Thoughts on Being a Pastor

I thought I would take this opportunity to reflect, with all of you, about being a pastor. I have to say that being a pastor has been, and continues to be, one of the most rich experiences of my life. I absolutely love the opportunity that the Lord has called me to be a part of. This is utterly humbling ---- because I am amazed that God can use a person like me to proclaim and share the good news that Jesus Christ is Lord. I have fallen in love with the church, and I have found the local church to be the place the Lord has called us to live into the prayer "thy kingdom come, thy will be done." When I get to serve beside people that the Lord has sent my way ---- I realize that I have been given an opportunity to serve beside Jesus. The Lord uses ordinary people to be his instruments of grace in this world. And we get the opportunity to say "yes" to Jesus' calling. As a pastor I get to be with people through birth and death, through the baptismal waters and partaking of the Lord's Supper, through weddings and funerals, through singing and scripture reading, through prayer and confession ---- and this is an awe inspiring position to be in. And I want to say thank you to all of you, for allowing the Lord to use a person like me to share the good news that Jesus Christ is Lord.