About four years ago, I was a student heavily involved in collegiate ministry, growing in my understanding of Scripture, and being discipled by a woman in our church. However, even as I grew and learned more about the church, I remember asking myself, “Where do I fit in to all this?”
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Ronald Reagan once humorously repeated a story often referred to as the “Texas Sharpshooter Fallacy.” The tale involves shooting a gun at a barn, then painting “bull’s-eyes” around the bullet holes. For the uninformed, the aftermath makes the shooter appear to be an expert marksman, when in reality he only managed to hit the side of a barn.
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This month, I celebrated 43 years in full-time ministry. It’s hard to believe I’ve been at this work that long—maybe because most of the years have been great joys. Here are some things I would do differently, though,
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Last month, my church hosted an event called “Together for the Nations” put on by the International Mission Board (IMB). The purpose of this event was to introduce churches to the work of the IMB and encourage them to consider ways to join these mission efforts around the world. Several topics were addressed at this event, but the one from which I gleaned the most was about mobilizing God’s people for mission work.
As pastors, sometimes it’s hard to imagine there are people in the church who don’t like us. Maybe it’s a small minority, even just one or two people. But it’s true—sometimes people won’t like you. Maybe it’s because of decisions you’ve made. Maybe it’s your priorities or personality. Maybe it’s your preaching or even your clothing.
