make sure you know where you are going.

Sit back. Enjoy.

Some brief thoughts.
Christians should be involved in politics, just like they should be plumbers, teachers and other parts of society. Like salt….

Moral issues are important in politics. Caring for the poor, the disadvantaged, the refugee, the stranger…these are all moral issues. It is a shame that the Christian lobby does not focus on these pressing moral issues more than the ones they are known for. Jesus is our example. What did he speak against? Greed, hypocrisy, lack of compassion.

I have many friends who are pastors. Some of them I have traveled with for many years. Others are new friends.

Some of the ones who started out as the best students at college, the brightest and most ambitious, have taken a different path. Some even left the faith.

Some have fallen in other ways, moral ways.

Some have grown tired of the politics, the fuss, the complaints, boards who think they are there to boss the pastor around, not empower him/her for ministry.

For some the strain on family was too much to bear. The sniping, the pay, the difficulties meant that another form of employment was preferable.

Some were just not meant to be in ministry in the first place. Grandiose or naive thoughts of what ministry was going to be were quickly brought to reality.

There are a myriad of reasons people leave the pastorate. Sometimes great reasons, sometimes perplexing.

Either way, you learn to appreciate those who have stuck it out and journeyed with you. You learn to care for and love those who at the moment find themselves out of ministry, but want to get back in. You understand those who have left and never want to come back.

Having been a pastor for the majority of my working life, and having no intention of leaving the ministry, you learn to appreciate the uniqueness of the role, and those who attempt to live it.

And it is still not over yet, so I don’t particularly want to blog about it yet.

But suffice to say that I have been very busy at Church. Selling property, buying property, attempting to sell property.

One piece of advice. Don’t bother taking a holiday if you have issues with settlement of property to deal with. You don’t really get a holiday!

It seems to me that there are some people who revel in taking offense.

Whether it be a perceived slight, not being included or something you say, their nature resembles that of a porcupine. Don’t get too close or you will get hurt.

Its a shame to live that way. To always be thinking that someone is going to offend you, and steeling yourself for that.

I used an illustration once at church which basically said that often we will look or observe a situation, word, conversation, and tell ourselves a story about that. That story we tell ourselves may or may not be reality. For instance I may see someone come into the room with a foul look on their face and assume they are mad at me. There may be 20 other people in the room, and they may have just copped a speeding ticket, but some will be sure that they are mad at them.

Life is too short to take offense easily. Being a quick forgiver, and not holding grudges is a much more healthy and happy way to live.