Changing Directions

I have decided to rethink my approach to this blog. My original attempt was to provide a place for people to find ministry helps, devotions and church/ministry links. While I believe it was a good idea I just didn’t have the time, or talent, to make that work. That is why it has set without any updates for over a month.

So I’ve decided to make Abundant Living my personal blog about the life of a small church pastor. I will be a place for me to rant, vent and share. It’s also a good way to help keep family and friends up on what God is doing at our church and in my life. If you think about it there really is no greater life than one lived in the will of God. That truly is the abundant life!

After serving as a youth minister for almost thirteen years I surrendered to pastor my first church in July of last year. It was a struggle for my family and I. We had lived in a small town in northeastern Oklahoma for the last three years and we loved it. We served at a great church and were in charge of a great ministry in a great community. Even though I had felt the Lord calling me and had surrendered to pastoral ministry almost two years earlier I never thought I would be a pastor this early in my life. I honestly planned to stay in student ministry until well into my forties but here I was at age 31 being called to pastor a church.

Saying yes would mean moving my family back to Oklahoma City and taking over a church that was smaller in attendance than what I currently had in my student ministry. The first Sunday I preached at Mayfair we had 43 people in our worship. I can remember questioning my decision to move here while I was preaching the message.

God has been faithful to our calling and to our church. He has blessed us with over 40 new members in the last eight months. Needless to say it has been a tremendous blessing the way God has blessed our church with growth especially for my family. When we first arrived at Mayfair there were no children the same ages as mine. Now there are enough children that we have the need to begin a children’s church program.

Last month members from Mayfair served on the mission field as five members from our church went to Panama for a week. Two members from other churches even tagged along with us.

To this point things have been good and I pray that they keep getting better. I am sure the struggles will come along the way but Jesus never promised us the easy life it was the abundant life that he promised and desires to freely give.