G is for Guest Preaching
From Santa Claus, Indiana, to Muncie, and various points in between, I’ve had the honor and privilege of serving as a guest preacher, sharing the gospel message throughout this fine State. Church circles refer to this activity as ‘supply preaching’ or ‘pulpit supply.’ I don’t really like those terms because…well…much like the word ‘transubstantiation,’ nobody really seems to know what ‘supply preaching actually means. So I generally refer to myself as a guest preacher.
I’ve taken a brief hiatus from guest preaching over the last few months while Christy has been recovering from her procedure. It’s now time, however, to start ramping up my preaching again because I can’t stop. Seriously. I’ve tried. I’ve wanted to give up preaching. I promise. But I keep going back and doing it again and again and again.
If I remember correctly, one of my great-great-grandfathers* was an itinerant preacher who traveled the countryside and shared the message with area churches. So I guess you could say I’m following in the footsteps of a man I’ve never met, passing on the Light that has been passed on to me.
As you probably know, I spent four-plus years as the sole staff member in a small rural church in Indiana. I know what it’s like to try to find a substitute for a Sunday morning. It can be stressful to find someone to preach in your stead while you’re taking your family on vacation or to visit extended family out of town. I consider it a blessing to be able to help relieve some of that stress on pastors who usually have far too much stress and unrealistic expectations bearing down on them anyway. I guess you could say it’s a way I can minister to those who are ministering.
I think the most exciting thing about guest preaching has been to spend time with other believers from around the State. They’ve been an amazing encouragement! I’m looking forward to what God has in store for us as He continues to write His next chapter through my life.
I guess I can’t really write all of this without adding this little plug: If you know of any churches within less than two hours of driving from Indianapolis (this isn’t a hard-fast rule. I’m willing to make exceptions), it would be awesome if you’d have them look me up. No church is too small or too big. I would love to share God’s Word with them! They can check out some samples of some of my sermons at Sermons by Matt.
*I’m really not sure how many “greats” this grandfather is, so I settled on great-great. I’m sure you understand.
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