I have a term for the life of ministry. I call it “life in the fishbowl.”

This life has many benefits: It offers flexible hours; It is never boring; It helps me keep on top of the spiritual disciplines; It has the potential to create healthy and long lasting friendships based around more than just work; There is an experience of the supernatural and transcendent that no other vocation offers; There is a level of respect and admiration that is gained by serving a community out of this lifestyle.

But there is a cost as well. One of those costs is “life in the fishbowl.” The life I live I live largely in the public eye. Much of who I am and what I and my family do is up for public inspection and comment. It is a fact that is true for every person whose vocation is in the public arena: entertainment personalities, political figures and clergy.

I have lived in the fishbowl for such a long time now that many times I don’t even pay attention to what people are watching. And like most fish in fishbowls I have found my places to go when I need to be “by myself”. I know how to create boundary space: Send calls to voicemail, stay away from e-mail or Messenger, hide in the Vicarage or in my room.

Still sometimes living in the fishbowl it is hard to know when I should be going to my private space or when I should be letting people see me in all my glorious triumph and ruination. I struggle sometimes with how much of my victory to share and even more how much of my pain to share. I don’t think I am alone in that struggle. I just think in my position it takes more work to hide both triumph and trouble so perhaps for me it is a more intentional hiding, when I do hide.

HOW MUCH OF YOUR LIFE DO YOU KEEP UNDER WRAPS?