Nope. He was working in Africa.
If you know my dad at all, this shouldn't surprise you. He's all over the place.
Growing up the last 20 years with my dad has been a blast. My dad is always supportive and is always challenging me to dig deeper into my faith. He is protective of me and is always making me laugh. He appreciates nature's beauty, is a sucker for dogs, and loves learning about people and their story. We rarely go anywhere without him stopping to say hello to someone he knows...or doesn't know. If my family goes out to a restaurant we usually know our waiters name, where they grew up, and at least one other random fact about them before leaving. He just has a gift of making people comfortable and opening up.
Because God has blessed him with this gift, it has made him an excellent pastor (Yeah, I'm a little biased, but hear me out). This may seem like an easy job to some, but I have come to learn that ministry is one of the messiest, but most rewarding jobs for a follower of Christ.
When some people think of a pastor, they may think of some interesting characters. Like the annoying neighbor on the Simpsons, Ned Flanders, who has the picture perfect family, doesn't curse or drink, and is known as a 'goody two-shoes'. I get a lot of those 'pastor's daughter' jokes that get very old very quickly, but if you think my family is perfect... well excuse me while I go laugh for awhile.
Despite that, I've never considered my role as the 'PK' as a negative. In fact, my experience has been just the opposite.
As a PK, I see almost everything that happens in the church body. Some amazing things, sometimes not so amazing. I have witnessed people become passionate about serving in certain ministries in our church, and hearts grow closer to God through suffering. On the flip side, I've seen husbands that we considered close friends leave their wives. I've seen people struggle financially. I've watched Church hoppers leave unsatisfied because they can't find the perfect church. Some have even unjustly accused my dad for doing things that never even occurred. God created the church to be a family and it can be hard not to take every difficult circumstance very personally. Sadly, I can completely understand why many Pastor's kids are known to leave the faith. Because I know how messy, hypocritical and depraved God's people are, even the people I trust within the church, there is a small part of me that doesn't want anything to do with my church.
Unfortunately, those who leave the faith miss a very important, and beautiful aspect of the church. It IS personal and it may hurt at times, but we are in it TOGETHER. 1 Corinthians 12 says that the church is a unit. We are sinners desperately in need of a Savior. I have grown to love the church because I know that if I am struggling, my church family will push and encourage me to rely on the Lord for strength and not my own. My dad has shown and taught me the importance of being heavily involved not only our home church, but the church itself as a whole, in encouraging my brothers and sisters in Christ. It saddens me to see those who do not make an effort in participating in church ministry, they really miss out.
In his 33 years of being a pastor, my dad has rarely ever taken a real vacation. When he travels, it is often paired with meetings with former parishioners in that area, marriage conferences, hospital visits, etc. An article that was written by Pastor Dave Brukas on the Mars Hill Resurgence blog summarized it well when he said,
"If I could choose one word to describe the structure of a common workweek for a pastor, it would be “messy.” Pastoral ministry is less about a vocation, and more about a lifestyle. If you call yourself a pastor, you are likely on duty 24/7/365. Your life is far more like that of a small business owner than a teacher or professor, with set classroom times and office hours. Unanticipated events will arise requiring your attention. You’re always on call... Further complicating matters is the fact that activities qualifying as “ministry work” are broad and various. For example, a pastor may jog on a lunch hour while praying for his church...And while those not familiar with the “vocational ministry” lifestyle may see the pastor in these activities and assume he is off duty and resting, whereas the pastor feels as if he is working diligently."
Some may wonder how he juggles it all without everything crashing down. Meeting my family's needs. Supporting our extended family. Working numerous little jobs on the side to earn an extra income. Care for a wife who has physical disabilities (That's another blog post in itself). Encourage a congregation. Serve in ministries locally and world-wide (like Africa).
Trust me, I ask the same thing every day. But he loves his job and he would rather serve others and follow God's calling then to have a 9-5 job. God has blessed him with the passion and energy to fulfill this role, for His glory. That's the point; for God's glory.
God has blessed me with a wonderful dad. Sure he isn't perfect, but he has given me a great example of how an earthly father can mirror that of my holy and perfect heavenly Father.
Dad, I consider it an honor to be called, 'Pastor Dale's daughter'.
Happy birthday, Daddy! I love you!
