Preacher's Amateur Week

Our Dad preached a sermon about how Christians should be amateurs. If my memory serves me correctly, he borrowed the idea from Fred Craddock. The basis of the sermon is that when we have a heart for serving God and others, it will mean more if we have the heart of an amateur, rather than a professional.

Most professionals do their work (or perform like athletes and entertainers) because they are paid for what they do. An amateur athlete, for instance, does what they do for the love of it.

As preachers, this week, like every other week, we will be called on to be involved in many things. We will visit hospitals and/or shut-ins, we will pray for others (both privately and publicly), we will prepare and deliver lessons, we will preach funerals, we will counsel those who are hurting, and we will attend meetings. 

If we go about our work in any of these areas, only because we are paid professionals, it will be less meaningful and less fulfilling to us. We have heard of some preachers who refuse to be involved in some of these works because they don’t feel they should do them "just because they are a preacher." 

If we do them only because we are paid, we might just not want to do them at all.  If we act as professionals, it will be easier for us to burnout and to become resentful toward those we serve. If we involve ourselves in this kind of work because we love it, we will do so with grace, gratitude, and a desire to glorify God.

May God help us as we go about our work this week, as we minister to others, and as we serve Him, to act like amateurs rather than professionals!