4. I Can Invest My Life in Serving Others
Service isn’t as popular of a word today as “stage,” “platform,” “crowd,” or even “leadership,” but it’s the heart of the ministry. Jesus didn’t come to be served; he came to serve. What I love about the ministry is serving the Lord by serving others. I am not spending my life or wasting my life. I’m investing it by pouring it into others and helping them in their walk with Jesus, helping them to know and apply the Bible, and helping them as they seek to raise their families and wrestle with the struggles of life. A shepherd should love and spend his life watching over and caring for his sheep. Ministry is service, so remember, “If service is beneath you, leadership is beyond you.
5. I Have the Privilege of Walking With My People Through the Valleys and Celebrating With Them on the Mountaintops of Life
When I first became a pastor, I thought the ultimate goal of ministry was standing before the people and preaching the Bible. I firmly believe in the primacy of preaching as the highest and most significant thing we get to do as a pastor, for a host of reasons. However, don’t forget that they don’t let you come to the hospital and pray for them when they’re sick or lead out at their funerals or perform their wedding ceremonies because of your preaching. They come to hear you preach, and maybe even pay attention to what you say, because you visited them in the hospital, buried their parents, and married their children. Preaching is the privilege we get as pastors for being there for the moments and milestones of our people’s lives.
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My pastor, the late Dr. Adrian Rogers, always told us young preachers that if God has called us to be pastors, we should not stoop to be kings. At first, I didn’t know how to take what he’d said. Now, 28 years later, I agree with that statement and want to share it with the generations coming behind. I echo what Paul said to his son in the ministry, Timothy, “And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry.” There is no higher calling, no great honor, and nothing I love more than being a pastor!
This article originally appeared here and is used by permission.
