I have a very busy week in front of me. I’m one of those guys that gets a little nervous looking at what has to be done in a certain amount of time. It freaks me out. I somehow get everything done, but can never seem to remember that as I head into another busy week. This week is one of those.
I went and visited a children’s ministry in Crestview, FL two weekends ago. We are planning on restructuring our children’s ministry extensively. Of course, that’s gonna take some time, but I’m gathering ideas and input from people along the way – no need to reinvent the wheel, you know. This whole restructuring thing falls under my job title: Director of Discipleship and Family Ministries. While visiting the church, my wife briefly spoke with the lead pastor there and they discussed why we were down in Crestview. The lead pastor said, “So Sam must be the children’s pastor?” Beth said, “No, he’s the Family and Discipleship Pastor.” “So what are his responsibilities?” the lead pastor asked. ”He is over areas of discipleship like small groups, member assimilation, and jointly responsible for broader areas like adult spiritual formation. And he’s also over children’s ministries and family enrichment. So he’s involved in everything from the nursery to marriage retreats,” Beth explained. “Wow -that’s alot. It must be a smaller church then.” the pastor said. Beth replied, “No, it’s 1200 members.” The lead pastor said, “What!!” and started laughing, probably questioning my sanity all the while.
So, I’ve come to understand the phrase “broad job description” in a new way. 
Luckily, I would rather be busy than not. And changes that are made at Thomasville First Methodist takes months to implement – some take years. Though I’d like for the church to turn like a speed boat, it’s more like turning the Titanic. I was laughing with the nursery director today that though I try to be systematic and focused, working at a church is more like floating in a lake surrounded by objects. The objects that run into you the hardest usually get the most attention. Most of my day is spent bouncing into issues and obstacles. And sometimes the larger goals can get lost. But it’s still true that an elephant can only be eaten one bite at a time. So that’s what I’m doing: one big bite a week.
The youth director gave me some advice my second week there. He said, “Make sure you do your research and when you implement or restructure something, do it well from the beginning. You don’t have to do everything tomorrow, but when you do it, make sure you do it right.” Good advice.
We have raised roughly $25,000 each year to build homes for orphans and families affected by the Rwandan genocide. It’s been one of the most rewarding events our church has ever undertaken. Along with our yearly Advent Revolution ministry, we have sent groups of missionaries to help build the homes and minister to the locals on a personal level. 
We’ve managed to cause a stir in the process. 
