There’s a lot of buzz on the internet lately about something called Konfabulator, so I downloaded it to check it out. Konfabulator used to cost a pretty penny, but was recently acquired by Yahoo! and is now free (as in free beer).

In a nutshell, Konfabulator is a framework upon which developers can create things called widgets. Widgets can be anything a developer wants them to be, but they’re generally simple objects like clocks, calendars, CPU load meters, and the like. I love the weather widget that comes pre-installed with Konfabulator and I’ve also found a simple desk calendar I like. You can also find remote controls for various media players and other programs.

I’ve enjoyed playing around with it today and would recommend it. It’s worth a quick look at least, considering it’s free.

A while ago I promised to write about my daily job responsibilities as a youth intern. As should be apparent from my lack of activity here, I’ve been quite busy after taking on the new position. I often joke that my job is one step above indentured servitude. I pretty much follow Pastor Chad around and do whatever he tells me to do.

Here’s a run-down of my typical week:

Sunday

Since Sunday is our first day back from the weekend and the day we tend to do the most work, it feels more like the Monday of a typical work week.

I still fulfill my usual responsibility playing drumset during the two morning worship services. In between the services, during the Sunday School hour, the youth meet for a worship service called Community. We sing a few worship songs, Chad preaches a 20-25 minute message, and the youth are split into small groups for further discussion. During Community, I usually help with sound and lights. I’ve also been helping Chad make announcements at the beginning of service.

If there is an evening service — and these are generally sparse during the summer months — the youth typically have an activity afterward called Blast. It’s usually an informal gathering in someone’s home with refreshments and very little if any planned activity.

Monday

I’ve had a surprising number of Mondays off this summer. I keep telling Chad if I get one more Monday off I’m coming into work anyway — I have trouble getting all my work done.

Mondays are usually a wind-down day from Sunday. We’ll typically spend some of the morning tidying up the meeting room where Community is held. Generally we try to spend the day with some of the youth. On occasion we may take two or three youth down the street to Starbucks or Pier 49 Pizza. We bring along a discussion-starter book and spend the time casually talking about our faith and sharing prayer requests.

I’ll usually spend the rest of the day completing various assigned tasks. Last Monday I processed applications from youth who’ll be attending our upcoming youth retreat. I’ve been teaching a class on Thursday nights during our summer Bible study, so if I have any extra time on Mondays I like to start preparing my lesson early.

Tuesday

In our summer Bible study we’ve been focusing on service. Because of that emphasis, we also do a service project every Tuesday morning. From 9:00am to noon we take 15-25 youth to the Baptist Concern Center and help them receive their weekly food shipment and organize it in crates for storage. We usually take the group somewhere for lunch afterward or have pizza delivered to the church.

Tuesday afternoons we have staff meeting with all the pastors and the office manager. We talk about what went well the previous Sunday and we put together the program for the upcoming Sunday. We also take time to pray over requests that have been submitted by church members and visitors.

Because of the service project and staff meeting, there’s generally no time on Tuesdays to get anything else done. That’s one reason why it’s so hard to miss a Monday.

Wednesday

Wednesday is usually when I dig into preparation for my Thursday night summer study lesson. Again, we might spend part of our day with a few of the youth at Starbucks or Pier 49.

Sometimes I’ll be asked in staff meeting to help find visuals for Pastor Mike (the senior pastor) or Pastor Chad for use in upcoming sermons. Earlier this month Pastor Mike did a two-week series on missions for which I spent most of my Wednesday downloading several 5 minute documentary videos from the International Mission Board and North American Mission Board websites.

Thursday

We usually take a half day on Thursdays because of summer Bible study in the evening. I normally spend the morning finishing up my lesson and completing last minute tasks pertaining to the upcoming Sunday.

Thursday at 4:30pm Chad gets together with the seniors to teach them the summer study lesson. The seniors have been helping Chad teach the 7th and 8th graders during the usual 7:00pm study time. While Chad is with the seniors, I’ll sometimes arrange a meeting with the web team to discuss the new website we’re building.

At 7:00pm, the rest of the youth arrive and we usually play a game (e.g. tug-of-war or dodge ball) before splitting into study groups. There are usually refreshments provided, and the study time ends at 8:30pm.

Wrapping up the week

Friday and Saturday are my days off, and that’s about it for my usual week. I hope this gives a good picture of the kinds of things I do from day to day. Each week really is different, depending on whatever subject we’re focusing on the next week and any mid-week activities such as youth retreats or Vacation Bible School.

The internship will be over on August 12, so I’ll probably start back at [ContentWatch] on August 15.

Since I’ve been inundated with blog spam in recent months, I’ve disabled commenting from unregistered users and opened up my blog so anyone can register. To register, either click the “log in” link in the comments section of any post or the “log in” link on the sidebar under “Administration”.

If any registered users start posting spam comments, they’ll have their account deleted. This should keep one step between me and the blog spammers, and hopefully annoy them enough that they’ll leave me alone.

I was really hoping this would also give users the ability to edit their own comments, but it doesn’t seem WordPress is smart enough to keep track of that. I’ve seen at least one hack along those lines that I’d like to investigate further, so stay tuned.

Since I’ve been inundated with blog spam in recent months, I’ve disabled commenting from unregistered users and opened up my blog so anyone can register. To register, either click the “log in” link in the comments section of any post or the “log in” link on the sidebar under “Administration”.

If any registered users start posting spam comments, they’ll have their account deleted. This should keep one step between me and the blog spammers, and hopefully annoy them enough that they’ll leave me alone.

I was really hoping this would also give users the ability to edit their own comments, but it doesn’t seem WordPress is smart enough to keep track of that. I’ve seen at least one hack along those lines that I’d like to investigate further, so stay tuned.

Anonymous said:

The concept, in general, of being paid for godly service is spoken against in the Bible reference below [Hebrews 5:4]. Also, it’s referred to when Elisha’s servant takes money and is then cursed with leprosy. … I just don’t understand why the practice of being paid for ministry ever started or is still in effect today if the Bible speaks against it.

I knew when I blogged about my pastoral internship it wouldn’t take long for someone to ask this question. It’s certainly a very important issue and I’m glad you brought it up. I’ll try to answer it as best I can.

Note: I started writing this post yesterday after Anonymous posted his/her first comment. I just noticed that Steve replied and Anonymous replied back, and I’ve made a few changes below to address those comments. I may comment again later after I’ve digested all of Steve’s thoughts.

A better case against paid ministry

Let me start by elaborating on your position, Anonymous. There are many other scriptures you could’ve used to make a better case for your argument, but let me start with the two you did mention.

Hebrews 5:4, as Steve has already pointed out, has nothing to do with pastors receiving compensation for their service. In your second comment, you point out that you meant I shouldn’t be applying for this job, but that God should be calling me to it as Aaron was called. I mean no offense, but I think you’re applying the passage a bit too liberally. In its proper context, the verse is talking about taking upon oneself the honor of priesthood. I firmly believe that Christ is the only Melchizedek priest and that anyone else who claims that priesthood is “taking that honor upon himself,” but that’s beside the point here. I’m not claiming any priesthood. I’m just applying for an internship.

The story of Elisha’s servant is intriguing. I assume you mean the story recounted in 2 Kings 5. In the story, Elisha heals a man named Naaman of leprosy. When Naaman tries to give Elisha a gift for his services, Elisha refuses. Gehazi, Elisha’s greedy servant, decides this is an opportunity for him to get something for nothing. He follows Naaman and lies to him, claiming that Elisha told him to accept some money and clothing. Elisha later discerns Gehazi’s sin and curses him with Naaman’s leprosy.

After studying this passage carefully, it’s clear to me that Gehazi’s sin was sneaking, lying, and stealing. Gehazi really had no part in the healing, so his sin could not have been accepting compensation for ministerial service. The only part of this story I do agree is relevant is Elisha’s initial refusal of the gift. However, Elisha doesn’t really explain why he won’t accept and we don’t learn from this passage whether it would’ve been a sin if Elisha had taken the gift.

Other scriptures I consider even more pertinent to this discussion include 1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:7-9. In both these passages, Paul sets forth the requirements for various church officers. He makes clear that church officers should not be lovers of money, greedy, or pursuers of dishonest gain. Similarly, in 1 Peter 5:1-2, Peter counsels the elders of the church to serve God’s flock not out of compulsion or greed, but willingly out of love. Though they are more relevent to our discussion, I don’t think these passages rule out paid ministry. They are simply addressing the proper motivations of a pastor. The basic thrust of these verses is that a man shouldn’t go into full-time ministry expecting to become rich from it.

While none of the above passages positively rule out paid ministry, it would be easy to assume paid ministry is not of God if these were the only passages available to us. However, these are not the only verses on the subject.

In support of paid ministry

The Old Testament makes it clear that Levitical priests were compensated for their service in the temple. In Numbers 18:20-32, the Lord tells the Levites that they will be given no inheritance of land among the people of Israel. Instead, the Lord says, “I give to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as their inheritance in return for the work they do while serving at the Tent of Meeting.”

The New Testament also speaks of paid ministers. In Luke 10, the Lord commissions 70 (or 72, depending on the translation you use) missionaries to go out and preach the gospel two-by-two. He tells them not to take any money with them. When they go into people’s homes they are to eat whatever is given them, for “the worker deserves his wages.”

Paul says something similar in 1 Tim. 5:17-18:

The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain,” and “The worker deserves his wages.”

Perhaps the clearest defense for paid ministry is given by Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:13-14:

Don’t you know that those who work in the temple get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in what is offered on the altar? In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel.

To be comprehensive, it should be admitted that Paul never claimed the right to compensation for himself. Paul worked as a tentmaker and refused to accept payment for his gospel service. Today there are many pastors who are able to support themselves in one way or another and do not accept a salary from their church. In this passage, however, we see Paul defending those who make their living from preaching and teaching the gospel.

In conclusion, I should also point out that Mormonism’s own scriptures allow room for a paid ministry. In fact, D&C 42:70-73 says that a certain amount of church funds should go to the bishop, his counsellors, and their families in recompense for their services in the church. I honestly have no idea why this isn’t practiced in the church today. Furthermore, General Authorities for the LDS church are compensated for their time and labor. It is claimed that many of them are independently wealthy and turn down the offered compensation, but not all are able to do that.

Conclusion

Paid ministry is not unbiblical. On the contrary, there are numerous scriptures which support and even command compensation for full-time servants of the gospel.

The bottom line comes down to motivation. If a pastor is preaching the gospel out of greed, he’s obviously not a very good pastor. If a church wishes to compensate their pastor for his valuable time and labor, they shouldn’t be hindered from doing that.