Ran across this excerpt from "The Christian Atheist" by Craig Groeschel. Really spoke to me and about my life as a bivocational pastor. This is something that has to be guarded against, especially for those who are trying to minister full-time and work full-time in secular jobs.

"As if on cue, when I was twenty-three, God opened a door for me to work at a historic downtown church. My dreamcome-true slowly turned into a spiritual nightmare. What started out as a good thing quickly became an obsession. My service was never enough. And as my love for ministry burned hotter, my passion for Christ cooled.

"My mission had become a job. Instead of studying God’s Word out of personal devotion, I studied only to preach. Instead of preaching messages to bring glory to God, I preached to bring people to church. I promised hurting people I would pray for them, but I usually didn’t follow through.

"At the age of twenty-five, I was a full-time pastor and a part-time follower of Christ."

[The Christian Atheist,By Craig Groeschel | LifeChurch.tv]