Very Satisfying

This afternoon, I enjoyed the honor of speaking at a retirement home in Culpeper. It's only my second time there, but I found myself enjoying it very much.

Of course, the setting is quite a bit different from what I enjoy every week at Hope. There were about a dozen seniors in varying degrees of health scattered about the room. Some of them listened intently while others seemed pretty drowsy. We sang a couple of songs from a hymnal -- one with the help of an organ, the other led by a guitar. A nice gentleman performed "Were You There When They Crucified My Lord," complete with a quirky-but-charming rhythm and melody. The message was very short -- sort of a 15-minute version of what I shared with Hope last week. (Hmm? Can I really make the same point in just 15 minutes? Uh oh...)

When it was over, I stood by the door and shook a few hands, received a few "Thank you for coming" messages and a boatload of smiles. But the real reward was something intangible. It just felt... hmmm... _satisfying_. It was an honor to offer a few words of encouragement to these senior saints. I can only imagine all that they've seen and experienced, as well as their many years of serving God faithfully. I had this profound awareness of God's love for this handful of men and women, especially in light of some physical challenges I noticed. Our Father cares for them with a beautiful tenderness, and I had this satisfying sense of representing his love simply by being there.

Sometimes being a pastor is just the coolest job in the world.