The Church Family

What do I wanna be when I grow up?  I wonder if I will ever grow up. What is God's will for my life? Maybe a Shepherd.I just don't want to wait until I'm 80 years old to be called into ministry like Moses was.

So I'm being trained to be a pastor. A shepherd of people. I mop the floors and clean toilets,  I set up and I take down. I have even picked up unspeakable things out in the parking lot.
"How would that particular item get onto the ground?" I ask myself feeling a bit defiled.

"I'm beginning to smell like my sheep". This is the  "in thing" for a pastor to say these days. Let me translate for you who don't yet know how to speak Christianize.

This little blurb means that the pastor has the earnest desire to know his sheep.A kinda "in the trench"  service man with the whole "out in the field"  sort of sheep smell. Please don't learn any Christianize if you don't already know some.

Lately, I cant wait to get home from church and wash off. We are such hypocrites. Drama filled, self pitying and very proud people. Wanting instant gratification with little or no effort. As the church universal we really do act like a giant herd of sheep. Following the lamb in front of us rather than keeping our eyes on Jesus. 

We all need to grow up!  Stop soaking in only the pure milk of the word. But begin chewing on some tough meat. The meat of the word is really just applying what we are learning. Yes, growing up into spiritual maturity.  But unfortunately, we usually are looking  for the right message or worship team to satisfy us. Have you ever heard "I didn't get anything out of the pastor's message" ?

Its not about us. Not us, not us, not us. Let me put it all into perspective. Its all about Jesus! It is not about you. You are just another spiritual brick in the wall. So lets all shut up our mouths and quit all the crying.

Now let me take a step back, breathe in  and out in an attempt to encourage you. Please find out what your spiritual gifts are. Make peace with others around you. Smile, laugh and cry with other real human beings. Plant your feet firmly in God's word and start growing! Produce fruit.Abide on the vine.

The night before Jesus went to the cross, He broke bread and poured wine into a cup. The disciples on the other hand were all busy arguing about who was the greatest among them. So Jesus stops what He was doing, puts a towel around His waist and washes all of their feet. Maybe there is something to be said about a pastor smelling of his sheep?  Jesus modeled servant hood for us all at a time when He could have been very self centered. But Jesus is not only our shepherd-king but our servant-leader.

So while I feel just fine to hug a homeless man who stinks to high heaven I'm not too happy about all the rest of the sheep in the sanctuary who on the outside look and smell clean but inside stink like Lazarus being four days in the tomb. Whitewashed sepulchers. They are the ones screaming "mine, mine, mine" or just really want to be lifted up before others. Nothing has changed since Jesus washed the disciple's feet 2000 years ago.

So I'm thankful for pastors who  take their time to teach the ins and outs of Christian living to all of us. And I have seen  pastors who do wash feet regularly, just like Jesus did. Maybe not with soap, water and a towel but with their lives. They put so much time  into all of us. So maybe we better all pick up some slack for them, mortar up our  mouths and start by just being content as another spiritual brick in the wall.