How do you prioritise your tasks? Is it ‘the most immediately urgent things first’? Consider Paul’s words to Timothy today and pray that we may do this wisely.
16 If any woman who is a believer has widows in her care, she should continue to help them and not let the church be burdened with them, so that the church can help those widows who are really in need.
This verse acknowledges a woman as a provider and a carer. Just because there isn’t a man in the household does not mean they are without hope. A woman can also be the head of a household and have the responsibility to take care of the welfare of the members of the household, including, of course, a member who is a widow, should there be one.
17 The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honour, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.
A double portion is related to the idea of succession and inheritance for the firstborn (Deut 21:17). Of the many natures of the elder’s work, the one that has to do with sustaining the faith community can be said to be preaching and teaching—the role that the pastor has nowadays. This is challenging to the modern-day pastor at any level too, who inevitably spends a great deal of time and energy in administration, according to a recent survey. Balancing ministry and administration took second place in the list of things they wish they had been trained for. The first was how to train people, which also has to do with preaching and teaching at large.[1]
18 For Scripture says, ‘Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,’ and ‘The worker deserves his wages.’
At first glance, this could be heard as saying, ‘Pay the pastor or any teaching workers in the church’. But when you consider that what the teaching elders deserve is the ‘double honour’ in v.17 that has to do with sustaining the community, the most needed treatment would be to help them be able to do the job of preaching and teaching properly. This could include paying them appropriately too, but more fundamentally, it could be to release them from their day-to-day administrative work to a certain degree, i.e., to have people help them. In this sense, it is in line with Jethro’s advice to appoint leaders over groups of people to help Moses (Exo 18:17–18) and with electing seven deacons to help the apostles ‘give their attention to prayer and the ministry of the word’ (Acts 6:4). This is Jethro’s wording: ‘What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone’ (Exo 18:17,18).
Not everyone of us is a pastor or a teacher, but considering our main task as believers is to reflect God’s desire for all people, as said many times, maybe this is something to remember as we allocate our day-to-day schedule.
Lord, our creator and builder! Let us be wise and efficient. Your word prospers and flourishes with direction! Let us go with it! and not say that God is a scary God, so we do not dare do anything, just like the lazy servant with one talent. One talent is not a small amount; it carries infinity! Let us be diligent with it. Let us carefully look at our day and pick up what should be done most importantly. Let us have the courage and humility to ask for help. Let us have the wisdom and flexibility to rest enough. Let us be busy with your work, not busybodies. Lord, build us with your love so that your desire may be sustained and inherited through us. Teach and preach to us, Lord. Have mercy on us.
Image: Jethro Visits Moses in the Wilderness – Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen. Copy after Nicolaes Maes, circa 1675-1700.
[1] Packiam, Glenn. The Resilient Pastor: Leading Your Church in a Rapidly Changing World. Grand Rapids: Baker Publishing Group, 2022.
Read with Ssam 