May 4, 2010
On December 14, 2008 I was congratulated by our church for my recent graduation from seminary. In my brief words after the applause, I stated that when persons ask me in the future where I attended seminary I was going to reply Asbury Seminary & Trinity UMC in Ruston. This stands true today as I write this “40 days of change” devotion.
God blessed Shelley & I greatly when he called us to this awesome congregation. Most people are shocked when I tell them that I was age 23 when the Pastor Parish Relations committee hired me in March of 2000. What an amazing journey it has been for me and my family as we have come to know Trinity and Ruston as home.
Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is full of living power. It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are.”
My wonderfully challenging time at Trinity has been an exposing one as I have been challenged to grow and learn through being a part of a team that helps to lead our great church and as I trudged through 6 great years of seminary education.
When did CHANGE happen in my life here at Trinity…..Well as a good Wesleyan I can say that I have changed, am changing and will continue to change and grow all the while being sanctified by the Holy Grace of God.
Where I’ve changed is in/through my understanding of what it means to be a called & set apart minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Trinity and seminary have taught me that being set apart is not a role that is filled with recognition and reward, but a role that sees oneself as a servant and one whose life motto is that “it’s not about me”. Brother Rolly Walker spoke those words of truth to me years ago as he mentored me through the candidacy process as I entered the ordained ministry. He pointed to me after I asked him what the most important thing about being a pastor was….”It’s not about you & it’s not about me”….Life changing words they are when put into practice in our everyday lives. As I’ve read the Gospels over and over….It’s clear that in addition to Love, this motto, “it’s not about me,” could be the subtitle of the teachings of Jesus…..Each day I try my best to make it “not about me.”
Where I’m changing is in my role as a pastor. For the past 15 years I’ve spent countless Sunday nights loving students and trying to help them understand their identity to be in our Lord, not the world. Adolescence is one huge identity crisis where in which I have witnessed hundreds upon hundreds of teens struggle with “am I normal” and “what will I be—who will I be like?”….Our hope and prayer is that students will see their first identity as coming as a child of God!
I’m changing in that I am beginning to realize that my season of being a minister to families with youth is coming to an end. People through the years have often asked me when/if I would become a “real pastor”…Well let me tell you, ministering with students is as real as it gets….However I have almost always answered their question with this answer—“when I begin to expect teenagers to be adults I’ll know its my time to transition into adult ministry.” I’ll always be a pastor to youth, just like Jerry & Andy are still very much pastors to our students….However my time is coming to a close when I focus my ministry efforts mostly on teens.
Where I will be changed in the coming years is still yet to be determined, however I am confident that God will continue to use His grace-filled servants at Trinity and in our awesome United Methodist church to refine, expose, challenge and uplift me to become the sanctified believer that God has called me to be….
In His Grip
Brian Mercer
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment