My Mantras: I take what I do seriously. I do not take myself seriously.

*My Mantras is a series of posts about the mantras I have personally developed over the years. Some will be personal in nature, others ministerial, and more.*

I have a serious job. In ministry, I walk alongside people in their most joyous and most dire of situations. I chat with engaged couples about to make their vows to one another, and heartbroken individuals who wonder why their story did not end with happily ever after. I have hugged couples wrestling with infertility and embraced joyfully those celebrating a new life coming to their family. I have prayed with those that received a cancer diagnosis, and those that have received word their cancer has disappeared. While nothing can truly summarize the experience of ministry, one facet you must understand is that you will experience both the highs and lows of life; sometimes all in the same day. Furthermore, the message we communicate as ministers is one with the weight of heaven and hell. There is a lot to ministry, and it is a very serious gig.

But while I have do have a serious job, I make an intentional effort not to take myself too seriously. I say “intentional effort” yet a better way to communicate that is, I don’t keep myself from being the natural goofball I am. I have a silly personality. There is no shortage of “embarrassing” pictures of me that have been taken. Even in preaching, if you are around long you may hear me bleat like a goat or wear a turkey as a hat within a sermon. I don’t do these things to just get a reaction, I do them because it is all part of my personality. I’m a natural goofball, and I’m ok with that.

These two dynamics certainly lead to a tension in my life. I have a serious job, but a personality that is often silly and goofy. That has led me to this life mantra: I take what I do seriously, I don’t take myself seriously. Whether preaching a message, leading a meeting, or consoling a family, these aspects of ministry deserve to be treated seriously; with respect, reverence, and recognition that I am serving on behalf of the Creator. Yet God also gave me the personality that I have, and I should not disregard that. When appropriate, I need to allow that goofy side of myself to come out. This has – in many instances – provided much-needed levity, laughter, or releasing of tension. It is being who God has designed me to be while keeping the significance of my ministry in mind.

To be clear, I do not always get this right. On more than one occasion I have had to apologize for being a bit too casual in a serious situation, or stressing everyone out from how serious I was being about a ministry task. Yet this is a saying, axiom, mantra, whatever that has served me well. And until instructed otherwise – or until I learn better – I will continue to take what I do seriously…even if I do not take myself serious