I've hit 50 posts! So, in grand comics tradition, I'm making this a special extra-sized installment of "The Adventures of Hofman." Thanks for your readership over the past year or so.
After about a year in professional ministry, I've concluded that being a pastor is the best job in the world. A lot of our lives are pretty isolated. We pay for gasoline at the pump (though not in Kanawha!), we check out our own groceries, and often we simply stay home and order things online. We keep ourselves occupied by looking at our individual smartphones. We keep track of friends and family through social media. We long for quiet nights spent at home. Many of us have learned to keep our struggles to ourselves. Rather than risk being perceived as weak or dependent, we try to solve our problems alone. Much of our conversation is little more than small talk, and we tend to ask how others are doing more as a way of being polite than as a way to start deep conversation. (I know that I'm generalizing freely here, but I think, dear readers, that these statements will hit fairly close to your lives, maybe with the exception of your relationships with a few close friends or family members.)
We can have strong tendencies to isolate ourselves—I know I do at times—but it's my job to share in other people's lives. As an introvert, talking to unfamiliar people isn't always easy for me. (Some of my congregation could probably tell you that!) But time and time again I find great joy in my conversations with others. As part of my job I get to talk to people throughout the whole spectrum of life and in a wide variety of jobs. Often I get to talk to others in their homes, and I don't even have to try to ask for money at the end. It's a blessing that's very different than a whole lot of professions. And because I'm a pastor, other people expect to talk to me about personal matters. I can't say I get strangers who come up to me on the street and start opening up about their whole life story, but because I'm a pastor I find many people do feel more comfortable sharing with me more quickly than I might expect.
In my young ministry career, I've had some of the most wonderful conversations. I've talked with teenagers feeling bold enough to stand before the church and make their profession of faith. I've spoken with parents about the grief of losing their adult children. I've listened to nursing home residents describing the challenges of adjusting to life with less freedom. I've chatted with middle schoolers raising interesting questions about faith and life. I've talked with children and grandchildren reminiscing about a beloved grandmother after a funeral. I've spoken softly with neighbors reeling from the sudden passing of a family member. I've chatted with children eagerly describing exciting events from their day at school and with parents proudly describing their kids' most recent milestones. I've sat with dear church members struggling with terminal illness, discussing the threat of death and the hope of eternal, resurrected life.
Sometimes these conversations can be heartbreaking. Many times I'm not sure what to say. But as I listen and try to understand, I find that God fills me with love for the people in front of me. I know that I don't love these people as perfectly or obviously as I should, but more and more I learn to love this congregation and this community. And even in the most difficult situations, again and again I see God at work. It's easy to be isolated. It's hard to enter into someone else's life or open up to another person. But just as Jesus promised, when even two or three gather in His name, He is there. That makes all the difficult loving and listening worthwhile. And this kind of wonderful gathering in Jesus' name is my job. It's the best job in the world.
Grace and peace,
BMH
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