2/12/2025

Forty years. That’s how long Israel wandered in the wilderness. Forty years. Life begins at 40. Forty years. There’s something about that number . . . 

This past Monday marked my 40th year in ministry. Isn’t that crazy? I know. I don’t look that old. 

The first congregation I served as music minister was First Church of God, Winchester, Kentucky . They were a sweet, patient group of folks, and I have wonderful memories of those years! My first official service was the Sunday before Valentine’s Day in 1985. That would have been February 10. 

40 years ago.

Since it was so close to Valentine’s Day, I’ve always counted February 14 as my anniversary. I think it’s appropriate! As Mark Twain famously wrote, “Find a job you love doing, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” That’s mostly true.  As my dad used to tell me, “The ministry should be the most pleasant job in the world.” That’s also mostly true . . . 

One ministerial friend told me, “The Ministry would be great if it weren’t for people.” I think he missed the point! Ministry is about two vital relationships: my relationship with God and my relationship with others (does that sound familiar?). 

When I started as a 23 year old, I didn’t know what I was doing. Still don’t!  But here are some things I have learned along the way. 

Life’s too short to be stupid. By that, I mean that the dash between the dates on your headstone is short at best. Take advantage of it. Suck the marrow out of life, to quote Thoreau. Don’t do things that will sour the journey – things like holding grudges, being tightfisted, unreasonable, cruel, unforgiving or insisting on your own way. Life’s too short. 

Don’t worry about what most people think about you. Most of the time you’ll probably hear someone say, “Don’t worry what anyone says about you,” but that’s not realistic. It’s impossible not to care at all what anyone thinks about you. The key is to care more what the RIGHT people think about you.  Figure out whose opinions you should really care about and listen to them. Ignore everybody else.
Which is related  to: 

Don’t worry if some people don’t like you. This used to be a struggle for me because I’m a nice guy, and I want people to like me. But once I realized someone didn’t, instead of freaking out about it, I took into consideration who they were, and what they stood for . . . and thanked God they DIDN’T like me. 
As Martha Stewart would say, “It’s a good thing.” I don’t want the devil liking me, nor any of his agents – secret or otherwise.

Ministry is about loving others. Loving some people (none of you reading this) is like trying to hug a porcupine. How do you do it? Very carefully . . .  But God calls us to love them just the same! All the practical instructions in Paul’s letters have to do with our relationships with one another. The most famous chapter in all of Paul’s writings is the love chapter, I Corinthians 13.   Jesus said it was one of the two greatest commandments, “you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” You can’t miss it. But . . .

There is SO much more to the Bible than what most people have been taught. In Bible study, I try to get readers to pay attention to what’s on the page. But the problem is most people don’t know the Bible. A 20-something recently told me that even after growing up in a large church, she only knows 4 or 5 stories from the Bible. I think that’s true of most people. The story of the Bible is the story of God’s reclamation of his fallen world. Through Jesus, God is redeeming the world, and God is inviting us to take part! Which means . . . 

There’s more to the gospel than what we’ve been taught. In II Timothy 2:8, Paul writes, “Remember Jesus the Messiah, raised from the dead, a descendant of David—that is my gospel . . .” The gospel – the good news – is the proclamation that Jesus is the promised Jewish Messiah, the Anointed King, who God raised from the dead. He has come to take the world back from all that was unholy and he invites us to be part of his reclamation project. To do that requires faith! But . . .

Faith is more than belief. The Greek word we translate as “faith” means belief, yes, but that’s not all it means. It also means faithfulness, loyalty, steadfastness, fidelity, and allegiance (and probably more!). To believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died for us gets us in the door, but there’s more to it than that. To have faith in God is to pledge my life, my resources – EVERYTHING to Him and to the spread of God’s kingdom. That goes for all of us, but especially for those in the ministry. But . . . 

Ministry is impossible without the right team. In Leviticus 18:6, God tells Aaron, “It is I who now take your brother Levites from among the Israelites; they are now yours as a gift, dedicated to the Lord, to perform the service of the tent of meeting.” God set the priests apart to serve in the sanctuary; God gave them the Levites to carry on the work of the tabernacle/temple. Those who assist in the work of the ministry are a gift from God. I may be up front, preaching and teaching, serving communion, but that doesn’t eclipse the vital work of the chairman of the board, the treasurers, the advocates for resources, for worship, for nurture, for witness, and for outreach –  as well as the musicians, the tech person, those who clean, those who set up and take down tables and chairs  . . . I am thankful for all who serve alongside me (and who have served in past congregations), and I don’t take your work for granted; I count you all as a gift from God. 

Ministry is impossible without trusting God. There’s no way I could have foreseen the path that God had for me when I began this journey 40 years ago. But the most important lesson I’ve learned is to keep faithful to God and to trust God. God has never failed me. There were some shaky times . . . but that was more about me than about God. I’m still learning. 

 That’s it! There it is! I could go on (of course) but I’ll stop for now.  Here’s to the next 40!

Blessings,
Pastor Terry

PS - I follow Ruth Buzzi on Twitter (X) – if you’re of a certain age, you might remember her from the old Dean Martin roasts and Laugh-In. She’s a wonderful Christian lady, retired and living in Texas. She recently posted: “If you don’t have a Valentine for Valentine’s Day, don’t worry about it. You got through Groundhog's Day without a groundhog, didn’t you?” Happy Valentine’s Day!