I love preaching but...

...I like talking to people one-on-one better.

I just came from Galleria. I preached at our 4 and 6 pm services on the Coneys. See Pastor Ferdie's blog for the gist of it. I love preaching coz I love learning new things and sharing it with others.I can't preach something I don't believe. I can't convince unless I'm convinced, and I can't sell unless I'm sold. So whenever I have a message to share, I always have to internalize it. The whole process of studying, praying, and reading makes little changes in me that always help me spiritually.

Then there's the challenge of being creative, meaningful, spiritual, and NOT BORING at the same time! (And I sure could use all the help I can get, especially in the last part!) Hahaha! I love thinking of new ways to present timeless truths. I love coming up with good illustrations. I get such a sense of anticipation when you know you're got something good that changed your life, and you're praying it will help someone else too.

That being said, I love meeting people on a personal level even more! After the church services, I met with a 13 year old young man from my small group of high school and college kids. We've been going through this church booklet we have called 121 and we were talking about Repentance today. I bought him dinner at Teriyaki Boy, and we talked.

He told me that school starts in 3 days for him. It was really encouraging going through the lessons with him because he would refer back to the first 2 times we met, showing that he grasped the connection and flow of the topics. He also told me how he started being nicer to his family, and now they're all beginning to become closer to each other. Then he said he started journaling his thoughts likes I suggested, and that it was really helpful for him.

I asked him if reading the Bible made sense to him. He said it did, but he had to really make a point to read it to understand. As we talked, he listened and asked questions when he couldn't understand stuff. I did my best to explain.

As our talk ended, he asked me to pray for his family coz they needed money for school supplies. I remembered I had some money in my wallet that someone gave me in Penang. I put it in an envelope and gave it to him, telling him that someone blessed me with it and I didn't need it. He shrugged, said thanks, and left. I went to watch Oceans 13 with some friends.

During the movie, his mom texted me. Apparently, the money was coming through at just the right time for them. She kept saying thank you. Later, he texted me himself. (I suspect he sneaked out of bed to do this, coz it was from his mom's phone.) He said the gift had really changed his family. I had to blink back tears and turn away from my friends for a bit, coz I didn't want to have to explain.

I got a few "good preaching"s and "great job, pastor"s for my sermon during the church service. But talking to people one-on-one is infinitely more fulfilling to me. You really get to see someone else's life change for the better, and you can only thank God for letting you play a part.

The amazing thing is anyone can do this. All you need is a desire to serve God by helping someone else. When you let God change your life for the better, you can then become a conduit for change in someone else.