time with my family. I was waking up at 5 am every day to take our two kids to daycare. I was in my classroom every morning at 7 am. I was pouring my physical, emotional, and mental energy into 120 young people every day. After work, I would rush to pick my kids up and take them home. In ministry, I had another hundred people I was responsible for. I had ministry meetings of some sort at least four days a week. Every Saturday, for an indefinite amount of time I would hide at the coffee shop, studying to prepare a gospel-centered message that was also personal. Sunday I would preach. If I was lucky enough, I would give my family a few hours of my Sunday evening before they went to bed and we started the week over.
At the time, Eva was pregnant with our third child, which left a lot of questions in my head. Life was certainly going to grow more complicated. What had I done to myself? Why was there so much conflict between my passion for ministry, my schedule, and my relationships? It was my fault; I had been an unwise steward, and I was learning the hard way.
Stewardship Capacity
For a long time, I have known that I could “handle a lot.” I have a high threshold for work. I am not a great multi-tasker, but I am good at creating a list and getting things done. I also love ministry and when I see needs I have a tendency to speak up and volunteer myself. For most of my life that methodology suited me just fine, but I had reached my capacity and needed to ask myself, “How can I steward my time more effectively to reach the needs of everyone I am investing in?”
All of us have slightly different stewardship capacities which are informed by a multitude of variables. One such variable is the “season of life” that one finds themself in, periods of time when your ministry availability is more open or more restricted. When you are young and in college, you have a fairly flexible schedule with plenty of time and energy for friends and ministry. As you get older and you begin a career, or get married, or have children, your flexibility is altered and you have to learn to adjust your schedule according to each new season. These seasonal transitions in stewardship are sometimes exciting, but they are often difficult and can sometimes be discouraging. Either way, they are a fact of life and necessary for our growth.
Another variable that affects how we steward our time is maturity. As you grow more mature spiritually and physically, you should become more efficient. A mature believer has a healthy perspective on their limitations of time and energy, so they learn to make their investments count. With maturity comes a heart to delegate and train others so they can help meet ministry needs that you once met. With maturity also comes a greater self-awareness, a knowledge of your strengths and weaknesses so you can more keenly focus your gifting on the mission.
Personality is another variable; some people are built by God to take on a lot of responsibility. In fact, they tend to find work itself as a restful activity. Other people have a lower capacity, which allows them to minister in a way that is unique to their gifting and pace.
No matter who you are or what season of life you are in, you have a stewardship threshold and if you love the mission of Christ, there will be times where you feel “burnt out.” Times when you feel weary in your well-doing (Gal 6:8-10). This doesn’t make you crazy or unqualified, it simply means it’s time to take a moment for some healthy reassessment.
“...ministry is not profitable because of heart and hard work, it’s profitable because of the grace of Jesus Christ”
Your Time is Worth Stewarding Well
Living the Great Commission brings me more joy than anything. It encompasses every aspect of my life. I love Jesus, and I love people. Every relationship and resource that I steward is informed by my passion to evangelize and disciple, and I have no problem giving myself wholly to that work. When I think about my ministry, I want nothing more than to make an investment in the children of God. I want to give my time, energy, finances, intellect, and emotion and when I have given everything, I want to give more. I am addicted to the simple joy of seeing people find their identity in Christ (3 John 1:4; 1 Cor 16:15).
Paul shared this sentiment with the Corinthians when discussing his paternal responsibility towards his spiritual children in 2 Corinthians 12:14-15, “Behold, the third time I am ready to come to you; and I will not be burdensome to you: for I seek not yours, but you: for the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children. And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.”
The desire to “spend and be spent” for the gospel of Jesus Christ is a reflection of spiritual surrender and maturity. As I look around at the Living Faith Fellowship, I see this desire exemplified all around us - to give everything for the sake of the gospel. What an honorable and glorifying life to live! But as it regards stewardship, our heart, mind and body must work together and be submitted to God’s word so that we don’t spin out of control and lose sight of what’s important.
We are weak, and we are limited. We have to understand that whatever work we set ourselves to for the mission is only meek and meager in light of the power and grace of Jesus. We have to remember that ministry is not profitable because of heart and hard work, it’s profitable because of the grace of Jesus Christ. Though our work has value (Jas 2:17) the onus of fruitfulness doesn’t belong to our hands but to God who is faithful.
1 Corinthians 3:6-8 “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.”
Practically we don’t need to feel the burden that ministry success begins and ends with our hard work or righteousness. We can give over our control, frustration, exhaustion and striving to know that it’s our faith that invites God’s hand of blessing into our ministry life. Not only that but as it concerns work and stewardship, God has built us physically to need rest. If we don’t make time to have rest and refreshment, we will find ourselves on the living room floor questioning life.
The Bible speaks explicitly about the value of rest. God himself chose to rest on the seventh day, a benchmark for our need for stillness and reflection (Gen 2:1-3). David and Solomon both speak specifically about the value of rest, particularly in the midst of trying seasons or hardship. Even the Levitical law declares there is agricultural value to giving the land a “sabbath” (Lev 26:34). God is clear; there is value in rest.
The question is, what does rest look like? Is there a way of reconciling a busy ministry and a lifestyle that includes rest?
“There is no ministry longevity in a lifestyle of poor health and physical neglect”
Where Ministry Life and Rest Converge
When defining my responsibility as a spiritual steward, I generally consider how the different areas of my life should compliment one another for the sake of a Christ-centered, missional lifestyle. There are essentially four major aspects of converging forms of stewardship: physical and mental energy, relationships, material resources and time. For the Christian, when all of these stewardships are focused and balanced then our lives will honor Christ and produce rest. When we fail to be balanced in these areas of stewardship, we lose sight of Christ then serve our flesh only to grow weary in ministry.
As it concerns stewarding our time wisely, there are a few simple questions that should help us to be more balanced stewards.
1) Are you making time for intimacy with Jesus?
When you know Jesus Christ and you know him well, it is a friendship that brings us rest and surety. When we say “know Jesus” what we mean is knowing him through the knowledge and meditation of His word and engaging him in the dialog of prayer.
The privilege of intimacy with Christ is so great that it dissolves all sense of weariness and worry. Christ himself says so in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke [is] easy, and my burden is light.”
The closer you grow in your relationship with Jesus, the more you will see and experience things from his perspective. As a minister, your life should thirst for a deep and intentional walk with Christ that produces a fruitful and sustainable ministry life (1Tim 4:12-16). If we don’t prioritize Bible study and prayer than we lose out on the greatest joy of our faith and consequently endanger our ministries and relationships.
We learn from 2 Timothy 2:2 that we ought to invest our lives into the mission and ministry of God, but note what verse 1 says, “Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” There is no “ministry” without a meaningful walk with Christ. This is the most important aspect of how we use our time. Do you make time to study the scriptures daily?
2) Are you making time for friends, family, and personal care?
The Bible emphasizes the need for interpersonal relationships (Prov 27:6; 17; Ecc 4:12). There are mental, emotional, and spiritual benefits to having healthy friendships with other believers. We ought to take special care in making time for friends who love us, edify us, and refresh us (Rom 15:32; 1Cor 16:18; 2Cor 7:13; 2Ti 1:16; Phm 1:7).
The same goes for family, particularly if they are saved. Family can be a source of great joy and comfort. Sometimes family can be hard, but we shouldn’t neglect that special bond that God gave us with our parents and siblings. If your family isn’t saved, that gives you all the more reason to invest time with them, to show the love and truth of God’s word.
Lastly, we should take care of our bodies. While bodily exercise profiteth little, it still profit’s something (1Tim 4:8). There is no ministry longevity in a lifestyle of poor health and physical neglect. People who exercise and eat healthy live longer, have sharper minds and avoid depression. [1]Making time for consistent sleep is also very important to one's health. [2]When you take care of your body, over time you will actually be more physically and mentally able to care for God’s people and mind God’s work.
3) Are you making time for outreach and discipleship?
The Great Commission is the great purpose of our lives. What good is a life spent if it isn’t spent investing in eternal things? Yet, so much of our time and energy is spent investing in temporal things that ultimately only satisfy our flesh and have no positive impact on the things God cares about. Every Christian is obligated to make time for preaching the gospel to the lost and mentoring them in a biblical lifestyle. If you aren’t sharing life with others then you are failing to live yourself (Mat 28:19-20; Acts 1:8; 2 Tim 2:2).
Living a missional lifestyle does not happen by accident, it requires premeditated time daily/weekly. Who are you fearlessly investing the gospel into? Does it consume your thoughts and prayer life? Have you prepared your heart and mind in God’s word before you meet with people? Do you have genuine love and affection for those you invest in?
After decades of ministry, I have come to realize that I have the most peace, joy, and satisfaction when I have taken my eyes off myself and my circumstances in the flesh and put them on the mission field, the souls of men. For many of us, the answer to our tiredness and frustration is to simply practice applying God’s word by loving others more than ourselves (Rom 12:10).
4) Are you making time for service ministry?
At MBT, we have a saying, “Every member a minister.” This implies that the ministry doesn’t move forward the way it should unless every person in our church chooses to use the gifts that God has given them to further the work.
The Christians in your church need you (Eph 4:11-16). There are many, many areas of responsibility that require the attention and love of willing Christians: Audio/Visual, Children’s Ministry, Student Ministry, Worship, Cleaning, Hospitality, Security, Set-up/Take-down, etc. All of these areas of ministry edify the congregation and make space for a distraction-free presentation of the gospel.
While meeting this need, many well-intentioned ministers often over-commit, and invest so much in others that they lose sight of their own spiritual needs. In order to avoid a works-based and tiresome philosophy of ministry, our pastors often encourage people to invest in only one or two areas of ministry service and commit to only one Sunday (or two services) a month (plus a Tuesday Night if able).
Obviously, there will be occasional exceptions for some ministers but overall this approach benefits our ministers in several ways:
1) It protects our weekly Sunday Fellowship meetings and time spent under the teaching of pastors.
2) It reserves time and energy for investment in evangelism, discipleship and small group Bible study.
3) It makes ministry space in ministry for other growing ministers to join themselves to the work.
“While we must involve ourselves in ministry, we must do so wisely”
We often mismanage the time that God has given us. Many people are too busy with work and recreation that they fail to place a premium on the things God values. Others get so involved with ministry that they tend to neglect rest or make space for family. While we must involve ourselves in ministry, we must do so wisely, as good stewards of the resources of God. If we are to avoid weariness and exhaustion we must continually ask ourselves, “Are we doing things God’s way or our way?” Our time will always be best spent if we prioritize things in a way that reflects what God emphasizes in his word.
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1 Weir, Kirsten. "The exercise effect." American Psychological Association (APA), Dec. 2011, www.apa.org/monitor/20011/12/exercise.
2 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. "Sleep Deprivation and Deficiency." National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), 2018, www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/sleep-deprivation-and-deficiency.
Brandon Briscoe is the pastor over C&YA and oversees Living Faith Books publishing.