To the Rabbi

To the Rabbi of the world
I send greetings.  The thing that I've been thinking an dwelling on for the last few weeks is this

Ministry seems inheritently unhealthy.

We who are the ministers are telling people to have a healthy relationship with God, with themselves and with other people. But those who minister are often times even worse off than those that we are supposed to be ministering to. Its almost like we are outside of the body of christ. If the rest of the church is the body of christ, then we are like a personal fitness trainer. Near and around, completly familier with this body, but not a part of it.

People dont meet my expectations of them for relationships. They let me down. They are grumpy and human. I went to church and had a shitty day sunday, to the point where people made me cry. I have thick skin ya'll! Do you know how hard it is to make me cry even under pain circumstances? And these people were just being grumpy. What is a matter with me? I had expectations of frindship and fellowship with people who were looking at me a tool or a sourse of help and information.

The truth is that it is hard for ministers to not look down at those they are ministering to.

Call it what you will, professional distance, keeping ministry and friends apart, whatever. It is sin. I understand the desire to have those who are unrealated to your ministry as friends (and dont get me wrong thats okay to have) but it can be an exscapist retreat from reality. "I just need to get away" and statements like that are signs of unhealth.

Let us be ministers who are healthy.

Let me repeat. LET US BE MINISTERS WHO ARE HEALTHY. Above and before all other things let us be people who are not looking to have healthy ministries. Let us be healthy ministers. Scratch that... Let us be healthy followers of the Christ. May we be covered in the dust of our rabboni.

Remember what life was like before ministry, when being a christian was enough. When identy wasnt tied to your job, to your position, to your ministry, when it was enough to be Sarah and stand unabashedly in the presence of your Father.

Elijah called out to God in the desert of his lonleyness and God shows him a community. Maybe too He has a community for you Sarah. Just a thought.

Remeber that we are all His children. Walk in the fact that you are not a minister or a servant, but a child of God who has been asked to invite others to join you as a child of God. We are the under-Rabbi sent to call forth our brothers and sisters from the world.

Be blessed
The Rabbi Adam Thomas

Rabbi= Teacher
Adam= sinner
Thomas= doubter
The= created and loved by God, unique and chosen.