Jump directly to the Content

The Exacting Price of Ministry


How do you answer a charge that you aren't godly?
—Kevin Miller

The service had ended an hour ago, and Pastor Brian Wells had long since said goodbye to the last departing worshiper, but here he was, still lingering in the cool of the narthex. He didn't know why, really; he'd already sent Carol and the boys home while he closed up, and he knew they'd be impatiently waiting to start Sunday dinner. He leaned forward against the tall panes of glass separating the sanctuary from the narthex and gazed over the empty pews one more time.

The message had been strong that morning. At times his energies had been so focused that he seemed to enter what athletes call the zone, a feeling of effortlessness and euphoria experienced when one's concentration is most intense. He was tired now, but it was a "good tired," and he wanted to savor it, like a basketball player after a big win.

As he looked across the sanctuary, Brian found it hard to believe he'd been at Community Church of Madison only eight months. ...

Tags:
Posted:
March
Support Our Work

Subscribe to CT for less than $4.25/month

Homepage Subscription Panel

Read These Next

From the Magazine
Empty Streets to the Empty Grave
Empty Streets to the Empty Grave
While reporting in Israel, photographer Michael Winters captures an unusually vacant experience at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
Editor's Pick
What Christians Miss When They Dismiss Imagination
What Christians Miss When They Dismiss Imagination
Understanding God and our world needs more than bare reason and experience.
close