My Ministry Priorities

As promised, I have tallied up the scores and have come up with a summary of your priorities for ministry. Without question, Prayer and Bible Study were number 1 and 2. Evangelism came in right behind these two while Pastoral Ministry and Preaching were tied for 4th place. Just below the middle of the pack was Supervision/Administration followed by Time with Family, Missions, Counseling, Teaching, and Planning. At the very bottom of the list, basically honorable mentions, you included Personal Renewal, Community Involvement, Weddings, and Funerals. Thank you for participating in this little survey. While I was hoping for a larger number of responses, I appreciate those of you who did respond.

Now here is my list with my reasoning:
1. Personal relationship with God – First and foremost in this priority is Prayer and Bible Study. I don’t believe one is effective without the other, and I know that I cannot be effective without both of these. Please understand that this priority includes every aspect of my personal relationship with God including my call to ministry, meeting needs of others, and my responsibility to share the gospel. After all, Jesus said that “loving God completely and loving others as myself” summed up who we are as Christians and what we are supposed to be.
2. My family – The Bible says that a man who neglects his family is worse than an infidel, so I believe that I must spend time with my family. After all, it is one of the requirements of being a pastor, according to 1 Timothy 3. This also would include my time of personal renewal because Sonya has always been a large part of my ministry.
3. Ministry to Southside – In this I include Preaching/Sermon preparation, Teaching, and Pastoral Ministry. Please understand that Pastoral Ministry includes visiting the sick and shut-ins, ministry to members in need, weddings and funerals, and counseling.
4. Supervision/Administration – I include in this my role as supervisor of the staff, leadership responsibilities in the church, and planning for the future.
5. Fellowship with church members – While I would love to be able to visit in every church member’s home on a regular basis, that isn’t possible because of time constraints. Please know that I will always try to be there for EVERY member who has a need, and I will try to accept EVERY invitation to visit and fellowship, but with over 700 resident members representing approximately 250 homes, sometimes human limitations will prevent that.
6. Community Involvement – I don’t believe it’s possible to be “the salt” and “the light” that Jesus called us to be if we are not involved in our community.

Now you have my list of my priorities. I look forward to hearing your comments concerning
the list. In addition, next week I will share my thoughts as to what I believe YOUR priorities should be.

Am I Making a Difference?

No, I am not having a pity party. No, I am not looking for compliments. I think sometimes we all need to do a little introspection to see if we are really making a difference in this world because isn't that what we are supposed to be doing? I read the Sermon on the Mount that way. We are the salt of the earth -- flavoring, preserving, changing the world. We are the light of the world -- illuminating the darkness of sin and pointing to salvation. The apostle Paul says that we are ambassadors of reconciliation -- bringing the lost world to Christ. We are supposed to make a difference in people's lives. We are to be change agents. Am I making a difference? Have I helped to "change" anything? As I look back over my almost 30 years of preaching and 23 years as a pastor, I have seen lots of things change. I've seen people saved. I've had the privilege of baptizing the very young and the very old. I've seen churches grow dramatically and not so dramatically. I've seen churches go through difficult times and experience the fires of revival. I've sat by bedsides of dying saints and offered comfort to families of people who didn't know where their loved one would spend eternity. I've walked with people through marital crises and family struggles. I've visited people in jail, in prison, in mental wards. I've cried for joy and wept in sorrow with my church family. There aren't many aspects of ministry that I have not experienced over the years, but I have come to this conclusion. I have not changed a single person. I do not have that ability. If my ministry has affected any change, it is because of the power of Christ working in me and through me. It is because the Chief of Change has used me as an instrument in His hand to make a difference. My prayer is that I will always be yielded to Him that He might make a difference in a world that desperately needs change.

Note to Self: Pay the Gym Bill

Does that sound as crazy to you as it does to me? Why on Earth would anyone pay good money to do something they hate? Don't get me wrong. I don't mind hard work. I'll take a group of folks tomorrow to Edwin Hodges Ministry where we will spend five or six hours loading and unloading boxes filled with literature to be sent around the world. I've sat eight hours in a hospital waiting room (now that's hard work) ministering to families in crisis. I don't mind the working -- it's the working out that bothers me. I spend 45 minutes on an "elliptical" machine burning 500 calories and sweating like a pig, use the "equipment" to tone my muscles and still weigh 200 pounds. Yes, I weigh 200 pounds. Sonya says it's solid muscle, but that's another story. You work and you work and you work, and as you get older, you work harder just to stay where you are. Why? I'll tell you why. Because when I'm 97 years old, I want to be able to take care of my wonderful wife. I want to still be able to body slam my darling daughters (inside joke). I want to continue to annoy my super sons-in-law by having to put up with the constant comparisons to their fabulous father-in-law (just kidding, sort of). I want to bounce my grandkids on my knee -- if I ever have any. And, most importantly, I want to continue to stand behind the pulpit and preach the gospel with the same energy and enthusiasm as I do today at 46. Now tell me. Could there possibly be any better reason than that to pay the gym bill?

I Pick...You!

I long for the day that someone will come up to me before the worship service and say, "Pastor, you see that man that just came in the door? The one in the ragged clothes that looks like he hasn't bathed in weeks? Man, I have been working on him all week, and he finally came to Jesus." Please don't misunderstand. I am the pastor of a very loving, giving, ministering bunch of folks, but I have noticed that even in this context, Christians tend to be a little more selective as to whom they minister to. What I tend to hear most often is, "Pastor, have you made contact with John Doe this week? He would be a great asset to our church." Sadly, we want to focus on reaching those people who can do something for us. But Jesus said, "It isn't the healthy that needs a doctor. It's the sick" (Ben's paraphrase). My interpretation: Minister where the needs are. Don't ask what new members can do for your church; ask what you can do for people who are hurting. Isn't that what He meant by the parable of the Good Samaritan? Isn't that what He did during His days on the Earth? Sure, Jesus had wealthy friends that He ministered to -- but they were friends who came to the realization that they had just as big of a need as the lepers, the prostitutes, the poor, and the outcasts from Jewish society. The very people that we are so often fired-up about reaching are the ones Jesus spent very little time with. I'm just glad that in this game of life, God doesn't pick teams like we do: take the biggest, strongest, and fastest first, and then if there is room let the little guy play as long as he stays in deep right field. Instead, God looks at the world and says, "I pick...YOU!" Isn't that what John 3:16 says?