I still practice my message each week, but I don’t force my world view on the congregation. In 24 years, I am the one who has changed. Next month starts my 25th year as Pastor of this church. I watched as God honored in a very unique way the “Get Er Done” world of rural ministry. I watched as people were moved not by the performance, but by the attempt at performance. What I learned was that the “Git Er Done” mentality was often sourced in a tender, humble heart for God. I would seek to learn why they did things the way they did. Fortunately, I promised myself and God that I would not make any changes for the first year. It needed someone to show them how worship should be done. Believe me, this church could use a good dose of structure and organization. I sat on the platform focused on all the things that I would start to change. I remember my first few months in rural ministry. We often had visitors on those days and we wanted our best to be on display. We focused on the best singers singing for all the special Sundays (Easter, Christmas, Mother’s Day, etc). We wanted people to practice and be prepared. This was true of the worship service as well. I spent hours focusing on a process and project to make sure that it was the best. I was taught that God requires nothing less than our best. I was raised in a world where professionalism was the focus. The process is often secondary to the completion of a task. The focus becomes accomplishing something. While it has many applications, the gist is the idea that we need to stop talking about it and do something. According to the Urban Dictionary, this was a phrase that developed in the 90’s and was made famous by Larry the Cable Guy.
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