I have the great privilege of serving a church that recognizes the benefits of providing their Senior Pastor with an annual sabbatical leave. Though I have not always been able to take the time away that has been offered, it has been a tremendous encouragement knowing that the…
For over 25 years our family has made it a practice to pray for pastors, missionaries and other gospel workers on Saturday night. We stop and think about the fact that on Sundays, more than any other day of the week, the Word of God is being preached. Those…
Thirty-five years ago this month I began serving my first church as pastor. The Rock Prairie Baptist Church in College Station, Texas took a major risk on a senior Texas A&M student by issuing me a call to be their pastor. It was my happy privilege to serve them…
My mother taught me the old adage, “I can’t hear what you say because I see what you do.” In other words, when our lives do not align with our speech, then our message is unbelievable. This is a sobering reality for pastors. How many times have we unwittingly…
It’s common wisdom among pastors that no important decision should be made on a Monday. Especially a Monday morning. The nature of pastoral work causes the Lord’s Day to be a day that typically requires a great expenditure of physical, emotional and spiritual energy for a man who gives…
As I read this excellent post on “The Pastor’s Heavy Happy Heart” by Thabiti Anyabwile I was reminded of John Newton’s hymn called, “A Minister’s Burden.” I posted it a few years ago—which is like a whole generation in blog life—but think it is worth highlighting again. Newton and…
Last week John Piper preached in a chapel service at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His text was 2 Timothy 4:9-22 and he spoke on the difficulties of Christian ministry and the sufficiency of Christ. It is one of the most moving sermons I have heard in a long…
Dr. Fred Malone was gospel-centered before being gospel-centered was cool. I made that statement yesterday in my sermon at First Baptist Church of Clinton, Louisiana, during special services that were planned in honor of the 20th anniversary of his ministry as their pastor. I’ve know Fred for over 30…
As I have mentioned previously, for more than 30 years of pastoral ministry I have operated on the basis that maintaining confidentiality is important but not ultimate. Particularly in counseling situations it is important that the person with whom I am speaking has confidence that what is said will…
Since posting on this subject earlier this week I have been made aware of a wider dialogue about that has been taking place on blogs over the last couple of months. Below are some links to what others have written. What your pastor tells his wife about you by…