Ministry Marriage

 There is a special bond when God creates a ministry marriage between a pastor and a flock. It is a bond that defies description. It is unique. It is spiritual in nature and mutually beneficial. When God puts it together, it's one of the sweetest things on this earth. The love flows both ways. Prayers are exchanged. Service is given. Sometimes sacrifices are made. 

A man commented to me at the football game Friday night that if preaching did not work out for me I should consider law enforcement because I have a commanding presence. I replied, "I have the greatest job in the world." Getting to be a pastor was not a choice. It was a calling from God. It still is a calling from God and that currently roots Brenda and I in Fritch, TX. The calling is more than preaching. It is also shepherding people. Caring for them. Nurturing them. Loving them. Protecting them. 

There are many pastors who just use people in the church to their advantage. On the other hand, there are mean spirited churches who gobble preachers up and spit them out leaving lots of hurt in the aftermath. Neither of these is healthy. When God weds a pastor and a church together it is like a marriage. There is commitment. There is love. There is also honor and respect. 

I never planned to move to so many different churches. With one exception, I believe I have followed God's leadership in leaving and going. One time I got it wrong and paid a high price for it. I am now serving the eighth church as pastor in our ministry. We have kept in contact with people from several of those churches along the way. Just last week I talked with dear friends from FBC Paradise and Brenda and I attended a banquet celebrating the 120 year anniversary of FBC Seminole on Saturday. We shook hands and hugged necks with multiple people there we love and cherish. 

The following morning we were back at FSBC Fritch where I taught and preached. We loved on the people here and enjoyed a fellowship meal with them after church. Later that night, Brenda and I sat at a table with another couple for a prayer meeting that we do not always get to spend time with. People make ministry special. It is the bond between a pastor and the congregation that unites in harmony. We have loving, generous, hard working, and thoughtful people in this church. They sacrifice. They bless. They encourage. They show gratitude. It is an honor to serve here. 

I have often wondered what it would be like to serve a church for decades. I have not been afforded that opportunity. I can only imagine the bond deepens over time. The love grows. The mutual respect increases. Shared experiences create closeness. Sorrows endured together make the bond stronger. A ministry marriage should endure. Pastors should not look for greener pastures. Churches should not constantly run the preacher out of town. The desire of my heart has always been to stay at one church for decades. 

I remember well when God made it clear that we were to leave our beloved FBC Paradise people. My last Sunday I could barely preach from weeping. I never thought we would leave those people. When I said God made me, I am not exaggerating. We had a lifetime of work to do there. FBC Seminole embraced us right from the start. We experienced moves of God with those people unlike we ever saw before or since. Leaving Spring Creek was hard. Some were upset and others even mad. Brenda told someone that we preached about following and obeying God and we had to live out what we preached. I did not pursue First Southern Baptist Fritch. I did not send them a resume. Someone sent it without my knowledge. They came after me. God had His sovereign hands all over it. 

God taught me a valuable lesson early in my ministry. I was in college and served a church outside Atlanta, GA as a summer youth intern. I felt deeply in love with those students. On my last day we had a big youth event scheduled. Later that night I was to hop a plane back for the DFW airport. I cried through the evening as my time to leave approached. I contemplated rearranging all my plans and transferring to a different college so I could stay with that youth group. God whispered something in my soul something I've never forgotten, "I love them more you do and will take care of them." That does not mean the bond ends.