TWENTY THINGS I'D DO DIFFERENTLY IF I WAS STILL A PASTOR

Recently a read a blog post titled "10 Things I’d Do Differently if I Weren’t a Pastor Today"'written by Ron Edmondson. It inspired me to write this post today from an opposite perspective, as a former pastor now sitting in the pew..

I was privileged to be an assistant pastor for 11 years and a senior pastor for 26 years, planting two churches. So, I have spent most of my adult life in the pastoral ministry. I have been out of the pastoral ministry for the past year and a half working in a gym and as a security guard with a BA and Masters degree. It has been a strange, humbling, eye opening, and at times very sad and discouraging experience for me. I miss the pastoral and congregational life immensely. 

One thing my experience has done for me, especially since currently I am not involved in pastoral ministry, is to help me realize how much I didn’t understand about life for the average church attender who are is involved in pastoral ministry. I also have come to terms with the many mistakes I have made in those 36 years.

So, if I were ever on the other side again — and I was back “in the pulpit" — I’d change a few things about myself.

Here are 20 things I’d do differently if I were a pastor today:

1. I would remember that shepherding over precious people is a great honor and privilege, never to be taken for granted. It can easily be taken away as it was given. I would hold what I do very loosely and with reverence before God.

2. I would thank the Lord every day for the kindness of God allowing a sinner like me to lead people who are often more godly, loving, and God centered than I am.

3. I would let the congregation regularly know how grateful I am to be a pastor and their pastor. 

4. I would always let the congregation know that I love and appreciate them.  If I did not feel love for them I would ask the Lord to forgive me and restore that love so that could earnestly lead them.

5. I would let the leadership always know their value, worth, and my appreciation for them privately and publicly, especially all who volunteer their time. 

6. I would realize how hard people work, how busy they are, how tired they can be, and how many responsibilities and obligations that they have outside of the church that weigh upon them. This would give me great grace, mercy, and compassion in my expectations of them. Not everyone who misses a Sunday are carnal, backslidden, or uncommitted. Maybe they are just tired! 

7. I would never try to keep people busy but instead would teach them how to slow down, be quiet, enjoy nature, silence, and simplicity. 

8. I would not have revved up, loud, noisy, busy, distracting, and entertaining services but would long to create a centered, quiet, welcoming environment to meet, hear, and experience God in all His glory, power, and presence. 

9.  I would be just glad anyone shows up to hear someone like me preach and have a grateful heart rather than rising and falling emotionaly on attendance and giving.

10. I would never use the pulpit to take out my anger, frustrations, disappointments, or unfulfilled expectations on the church. I would never use the pulpit to elevate or exalt myself. I would never use the pulpit to manipulate, coerce, or fulfill my own personal agendas. The pulpit is meant to exalt Jesus Christ and His purposes, greatness, beauty, and glory. It's not about me!

11.  I would preach shorter sermons no longer than 40 minutes. I would strive for less verbiage, personal anecdotes, illustrations, and stay God and word centered. Too many pastors do not evaluate their speaking and what they afflict upon the congregations with their verbosity. Most pastors are not Piper, Spurgeon, or Whitefield and cannot get away with wordy, longwinded  sermons. People get tired and have only so long of attention spans.  I would get to the point. I would avoid long drawn out introductions before I even get to the text. I would be sensitive to my audience and their attention spans. I would remind myself that people need the Word and not my opinions. I would actually observe my hearers and find out if I'm reaching them or boring them and putting them to sleep.

12. I would truly remember that my marriage and family come first, live in that reality, and create impenetrable boundaries that communicate that to others. I would take two days off a week like everyone else and devote more time to the things that matter.

13. I would let my wife and kids know by my actions that they are more important to me than the ministry and church.

14.  I would spend more time with the Lord. Not just morning devotions hurriedly done because so much study, counseling, administrative, and sermon prep needs to be done. It only  benefits everyone around me. I would think about the person I bring to the table and I am blessing or afflicting others with. I would be more contemplative, quiet, and prayerful about my life and strive to bring peace and calm and quietness in the presence of others. This means I would practice the presence of God and people by listening more and speaking less. 

15. I would pray more with others, especially leadership and spend less time just praying alone. 

16. I would honestly, openly, and really make myself, my marriage, my ministry, my conduct, and my life accountable to others. I would not isolate myself and think I only need to be accountable to God. I would find godly men to counsel me, confess my sins and struggles to,  to speak over me and into my life, and be willing to listen and submit to their correction and wisdom. I would not isolate myself from others. 

17.I would take the time to have real friends both inside my local church and outside. Many times I have seen the closeness between people and their spending time together and realize how much precious time I missed investing in long term friendships because of my pastoral drive and ambition. I am a lonely man.

18. I would prepare my  people to face suffering, loss, disappointment, discouragement,tribulation, grief, and death. I would want to help them tether their lives in the love and absolute sovereignty and purposes of God so that they endure to the end.

19. I would repeatedly emphasize and demonstrate the love, kindness, forgiveness, mercy and grace of God in my teaching, words, relationships, and actions. 

20.  I would not waste my time, my life, my family, my church, my relationships, and ministry ever again! 

AMEN