Keeping Sabbath

I think one of the most annoying questions or comments that i get from people are: you must have an easy job (because i only work on sundays) and what do you all the other days?

I don't think many realize how busy all pastors are.
We don't have set hours. Sure, i have office hours that i keep, but just because it's outside office hours, i am not going to ignore someone who is in desperate need.
"pastor joe, my father just died of a heart attack..."
"hey, i'm really sorry, but let's talk about this tomorrow, it's really not my office hours.."

yikes.
and the Korean churches just expect too much out of their pastors. they expect pastors to do a lot of work, and be very holy and upright, to compensate for their guilty feelings.
I specifically told them that i wanted to concentrate on youth when i got here.
but instead, i'm doing both youth and young adult ministries. not only that, on wednesdays, i have to do children's ministry stuff. i downplay how much i can speak Korean, because then i'd be doing a lot more. every time someone asks me something in Korean, i reply in English. I know it's bad, and dishonest, but it's for the sake of my sanity and preventing myself from burning out.

that's why Sabbath is so important.
At seminary, i never did well to give time for me. When it wasn't school, it was church work. When it wasn't church, it was school stuff.
by the end of my 3rd year, i was tired and more impatient with the kids that i ministered to.
It's amazing how one can get lost in the work at the church.
it's even more amazing how one can get so caught up in doing God's work and lose sight of God.

The biggest problem of the Korean-American pastors is that they burn out too quickly. That has to do with the pressure and expectation from the Korean church. It's also because many Korean-Americans don't understand the concept and importance of Sabbath.

we let our service exceed our worship
and we allow increasing our ministry to decrease our intimacy with God.
It's just that many of us equate our spiritual health with our doing God's work, the more i do, the more spiritual i am.
and that leads us into trouble.

I don't think the adults understand the fact that i keep myself away from all church stuff on Mondays, unless it's an emergency.
It's a nice way to just refresh my mind and refocus on what is ahead of me and bask in the glory of God.
I don't care that they understand, but they should be thankful, because the fact i'm doing this, i'll be able to serve them, their youth, and God much longer.