Saturday evening I was sitting in our living room watching TV when I suddenly realized that this month marks my 40th year as a minister. It was in July 1981 that I began as pastor of Hebron Baptist Church. I admit to being a little stunned thinking about four decades serving as a minister. For the first 20 years I served as pastor of that church. The next 14 years I served as a Resource Minister for our region. Since retiring from that I've spent the past 6 years doing supply preaching in between two stints as a Transitional Pastor.
As I taken a little time to reflect on these past years it is striking how bivocational ministry has become much more acceptable since I began serving in that capacity. In 1981 there were few resources available for bivocational ministers. We were not especially appreciated by other pastors nor often by our denominations. Today there are a number of books and other resources that focus on bivocational ministry. Denominations offer conferences and workshops for their bivocational ministers. Some schools now offer programs geared for bivocational leadership. Many denominational leaders now recognize the value of bivocational ministers and are intentionally looking for such ministers to serve in some of their churches.
As I write this I'm looking at 40 years of accumulated books filling the shelves on three of the walls in my study. Every shelf is overflowing, and I have no idea how many books I've given away or tossed as they became outdated. These books have served me well in my sermon preparation and in my efforts to know how to best minister to others. At my age I probably should think of getting rid of most of my books, but like many pastors it's not easy for me to do that. At least I'm not adding to my collection as much as I used to.
Yesterday I baptized a young man in the church I'm currently serving. What a blessing that was! Every person I've baptized over the past 40 years has blessed me. The one thing I missed most while serving as a judicatory minister was not getting to baptize people as the pastor of a church.
I suppose I am still amazed that God called me to this work. Those who know my story know that I began my pastoral ministry with no experience and no education beyond high school. Sometimes I think I was the least likely person to be entrusted with such responsibility, but never in these 40 years have I ever doubted that God did call me into the ministry. I do regret the many times I failed to be the minister I should have been, but I thank God for the way He has used me.
There is no greater calling than that of a minister. I believe someone once asked Jerry Falwell if he ever considered running for President of the United States, and I think his response was that holding that office would be a step down from serving as the pastor of a church. I agree with that completely. What a blessing it is to serve a church, and I am thankful for the opportunity to now serve as the Transitional Pastor of a wonderful church. I've retired twice so far in my life, but I've never retired from the ministry. I'm looking forward to many more years serving God and the churches He allows me to serve.
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