Who am I as a pastor?You will come across many different types of pastors. I like the acronym that I heard Rick Warren used before and I believe it relates to pastors as well. We each have our own S.H.A.P.E.

SPIRITUAL GIFTS-abilities that God has given us to share his love and to serve others

HEART- the special passions God has given you so that you can glorify him on earth.

ABILITIES- The set of talents God gave you when you were born, which God wants you to use to make an impact in the world.

PERSONALITY- The special way God wired you to navigate life and fulfill your unique Kingdom Purpose.

EXPERIENCES- Those parts of our past, both positive and painful, which God intends to use in great ways.

Looking at my own life I have taken various spiritual gifts tests and almost always the top ones are Teaching, Preaching, and Evangelism. For my heart, I am drawn to helping the church think outside the box and find new ways to share the love of Christ. I am not opposed to old ways of doing things, but I also like challenging people not to rely on the programs of the church to do all the work but instead reflect on where each person is already connected and invest there. Leading and guiding the church in prayer is significantly important to me and at the same time, it is easy to ignore and instead focus on our own ingenuity. Yet, for us to be the Church that God has called for us to be we must be a people of prayer. As for abilities, I think one of my greatest abilities is to be able to connect with a variety of people in a variety of circumstances. I have the ability to connect truths and experiences in the Bible and connect them with our lives today. When it comes to my personality I tend to register as a borderline ESFJ/ESTJ. For those familiar with the Enneagram I am a 1wing2. On the StrengthFinder test, my highest ones are Achiever, Woo, Harmony, Consistency, Belief, and Communication. When it comes to my experiences I have had lots of ups and downs like many others. I did not grow up going to church and didn’t become a Christian until I was in high school. I went to public schools until college where I began pursuing the ministry. I have dealt with having little growing up when my parents divorced when I was young. I dealt with being 500 miles away from my father and my mother having to use food stamps and welfare. I can also remember times living with my father where we were financially secure. I have had times in my life when I have had extreme bouts of depression and anxiety and times when I was filled with peace and joy. I have gone through a divorce after adopting my oldest son, and I have been remarried now for almost 10 years to my lovely wife with whom we have two beautiful and spunky young children.

Why do I share all of this? Because no two pastors are alike. When it comes to myself, there are other pastors and churches out there that would be supportive of my beliefs, my calling, and my vision for the church, and then there are other pastors and churches out there who quite honestly would probably view me as a heretic! 🤣 Being the ripe middle age of 42 I have become more comfortable being who God has made me to be. When I was younger in ministry it would eat at me greatly if someone didn’t like me, didn’t like where I was leading the ministry, but through time I have realized I am not going to be everyone’s cup of tea (I can’t remember who used that term but it has stuck with me). The good thing is I am not meant to be everyone’s cup of tea.

This truth does not only apply to pastors, but it applies to you too! You are not going to be everyone’s cup of tea! I can remember my senior year in high school someone came up to me in the hallways and said to me, “I just want you to know I don’t really like you. I don’t know why I just don’t” then they walked away 🤣 I honestly don’t even remember ever talking to that person before or after that! The same will be true for you.

So, I would encourage you not to try to be who everyone else wants you to be, and while I think having people we admire (I do) can be helpful don’t try to be them either. Instead, find out your S.H.A.P.E and then fully engage who God has created you to be.