I am going to let you in on a little secret. Your pastor has no idea what he is doing. And, for that matter, neither do I.

The pastoral ministry requires that you learn most of your skills while on the job. I read my Bible, and I pray diligently. There are conferences and workshops where people try to provide practical information. My office is lined with books about leading a Church and detailed descriptions of various tasks. But most of my lessons have come from trial and error.

Looking back over my years in Church leadership, I have some big regrets. There are things I wish I had said or done differently and times in which I should have behaved or spoken differently. Being a pastor is filled with mistakes, mistimed choices, and blind ignorance.

My leadership requires both the grace of God and the kindness of the people I lead. The fact that anything good happens at all is the result of serving a God bigger than my shortcomings.

What you do is hard too. I am sure you are learning while doing as well. The good news is that not only preachers can count on God to help them. All of us need God’s goodness and mercy, whatever we do. Somehow, he takes our ignorance and makes it work. Today I thank God for showing up one more week in my life to do those things that I cannot. I am also thankful that he did his work in your life too.