31 Joyous Memories of Ministry

Some days, ministry’s hard. Some days, you at least briefly think about quitting. That’s when you need to run to memories like these that capture my thinking today – one for each day of the month:

1. 1. Baptizing 17 people the first time I ever baptized someone. That happened because our church borrowed a sister church’s baptismal pool, and we had to schedule baptisms.
   2. Baptizing a 7-year-old who dove into the baptistry. Head first. It was wonderfully God-honoring.
   3. Officiating the wedding of a young lady who had led her soon-to-be fiancé to the Lord. She wouldn’t marry him unless he knew the Lord, so she prayed. And kept praying until the Lord grabbed him. Their wedding was worship.
   4. Dedicating the children of parents I had baptized when they themselves were children. Ministry to second and third generations is really special.
   5. Seeing a broken marriage restored. The husband had been mean, but the gospel changed him. Unbelievably so.
   6. Watching parents rejoice when their long-term prodigal comes home. I wasn’t sure their tears would ever dry up.
   7. Watching the eyes of believers light up as they hear and understand the Word. I’m not even sure I could put into words what that’s like. The Word really is powerful.
   8. Seeing young men I’ve invested in do greater things than I’ve ever done. It seems to me that’s what discipleship is all about.
   9. Preaching for the first time as the pastor of a congregation. There’s a weightiness to that responsibility that’s humbling.
   10. Genuinely celebrating the home-going of a brother who was a mentor to me. I doubt I would have met him otherwise were it not for my doing ministry.
   11. Celebrating with my church my own wedding. I had been their pastor for years before Pam and I married, and they rejoiced with us on that day.
   12. Sending out church members to be missionaries around the world. The gospel goes on because my congregation raised up and sent out others.
   13. Getting pictures from children who drew me preaching during the service. I usually put them on our refrigerator to this day.
   14. Becoming long-term best friends with church members. They’ve been more than church members; they’ve been family.
   15. Seeing believers trust God in the most difficult circumstances. Their faith put mine to shame most of the time.
   16. Hearing the voices of missionaries singing in their mother tongue. When they get together for worship, it’s quite amazing.
   17. Giving teens and college students opportunities to get their feet wet doing ministry. Young people are zealous. They’re eager. They’re fun.
   18. Simply being a spiritual shepherd for others. That’s a remarkable responsibility and privilege.
   19. Signing baptismal certificates and marriage licenses. Both mean I’ve been privileged to share significant events with others.
   20. Seeing folks like “Brother Glenn” get saved. They’re trophies of God’s grace—and God graciously allowed me to walk with them.
   21. Watching faithful believers serve God for decades as they live well and end even better. You know the gospel matters when you sit with them facing death with peace.
   22. Teaching the Word of God. Why God lets me do this work at all, I have no idea. I’m grateful.
   23. Praying with a hurting believer. Comforting someone with words of prayer is humbling and powerful at the same time.
   24. Hearing the words, “Pastor Chuck.” That title means more to me than “Dr. Lawless” any day.
   25. Meeting a believer that missionaries had led to the Lord years ago. It’s incredible to meet the fruit of a missionary’s labors decades ago.
   26. Hearing other believers pray for you and your family. All you can do is listen in gratitude.
   27. Fasting for God to do something mighty among your people. It’s just a special time when you long for God to move more than you want to eat.
   28. Teaching Vacation Bible School stories to kids who have never heard them. You almost forget kids like that exist in our country until events like VBS.
   29. Serving as a “bus captain” in the church’s Sunday morning bus ministry. I’m dating myself with this one, but it was fun greeting kids every week.
   30. Just knowing that the people of God love you. It’s sweet, even when the same people sometimes drive you crazy.
   31. Living out my calling. Every day might be challenging, but every day’s sweet, too.

If ministry’s tough for you today, I pray one of these memories brings something to mind for you. God bless!

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