Becoming financially free on a pastor’s salary
A few weeks ago Tim and I watched an incredible live broadcast of Dave Ramsey pleading with our nation to take the first step of bringing our country into The Great Recovery. We are huge Dave Ramsey supporters. God used him to get Tim and I out of debt almost three years ago, and to keep us…
Read MoreMy kids distract me from my marriage
Over the last few weeks I have felt personally convicted by the example Tim sets for me and our family. I don’t know if it’s a mom thing, or what, but it is so easy for me to put Hannah and Zeke above Tim on my priority list. Our kids depend on us to feed them, bathe them, fix…
Read MoreHow we keep marriage strong in ministry
This past spring my wife and I recorded a conversation with a couple other youth workers during LIVE YM Talk about the struggles and challenges as well as the joys and benefits of serving as a ministry family. We all discussed how can we keep our marriages…
Read MoreDesperate prayer for our family
Single parenting absolutely scares me. Tim was out of town for several days, leaving me and the kids alone. I was so frightened about how things would go that I started praying about those days probably a week in advance, and then continued to pray several times a day during those…
Read MoreRaising pastors’ kids to embrace ministry
My parents aren’t perfect. I could easily write a list of things Dana and I are doing differently than my parents did in raising me, but they still definitely did a lot of things right. Out of my three brothers and two sisters who all grew up as pastors kids along with me, today every…
Read MoreTime to send your teenager to a different church?
As a P.K., I grew up in my dad’s church from the time I was 1 year old to 18 years old. He’s still serving there today — in fact, he celebrated 30 years of ministry at that church two weeks ago! — but there came a time when I needed to leave. For all my life I was the pastor’s kid. Everyone knew me in…
Read MoreBalancing motherhood with house chores
Hannah is almost two, and I have noticed a huge shift in how our days work. All kids are born with a sin nature and a good heart. What we do with our days and how we interact with our kids will bring out one or the other. There are some days that I try to get extra house…
Read MoreWhy isn’t your wife serving more in ministry?
Church member: “Why isn’t your wife helping out more with the children’s ministry?” Your first thought: “Why isn’t your wife helping out with the children’s ministry?” but what actually comes out, “What do you mean?” Church member thinks: “You’re the paid pastor and your wife doesn’t seem to…
Read MoreHow exercise gives me energy to serve
It’s amazing how much our physical health effects our mood, and the way we treat our family. At the end of April I was feeling convicted about how out of shape I was, and I didn’t even know how bad it had gotten. Sure, I had two babies in the last two years and didn’t loose any weight…
Read MoreChurches that want to be a higher priority than your spouse
A couple days ago I received a phone call from a church in another state that wanted to schedule a conference call for this coming week. Unfortunately, their proposed time wasn’t going to work for me because my wife and I are going out of town for our 5 year wedding anniversary. We’re very excited about the…
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