Honeymoon Period is Over

For a few minutes last night we enjoyed clear sky with the full moon shining brightly through the clouds. I am well into my 2nd month and the honey moon period is over after 5 weeks of ministry. It is now back to the nitty gritty of pastoral work. I plan to follow up some 20 young teenagers (12 to 13 years old) who were baptized last year. A family has requested pastoral visit within the month. Somewhat I am looking forward to the Chinese New Year long week-end for rest and time to plan for March and April ministry.
I attended the first pastors' fellowship meeting this morning and 13 out of 15 pastors in the District turned up. I shared my vision for uplifting the welfare of pastors and received a muted response. Sometimes when the chips are down it is very difficult to envision a brighter future for themselves and their families. Perhaps they have listened to leaders before promising better things for pastors and they came away disappointed. No wonder cynicism creeps in and soon lethargy, acceptance of status quo and distrust prevail over faith and hope. Further, many pastors are young and inexperienced, in their early 20s without any working experience before becoming pastors. I am praying that within 10-15 years down the road, there will be 80/20 mix of pastors, with 20% pastors of professional working experience, pastoring our churches. Now the mix is 99/1 favouring those without tertiary qualifications other than theology.