10 Lessons Learned From 25 Years of Ministry

The following are 10 lessons I’ve learned in 25 years of ministry:

1. The goal is not to win a debate but to redeem the heart.
   
   
2. One’s public witness is only as authentic as one’s private integrity.
   
   
3. There is no greater source of wisdom than the Bible and no investment that yields greater returns than prayer.
   
   
4. Hate is only validated when one responds in like spirit.
   
   
5. Jesus should never be presented as less than he claimed to be: the way, the truth and the life.
   
   
6. One should live first and foremost so as to please a heavenly audience.
   
   
7. One’s legacy is found not in things that matter least but in people who matter most.
   
   
8. The generation into which I am born is my calling and it beckons me to be fully engaged.
   
   
9. When Jesus paused while dying on the cross to make certain his mother was cared for, he showed how to prioritize family amidst ministry.
   
   
10. Sermons can inspire but it is love in action that makes the most profound impact.

As I look to the next generation of ministers I am keenly aware that they will seek to touch a world that is increasingly distracted. Absolutes will be challenged as those who oppose Biblical precepts become more organized and vocal. Their strength will be in presenting not religion but a relationship with Jesus Christ.

To the generation of ministers who have served before me that includes Billy Graham, Bill Bright and others less well-known but equally faithful I owe a debt of gratitude.

[ by: Rev. Bill Shuler -- from 'Keith Todd' (ktodd@vci.net) ]