Surviving Junior High Ministry

Many times when we talk about surviving in ministry we think of all the people we deal with on a daily basis.  We think of all the emails, phone calls, text messages, and visits we get regarding our ministry.  I have never seen more people trying to survive in ministry than I am seeing this year.

Leading a junior high ministry always has the potential to be overwhelming. It can run us over if we aren’t careful. Bbut we can also manage these things by choosing when to say no.  We have control even when we feel like things are getting out of control.  We can always choose to say no.

This year I see people trying to survive in ministry dealing with something that they cannot completely control.  Many  are dealing with illness this year.  I hear time and time again about fellow junior high ministers filling in for their senior pastor because he got sick.  I hear them talk about an extra work load they took on because somebody else has been out of the office for several weeks do to a sudden illness.  Even more than that, I hear about many coming down with an illness and trying to make sure ministry still happens while we are stuck recuperating.

It is difficult to deal with a situation where you have an event or meeting planned, and then the day it is supposed to happen you come down with an illness or a personal emergency comes up.  This year it doesn’t seem like people are getting sick for a day or two either.  It seems to be lasting over a week in many cases.  What do you do in this situation?

Do we need to be prepared to get sick?  Do we need to have a clone of ourselves ready to fill in at the last moment?  Do you cancel if you are sick?  Should we have to fight through the illness and keep working?   What should we do?

I’m not here to provide you with an answer, but I want help with this situation.  What do you do?