What Do You Miss Most About Being a Pastor, Dad?
By Mo Hodge
This past week while Jared and I were riding together in his pickup, he asked me a question, “Dad, what do you miss the most about being a Pastor?” I think my answer surprised him.
I told him that what I miss most are the times of being with people at key moments in their lives . . . in the hospital, in the nursing home or rehab center, during a personal or family crisis, at weddings, at funerals. He followed up with the question, “Why is that, Dad?”
I told him that those were the times that I felt like I made the greatest difference.
As I think back over my almost 40 years of ministry, those were the times I remember needing God the most . . . to allow me to bring His presence to someone in great need.
One of my earliest memories is of sitting with a young husband in the hallway of the hospital, waiting for the hospital staff to prepare his wife’s body so that he could see her. She died suddenly in a car accident. I didn’t know what to say. I simply sat by him and listened as he recounted events in their lives. His heart broken.
I remember talking with a man who was only a few hours from death’s door and asking him how I could pray for him. “To be forgiven” he muttered. It was glorious to be the one to assure him that he is forgiven and to know that Jesus would be there soon to take him home.
I remember getting a call from one of our staff members after the doctor told them their newborn baby had a birth defect. “How could God let this happen?” he cried. I had no answer. We prayed together over the phone. Now that baby girl is in law school!
The memories are so many. I could write a book. They make up the most sacred moments of my life.
Presence. That’s what is important. Being there. And in some mysterious way, helping God touch them in their moment of need.
A sacred calling.
As founding Pastor of The Bridge Community Church and Executive Director of Mo Hodge Ministries, Mo resources Pastors and Leaders in the area of leadership development. He enables Pastors and leaders in the following areas: Developing Teams, Church Growth, Church Planting, Discipleship Multiplication, Nonprofit Organizational Management, Multi-site Church Development, Public Speaking, Capital Campaigns, and Sr. Pastor Succession. … Mo and his wife, Nancy, live in Anderson, IN with their children and grandchildren. Though retired, Mo is still active in ministry, preaching, teaching, and planting new churches wherever the Lord leads. You can follow him on LinkedIn or through his Newsletter.
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