Honest Thoughts from a Pastor

Have you ever felt like you had a passion for something but there was not a sign of an open door for years? I felt like that until last year. The end of 2018 was discouraging as my attempt to church a plant did not end well. The next year (2019) was full of a few interview processes at some churches that also didn’t end well. By the Summer of 2019, I told God I was done with serving Him in a church staff role. I would just spend the rest of my ministry encouraging pastors because I didn’t appear to be good at anything else. Then 2020 came. My first preaching opportunity in almost a year and a half came. The fire that had burned since I was a teenage boy to preach was as much alive as it was then. That led to 4 more preaching opportunities at the same facility and one at the church we attend.

This year is even better. I preached twice in the month of January. I have a podcast interview on February 17, 5 preaching opportunities in March, and a 5-day revival meeting in May. I am beyond pumped. God reminded me once again He is not done with me, and the call He placed on my life nearly 25 years ago is still valid.

You might be reading this and wondering where your open doors are. I was there. I wondered why I got passed by while many others got all the opportunities. I felt punished because of a divorce. Rest assured that people will label you, but God has a way of vindicating you while people act the way they are going to act. God has a way of shaping us while we are in the waiting room. He is either preparing you for something, preparing the people you will minister to, or both. He worked on me a long time before this moment, and I give Him all the glory. Would you pray with me about these opportunities?