The Pastor's Phone

The majority of people who read this blog are pastors. Sure, I have a few church members reading the blog. However, the majority of my church hear me enough. Only very few want more of my ramblings. I also know that some friends and family members read this blog. I truly appreciate their readership, but most of them already know what I think about most issues. I know of a dozen or so pastors that read these posts. I believe this post will speak to them. I will leave the rest of you wondering if I have finally lost it.

I hate my phone. I hate both of my phones. I hate my home phone the most. I have hated it the longest. I also hate my cell phone. I have only recently developed a hatred for it. When I first got my cell phone I loved it. It was shiney and new. I had already grown to hate my home before I got my cell phone. I thought it would be nice to have a phone that I didn't hate. However, now I hate both of them, and it has nothing to do with the charges.

I realize that I need a phone. The phone is what connects me to my work. However, for the last ten years my heart races everytime the phone rings. It rarely brings me a conversation from a friend. It rarely brings a conversation about fun or happy things. It regularly brings me information about the sick, the angry, the hurt, and the dead. That is why I hate my phone.

I started hating my cell phone two years ago. My cell phone was rarely used by people giving me information. The only time that church members used my cell phone was in case of an emergency. My cell phone was mostly reserved for my friends and family. My wife calls me all the time on my cell phone. I always love to hear from her. Then three year ago on vacation, I learned to hate my cell phone.

Three years ago, I recieved my first call on vacation about an issue that I needed to deal with. It was a situation that was unavoidable. My attention was needed, and it was the only way to get a hold of me. Since that day, my vactation is marked by the dread of checking my calls several times a day just to make sure that everything is all right.

My wife loves the phone. She gets to talk to everyone about everything. However, I am always everyone's pastor. I seldom get to chit-chat. Most people don't chit-chat with their pastor.

At the start of my ministry, I was told often by older ministers that everything changes when you are the pastor. This is true, even for my phone. My hope is to one day not to hate my phone. I guess I need to go out and buy a cute phone that looks like a puppy. More than likely, that probably won't work for my personality. I am not certain I love my real dog, Calvin. I don't think a plastic one will fix the problem. I guess I will go on hateing my phone. I am certain I am not alone.