We have many fine, dedicated, hardworking, intelligent, young preachers already, with more arriving on the scene.  I am impressed with the desire in many of our young preachers who want to do a work for God and do something real in the line of both home and foreign missions.  Make no mistake about it, it is not wrong to want to leave your mark upon this world. In fact, I wonder about those who are so passive they are content to go through life and scarcely cause a ripple.  The motto on the wall of my grandmother’s kitchen when I was just a child has never fully left my mind:

ONLY ONE LIFE, IT WILL SOON BE PAST - ONLY WHAT’S DONE FOR CHRIST WILL LAST

We may not be able to change the world, but we must attempt to change our world.  Let’s start by changing ourselves; then our family, our church, our city, town, or village. If you labor in a rural area, go for it.

God help us if we are willing to live a bland, insipid, mediocre, so-so life that affects almost no one.  We don’t have much time, so let’s labor with an intensity we have never known before.  Burnout happens to the careless and casual.  Contrary to what many believe, the best way to keep from burning out is to get on fire.  The old proverb tells us “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step, so let’s get going.”

I really didn’t want to be a pastor. I had opted for being a rich Christian businessman (for the glory of God, or course). Or, even a missionary wouldn’t have been out of the question.  However, when God called me to be a pastor, I was so excited that I readily gave up everything else.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 01  First Things First
Chapter 02  The Pastor’s Pattern
Chapter 03  The Pastor’s Praise
Chapter 04  Delegate, Pastor, Delegate
Chapter 05  The Pastor’s Standards
Chapter 06  The Pastor’s Unchanging God
Chapter 07  The Pastor’s Wisdom
Chapter 08  The Pastor’s Attitude
Chapter 09  The Acting Pastor
Chapter 10  The Pastor’s Discipline and Confrontation
Chapter 11  The Pastor’s Table
Chapter 12  The Pastor and World-Wide Evangelism
Chapter 13  The Pastor’s Global Outreach
Chapter 14  The Pastor and the Ultimate Sin