The Treadmill

I wish I had something constructive to add at this point. The truth is: I don’t. I love Jesus. I just no longer know how to relate to the spaces where most of his people gather on the same treadmill week after month after year.

I wish I could care enough to do something about this, or perhaps easier, just not care at all. The problem is that I do care. I just don’t know the way forward. I feel found. I feel lost.

This quote is from John Smulo’s most recent post, which he has called Church Anxiety. His post relays my thoughts. I’m fed up with the treadmill. I’m fed up with talking about it. I don’t know what to do about it.

The Women Who Have Been Known As The Pastors Wife

I originally published this blog post on my old blog 20 months ago now. It’s been by far my most popular post and I’m still amazed that after all of this time I still receive comments on it, both on my blog and via email.  Most are encouraging, as there are many PW’s out there who feel like me, other comments have not been so positive. I’m thinking that I may update it in time, but for now, I just wanted to re-publish it again. Food for thought maybe?

I was hesitant about writing this post, as I know that a few have followed suit of Bill Kinnon. This post has really been on my mind though. I’m writing it in celebration of a group of posts which have come under The People Formerly Known As … banner. These are thoughts compiled by Bill Kinnon, Grace, Jamie Arpin-Ricci, John Frye, and a few others. I don’t know what anyone will make of this, or indeed if anyone will read it; but these thoughts I share from the heart, from my own experiences as the Pastors Wife, and of pastors wives I know. If anything, this post is for me, so I can get this off my chest. It’s also for those women out there who have been known as the pastors wife.

We are the women who have been known as the pastors wife. There are thousands of us all over the world. This was not a role we sought to have in life, we simply fell in love with a man who was called into ministry. Initially we were excited with our new “role”, and, along with our husband, we could see all of the potential there was in the Kingdom of God. We wanted to serve God well; we wanted to sow into the Kingdom; we wanted to live the adventure; we wanted to make God proud. Faithfully we went where God led us.

Silently, over the years, we were molded into our role through the expectations of the congregation. We were expected to serve willingly throughout the church, and be an added extra for free. What a bargain you got, in no other job can a man take his wife to work for free. We worked tiresomely teaching in sunday school classes, helping out in creche, serving tea and coffee, flower arranging, preparing bible studies, banner making, cake baking and helping out with countless other church programs, never to gain any thanks or recognition.

We were expected to look and act in a certain manner, and always had to put on a smile. None of you were really concerned if we were struggling, had questions about church or life in general. You told us countless times, through your actions and words, that we were not there to receive, but to serve. After all we were seen as a Godly lady, and you expected no less. We felt your rebuke.

We were expected to be a hostess, and have an immaculate home, just in case a parishoner should drop by. You didn’t care how late into the night or on what day of the week you telephoned or called by. It was almost as if we were not allowed to have any private time. We soon learnt, and got caller display, so that you could leave countless messages on the answer machine instead. Aren’t you lucky, that unlike most jobs, the pastor is not paid for unsocial hours.

We were expected to be the perfect mothers and never to raise our voice. We were not perceived to have any parenting struggles, and were expected to mentor parents around us. Really though, we were working it all out alone, and thinking that we were making a mess of it. We hoped the latest christian parenting handbook would give us some advice, which we could then pass on to you. Our children were expected to be seen and not heard, always following the ways of the Lord. When our children fell away, many of you just tut-tutted, and raised your eye brows.

We watched helplessly as our husbands confidence was destroyed, as you tore away at him week after week with your endless complaints about the sermon, the music and the length of the service. We watched you draw him further and further into the ground, until he reached depressive levels. What had started as a joy to be in ministry, was now turning into a misery. The demands on our husbands grew, which caused friction at home, as we wanted to try and have some quality family time together. For years we have supported and encouraged our husbands. We have cried so many tears – more tears than you will ever realize.

For years we’ve struggled on a pastors wage, trying to make ends meet. We watched as you all went on your luxury holidays, whilst you leant us your caravan by the sea for free. We know that your heart was in the right place, but it didn’t mean that we didn’t wish we were at some luxury resort instead.

We are humbled, and very grateful, to know that many of you have prayed for us over the years. Know too, that we have prayed for you. You shared your confidences in us, we were not able to share ours with you, having been burned by people too many times in the past.

Gradually we started to withdraw from church life. We realised that relationship wasn’t what you really wanted. We yearned for close Christian friends to share our hearts and dreams with. We wanted to be known for who we were, not as the pastors wife. We have a unique identity. Our conversations with you were impersonal, quite often just to ask us to give a quick message to our husbands.

Along with our husbands we saw so much potential in the church. Over the years we came to realize that we were being turned into people pleasers, not necessarily God pleasers. Church had become a corporate business, which was gradually becoming corrupted from within. The adventurers in us started to die. We realized over time that the potential in the Kingdom of God is outside of the four walls, in the community. We are still trying to work out exactly how that will look, but we are on a journey again, at the beginning of another adventure with God. Sadly, we have realized, that many of you will not be coming on this journey with us. But we have to shake the dust off our feet.

We are the women who have been known as the pastors wife. We are hurting, and bruised. We desperately need building up again. We don’t really know where we fit into all of this anymore. We really want to serve still, but don’t know what we have left within us. There are many of us around, when you meet one of us, get to know us, show an interest in us, after all, we are people too. We are the women who have been known as the pastors wife.

If you have any thoughts or comments to add feel free to, thanks for reading and sharing my thoughts.

Forge Canada

I was really excited to read today that Forge are launching in Canada H/T Jamie. You can view their website here. There is a future hub planned for Moncton which is not too far from where we are moving to. It will be great to get involved if that’s possible. Speaking of moving, Jonathan spoke with our lawyer today and she is expecting news any time now – like we’ve been expecting if for weeks, but ce la vie!! Anyway if you could throw up some more prayers for us that would be greatly appreciated. TIA.

Changes At Emergent Village

Emergent Village today announced a major change in structure that will position it less like a traditional non-profit organization and more like a social networking organization. The changes that they have announced sound quite positive. Tony Jones is no longer national director as that role has been discontinued. Below is an excerpt from their letter from the board.  Read more at Brother Maynard’s.

First, we need to be, as our name suggests, a village, which means we need to create and defend safe space in which people can have needed contact and conversation. The “city limits” for the village should be the four values (or rules of the order) that emergent has developed:

A. Commitment to God in the Way of Jesus
B. Commitment to the Church in all its Forms
C. Commitment to God’s World
D. Commitment to One Another

Second, also as our name suggests, we need to be a village about emergence. The timing of Phyllis Tickle’s important new book (The Great Emergence, Baker, 2008) could not have been better in this regard. The space we create must have room for prophetic and provocative input to challenge and resource us for ongoing emergence.

All hyped up things come to an end

All around me people have been raving about the Lakeland revival. As I wrote before I have been very wary of what was going on there. Now it seems all is beginning to crumble. I think this whole situation is a real shame. It’s an awful advertisement for Christianity, for God. There have obviously been lots of lies as Brother Maynard and Grace have highlighted. No doubt the “apostles” will all jump ship and quickly remove themselves from the situation. I doubt we’ll read many apologies. I feel for Todd Bently, yes he’s lied, but he has obviously been abused and manipulated by the media circus and thrust into the limelight. I feel very sad for his wife and children. Jeff and Barb have written some thoughtful pieces. I won’t say I told you so because Jared’s already done that.

Folks, if you want a revival, if you want to meet with God, then don’t look to other people. He is with you in all you are doing all the time. You just need to want him enough and take the time to press in and find him. His Kingdom is all around us, seek him and you will find it. Showmanship will never get you anywhere. Jesus could have been the greatest showman of all time – think about why he chose not to be? In the words of Forest Gump “That’s all I have to say about that.”