Preacher’s Wife Teaching Life

A year and a half ago, this puppy chose us to be his parents; we named him Troop. He stole our hearts and brought us joy, but what we didn't know was that he was born with some problems. We can look back now and see the effects of those problems, but at the time we didn't know that each event was connected. His last accident affected him in a way that he couldn't recover and we had to say goodbye…two days before my birthday.   I know God well enough that I have confidence He is good and everything He does is good…so my dog dying is good? I wouldn't necessarily classify a death of a loved one as a good thing, but I can say it's good that he doesn't hurt anymore and that his life was good. I can say every memory I have of him was joyful and happy; his impact on our lives was good. He taught us more about love, leading and joy in every circumstance, and that was good. I know God brought him into our lives to show us a greater capacity of love; He didn...

Daddy, daughter For Father’s Day, I took my dad on a daddy-daughter date. My dad was a full-time preacher when I was growing up, so we spent a lot of time together before I was enrolled in school. He took me everywhere, and I tagged along for everything. When I got married, my husband filled the role as the man in my life, but I am still very close to my dad (and mom!). That being said, I don’t get a lot of alone time with my dad like we had when I was a kid, so I took him on a coffee date. We had so much fun chatting, catching up and drinking GOOD coffee from a local coffee shop. I was on cloud 9 after spending time with my dad and having his attention solely on me. I just know this mirrors the happiness we are capable of after spending time with our Heavenly Father and having his loving attention on us. Part of my family This got me thinking about happiness. What brings happiness? What defines happiness for each individual? Can we ever truly be happy? What brings happine...

The events of each passing year is a reminder of how important a sturdy support system is. To me, a support system consists of people who are like minded and rally alongside you in every turn of life. They are the people who bring us closer to God, remind us of how good He is and push us towards our dreams in a healthy way. It’s only natural for us to desire a support system and to feel alone when we don’t have one. Think about it: we were born with or placed in the care of parents to feed, change, love, guide and care for us. We grow up seeking to expand our support system as our lives change. My husband and I quickly found in the ministry that we could not survive without one in place. Our support system is multi-dimensional, dependable and loving. This is what our support system consists of: God: Our biggest supporter and strongest foundation. Our faith in God, relationship with him and knowledge that he is ALWAYS good has carried us through everything. God loves, encourag...

Upon introductions, we often ask the other person what he/she does. The easiest way to answer that question for me is to say, “A preacher’s wife full-time and a teacher part-time.” Even though this perfectly describes my role, it leaves people wondering what a preacher’s wife actually does to warrant “full-time” status. Some quick questions I can answer upfront are:   Is “preacher’s wife” an actual job title? No, not really.   The closest example to “preacher’s wife” I can think of is the First Lady. There are a certain amount of expectations that come with the role, but there are few requirements I have to fulfill. Does a preacher’s wife get paid for what she does? No. I volunteer my time freely and wouldn’t expect payment. I’m sure at a bigger church if I had an actual job to report to that I’d get paid, but at our micro-church no such position is needed. Pi Party Like I said before, I answer to no one as far as a boss or supervisor, so there is very little re...

I often get asked if I like being a preacher’s wife and what it’s like to be in that role. Depending on who’s asking, I’ll answer with “it’s fun,” or a more detailed description of what it’s really like. I find it difficult to put my finger on exactly what life is like in this role because I grew up in a preacher’s home. Being in a preacher’s family is part of who I am, so I feel like I live in this role naturally. Even though I thought I never wanted to marry a preacher, I can see God’s plans were perfect for me. Like I said, I grew up in a preacher’s home, so I’m well aware of the politics that go along with the job. I’m used to the spotlight, being watched and being criticized…it’s part of how I grew up and part of my current profession (teaching). I know God prepared me for my role as a preacher’s wife, and I know he protects me from a lot. Today, I’m sharing the pros and cons of being a preacher’s wife.For every pro there seems to be a con that follows. However, the fir...