The Mosaic

Verbs Not Nouns - 

Oscar Wilde once said that if you know what you want to be, then you inevitably become it, and that is your punishment. But if you never know, then you can be anything. We are not nouns, but verbs. We are not a thing, but a person who does things.

I’ve been sitting with this for the past several months. Growing up you’re always asked what you want to be. You’re conditioned to think of your life as a noun. What will you choose? Will you be a lawyer, a doctor, a journalist, an artist, or maybe a pastor?

For most of my life thinking of what I wanted to be gave me great anxiety. What if I chose the wrong thing? Or worse, what if I want to be a lot of things, but I have to give them all up because I can only choose one? That was always the root of my anxiety. I hated the idea of losing options.

I think there’s great freedom in thinking of ourselves as a series of verbs instead of nouns. I am a pastor, but what that means is I preach, I teach, I lead, and I care for people. I also mother, I run, I create, I write children’s books, I do so many things. Thinking of myself and my ministry as a series of verbs has felt less imprisoning to me, and I think it helps sustain the work I do.

Pastor burnout is a real thing, and I have a lot of friends who have chosen to leave the ministry. I’ve often wondered if part of the problem is that pastors are conditioned to think of themselves as nouns. They can’t be anything else but a pastor. Their whole lives are dedicated to the role. That's both noble, but also unhealthy.

I'm finding a lot of life in thinking of myself not as a pastor but someone who pastors, which then gives me space to also do other things, things that help sustain my ministry. I have a pastor support team who asks me monthly if I’m still doing the things I love outside the church. They’re helping hold me accountable to viewing myself as a series of verbs instead of nouns, because like me, they know this will only increase my longevity in ministry.

Wherever you are today, maybe release the nouns you hold over yourselves. What would it mean to you to consider yourself as a person who does things instead of being a thing?

Praying for you always,
Pastor Victoria