1. How has the practice of ordained ministry affected your understanding of the expectations and obligations of the itinerant system?
The expectations and obligations of the itinerant system are to help support the overall mission of the United Methodist Church: to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.[1] By serving in the itinerant system I am making a covenant that says I will maintain a strong connection between the ministries of the Church; provide accountability for myself as I grow as a disciple, and that I will be accountable to Jesus Christ and the Church in everything I do.
During my ministry, I have been a part of each of these aspects of itinerancy. Over the past three years, I had the pleasure of serving as the Sherman/McKinney District youth coordinator. While serving in that capacity I worked with several local congregations to host district youth events that brought youth together to fellowship, worship and be in mission with one another. Through the establishment of these groups, smaller churches with volunteer youth workers were able to be connected with larger churches to participate in ministry that they would never be able to do unless they charged their youth large amounts of money.
While together, relationships were built and other ministry was done collectively through partnerships with the churches. Several churches partnered together on summer mission trips, working together to make a difference in their local communities. The connectional system provided the support and encouragement of those activities.
Being an associate pastor at Grace United Methodist Church, I have been able to work together with my lead pastor Keith Head to reach out to our community. It is through that cooperative effort that we share in the same goal and work together to make our ministries stronger. It is through the support we give to one another that helps us grow as clergy.
While working toward ordination, I have established relationships with other provisionary clergy that I meet with monthly to encourage one another in the process of ordination. We plan to maintain these relationships to help keep each other accountable in our ministries and support one another through those difficult moments of ministry.
The main expectation that holds the itinerant system together is that we trust that the Holy Spirit is at work through the Bishop with the consultation from the cabinet during the appointment process. This shows that the ministry of the Church is bigger than one clergyperson or church and that God is guiding the Church to be effective in the task of making disciples and reaching out to the world in God’s love. I am committed to the itinerancy, and I trust that the Holy Spirit will work in me in order to provide ministry to God’s children in the setting to which I am appointed.
2. Do you offer self without reserve to be appointed and to serve as the appointive authority may determine?
I wholeheartedly offer myself without reserve to be appointed and to serve as the appointive authority would determine. I believe that I have been called by God to be in ministry in the United Methodist Church. By answering that call, I am placing myself under the authority of the Bishop with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Knowing that my ministry is a part of the entire connection, I commit myself to be sent to the ministry setting where my gifts and graces can best be utilized effectively to reach out into the community to make disciples for Jesus Christ.
3. Describe and evaluate your personal gifts for ministry. What would your areas of strength and areas in which you need to be strengthened?
One of my strengths is that I care about the members of my congregation and I want to help them grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. I have been told by several people who I have counseled that I have a calming presence and relational sense about me and that I use those gifts to help them discuss what is happening in their lives and to help them see that Christ is actively working even when they may not see it.
Another strength of mine is in the area of preaching. I enjoy being able to spend time during the week looking through the scriptures to see how I can connect God’s word with God’s people. I feel blessed that I can look through the scripture and make it come alive to my congregation. When I preach, I want to bring those who listen into the scripture so they may encounter the living Savior that I am preaching about and have their lives transformed by God’s Spirit. I see the act of preaching as a way to transform and equip the Church to share the gospel, while challenging and encouraging them on their own faith journey with Jesus Christ.
As of right now, I have the opportunity to preach approximately once a month. I look forward to that week of preparation, but I am looking forward to the day that I will be able to make that a part of my weekly discipline.
A third strength of mine is engaging people in mission and ministry by providing missional experiences for those desiring to be Christ’s hands and feet to the world. I love providing an opportunity for the youth and adults of the congregation to travel to a location in need to participate in home repair. Another area where I’ve provided leadership has been in the area of developing a missional relationship with a local elementary school by providing supplies, mentor relationships and other types of support. My hope is that the Church will live out the words of Jesus when he said, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”[2]
I would have to say my biggest growing edge has to be dealing with my self confidence. I know that I am a people pleaser by nature and I can get into the mindset of wanting to make people happy, which in turn causes me to doubt my own abilities. To ease this self-doubt I constantly remind myself that, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”[3] When I am able to remember that I am a vessel that God is using to minister to God’s children, I am able to find more confidence.
I am also constantly trying to find ways to have balance in my life. A difficult challenge is making sure I have quality time with my wife and children. One of the biggest challenges is balancing the day off I have without my family, without filling it with ministry duties and appointments. I know that a day of Sabbath rest is important, but I struggle with using that day off to be refreshed.
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