10/10/17 SOME PERSONAL REFLECTIONS and MINISTRY PRINCIPLES

10/10/17 SOME PERSONAL REFLECTIONS and MINISTRY PRINCIPLES
(not very interesting to most folks).

I have been pastor in N.C., Oh., Tx., Tn., and S.C. I always wanted to be where God wanted me to be, and I always enjoyed being where He wanted me to be and I always loved the people He allowed me to serve, though I always loved the coast and the Crystal Coast especially. But my joy was in my LORD, not in my location.

Yes, I really enjoy being "back home." I have a special affinity for the area, for the lifestyle, for the people, for the culture, for the sounds, creeks, beaches and the brogue of my Banker heritage, and for the opportunities on the water. I am thankful that my grandchildren get to enjoy the wonderful kind of life I had as a child, angling, netting, island exploring, swimming, boating.

I stay pretty active and sometimes my activities catch up with me. At seventy, and being hindered with physical problems, it takes me longer to recover and to heal. But God allows me to keep doing that which is beyond myself.

After a heavy week of work (I usually spent eighty hours in ministry, because I needed so little sleep), I would plan to relax and just enjoy the day. Then I would often find myself doing the things I normally did, because I enjoyed the work God called me to do.

These days I spend a lot more of my time doing "me stuff," like fishing, kayaking and kayak fishing. I often do this with family or friends and I usually spend part of my time witnessing to other people. In fact, I never really fished or boated much after my college days, when I worked on charter fishing boats during the summer and spent the rest of my time at the beach swimming, or on Bogue Sound fishing, boating and swimming.

I don't take away from ministry. I always put that first (and as a result I sometimes miss my tides). But personal, family time is a form of ministry. In fact there are times I tell my congregation to use their Sunday afternoons or evenings specifically for family time and ministry outreach to unsaved friends. Our morning service may last 2 to 3+ hours. We cover a lot of Scripture, and address every area of Christian living during our services. There is a lot of congregational interaction (especially from the young people).

Today is one of those days I need to recover, but when Martha asked me what I was going to do today, I said, I was going to take it easy... but I really did not know what I was going to do. She may find out later that I went kayaking, or fishing, or kayak fishing. If I do, I will also be fishing for men.