A Ministry Mile-Marker

A couple of weeks ago, I hit one of those personal mile-markers in my ministry. My assistant shared with me that she logged my 1,000th sermon! That seems absolutely crazy to me! I remember starting out in ministry having one "Sermons" file folder that contained all I had. Now, I have 2 file drawers that are nearly full. I love the privilege and the task of preaching. 1 Timothy 5.17 speaks of those who "labor in preaching and teaching". It is a labor/work, but it is one that I love. Preaching is an essential part of God's Kingdom work. Romans 10.14-15 speaks to that...in part saying, "And how are they to hear without someone preaching?".

Each of the 3 churches that I have had the joy of pastoring have come with great ladies that served as assistants. Claudine (Marked Tree) and Fran (Warren) put up with me on a daily basis and were an important part of my ministry, as well as the whole church. A first for me now at Beech Street is that my assistant (Salli) primarily only covers me. I share her in a couple of other ways, but for the most part she belongs to the pastor. Of the many great things that Mike Huckabee did as pastor at Beech Street in the late 1980's, one of them was to hire Salli. I tell her often that she is the best personal assistant I've ever had...of course then I remind her that she is the only one that I've ever had to myself! Before coming to Texarkana, my sermons were in files, but were not organized. If God brought a previous message to mind, I just had to start searching for it. Salli has taken all my messages and logged them in Microsoft Access with several categories. Each sermon has info on it that includes title, text, subject, date/place preached, part of a series, etc. Each sermon is assigned a number and filed accordingly. I can search for and find any message with ease by using any of the above ways. Salli has spoiled me and I'm so grateful for her organization in this area!

I'm well on my way to working on the next 1,000, Lord willing. I never imagined that God would call me to a task like this. Naturally, I'm introverted and somewhat shy. I was voted "Most Quiet" as a senior at Western Hills High School in 1988! I'm humbled and overwhelmed weekly at what God allows me to do. I gladly accept God's challenge in 2 Timothy 4.2 to "preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching".