When we set unreasonable expectations for what we can accomplish in a given day, or a given week, not taking into account the inevitable ebbs and flows of our energy levels, the unexpected interruptions that are a part of any pastor’s life, or the possibility that we may spend more time on a particular task than we previously estimated, we are setting ourselves up for disappointment.
To stave off that sense of disappointment for failing to live up to an unreasonable metric of productivity that we ourselves establish and that no one else even holds us to, many pastors begin to overextend themselves.
During moments of enthusiasm, pastors can have a tendency to say “yes” to too many things and find themselves overcommitted. You need to learn your limitations and set expectations for yourself within those parameters.
3. Get Comfortable With Disappointing People.
Many times, pastors say “yes” to too many things because they have generous hearts. They love to serve. They care for the people on their team and in their congregation. It brings them joy to be able to be meaningfully involved in the life of their flock.
But then there are other times when a pastor knows full well that he is saying “yes” to something that is going to put him in a position where he is overextended. He doesn’t really want to do it. But he feels like he has to. And the reason he has to is because he doesn’t want to disappoint someone important to him.
If you are going to maintain healthy balance in your life and guard against overextending yourself, you are going to need to get comfortable with the fact that, sometimes, people are going to misunderstand you. Sometimes, people are going to be disappointed in you, even unfairly. Sometimes, people will wrongly accuse you of not caring or falling short of your pastoral duties.
Obviously, you do not want to become so rigid in your schedule or the things you say “no” to that you become callous toward your people’s needs or never make an exception. But this isn’t what most good pastors struggle with—quite the opposite.
4. Learn What Drains You and What Energizes You, Then Manage Your Calendar Accordingly.
Sometimes, pastors aren’t overextending themselves by virtue of the sheer number of hours they are working, but rather the kinds of things they are working on during those hours. Not all tasks are created equal.
Certain things you do as a pastor make you want to jump up and run a marathon. Other things you do as a pastor make you want to lie down and never get back up. Pay attention to which tasks and activities give you the most life and the ones that take the most life from you. Then plan your calendar accordingly.
You won’t ever be able to only do the things that fill you up. There are certain administrative tasks that you dread but that have to be done. There is no avoiding that. Just make sure your daily and weekly schedule isn’t stacked up with a majority of tasks that are sucking the life right out of you.
And if you have someone on your team for whom a task that drains you actually fills them up, delegate it to them if you can.
5. Invest Time in Developing Leaders.
Many pastors and church leaders are so busy doing ministry that they end up failing to neglect one of the central aspects of their calling: equipping others for the work of ministry.
