So, this past summer I accepted a job with one of the local churches in Calgary. I am the children's pastor there. Let me tell you, this has been one steep learning curve! But it has been absolutely worth it!
A few things that I have learned:
- Don't think that you can do it all by yourself. I learned this the hard way. I had to ask for help eventually. But when I did, it made it that much more enjoyable and less stressful!
- I will screw things up. I will mess things up so bad that I don't think I could ever recover from! But it gets better. There are people who will help get through it and help fix things.
- If something is going to go wrong it will. These things do not only happen by themselves...There will be many things that go wrong.
- The children will surprise you! There will be times that these kids just astonish you with what they learn and what they remember from week to week.
- The children will steal your heart. I've been working with these kids since the summer now and they have captured my heart. They are so precious and even if they are having a bad day, they are still cute and precious!
- The congregation will become a part of who I am. They will become part of what I do. They will be the ones that I want to minister to. They are the ones I want to serve.
- I can't do anything without my volunteers! These people are amazing. They are willing to do anything that's needed above and beyond what's needed. These people are what makes my ministry go!
- I can't do anything without God. He is the one that provides the energy, the stamina, and the excitement! There is no way that I could do what I do every week without God.
This Christmas is my first Christmas play with the kids. It has also been a learning curve. There are things that I will make sure that don't happen again. I need to be better prepared for it. But it is also rewarding. The kids have been working hard and it is coming together. We perform on Sunday and things are falling into place.
This job is also everything that I have ever dreamed I would have wanted in a career. It is my calling. It is my vocation. It is what I am supposed to be doing with my life. Have you ever had when something is so right that it is amazing? Well, that is what this is!
I LOVE being a Children's Pastor!
