You Are Looking At A Minister

Dear Pali Pres,

While on my recent trip to Atlanta to attend a workshop, I visited a nearby United Methodist church (yes, pastors still go to church even when they are on leave…at least some of us do!).  It was a wonderful worship service, featuring a beautiful musical solo on the flute and an engaging sermon about Jesus as the Great Physician (Luke 5: 31).

But I noticed something else at that Methodist church that touched me just as much as the music and the preaching.  In the men’s room (and, I assume, the women’s room as well) was a small note taped to the mirror above the sink.  While it was only 6 words long, and contained no flashy graphics or images, it was impossible to miss.  It simply read: “You Are Looking At A Minister.”

What a great message and reminder!  I loved seeing that note because it conveys a truth that we sometimes forget, namely that we are all ministers of Jesus Christ.  Pastor Grace and I may be ones who’ve attended seminary and been ordained, but we are all given gifts of ministry to use in this world.  The Apostle Paul refers to these gifts as “spiritual gifts” and says in 1 Cor. 12: 7 that “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”  He then goes on to describe these gifts in detail, but his overall point should not be missed.  We are, indeed, ALL ministers with something good and helpful to offer the world.

I encourage us all to keep this in mind (maybe even tape a little note on our bathroom mirror as a reminder!) so that we, together, can show forth God’s Spirit in ways that promote the common good.

Your fellow minister in Christ,

Pastor Matt