Placement so far.

This might come over as a bit of a moan.  Yes, I am enjoying my placement, and my supervisor is very good.  I think it is just the comparison with my last placement that makes this seem a little frustrating.  Last time I was unemployed through the whole length of my placement, so there was a lot more I could drop in on.  This time, I have a 9-5 job, so the only things I have been able to encounter have been those which take place in the evening or weekend.  It’s the holiday club this week, and there are daytime services, and team meetings which I can’t get involved in.

So I am learning about the dark arts of team ministry, but I am not as able to immerse myself in congregational life as I was on my first placement.  I don’t want to get to the end of October, when I have probation lined up, and be told that I haven’t done enough.

This brings up a bigger question.  Is the Ordained Local Ministry a ministry that is suitable only for those who are unemployed, retired, or can work strange shifts while training?  Or even after training?  

There is a considerable commitment required in order to become an OLM, including an expected 20 hours study each week per unit studied (typically two units per term), three hours per week plus a Sunday and all this over and above the need to hold down a job.  You need to be a strong time manager in order to ensure you maintain a healthy work/life balance.