Here are the five top things I like about serving as the pastor of Good Shepherd United Methodist Church:
1. Studying for, preparing, and delivering Sunday morning messages.
2. Conceiving and then carrying out an entire series in which we take a fresh look at an ancient subject. By working with a team on such projects, the end result is far beyond the initial concept. The ones I feel best about are There’s An App For That (the book of Proverbs), Rubber, Meet Road (the book of James), and Oddballs (a series on holiness).
3. Making videos like the one posted yesterday.
4. Walking with people in times of grief. I don’t like it as in, “hey, this is fun!” but as in “this is what the church is all about.”
5. Old-fashioned pastoral visits. There is still nothing quite like sitting in someone’s family room, finding out about their life and what brought them to this church, and then praying together. It’s the kind of treat that is increasingly rare as the church grows and life speeds up.