We All Need A Paul In Our Lives!

The past few years has taught me quite alot. But, probably the one thing I have learned is how bad we all need a mentor. Like Timothy had Paul in scripture...we all need a Paul in our lives!

I say this because we need someone who truly cares about us, believes in us, and is wiser than we ar...able to speak into our lives. Or to listen to the train wrecks we are climbing through in an attempt to survive lifes crashes.

I hate to admit...I have no Paul. Nor have I ever had a person that is like a Paul to me. I have had pastors, bosses and older people that just loved me. Unfortunately, I have never had that one leader that poured his life into mine....man do I regret that.

Its not that I haven't tried. I love the pastor I came to Christ under. He was a great preacher! But, his leadership skills were not extremely strong. He was caring, compassionate, and a man of prayer. He did influence me to be a person of prayer. After moving away for 10 years I found myself under his ministry again. He was great but distant. Once I began pastoring another church come to find out he was having an affair with his Timothy's wife!

While in college I connected with a ministy that I thought had what I wanted. I was faithful to them, and they were faithful to me. It was great! Then, things changed in our relationship. It was my fault. I made a comment in passing to a church member that I thought my pastor was being a little controlling and untruthful in the way he handled the firing of some staff members. That's when I learned the Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde of ministry. Don't cross the boss! The pastor and I did reconcile. He actually appointed me to the church in Enterprise. And you know the rest of the story....

My first full time church position was some of my happiest times in the ministry. Growing church, growing as a leader, still friends with most of those members, and my pastor was a great guy. Just the type of person I loved to be around. He loved me, he complimented me, he corrected me, he prayed for me, he recognized my leadership....he was what I needed. When I tried to really bond...I realized his wife was not welcome to him having someone like me in the way. She lived by a conspiracy theory....everyone was trying to take over the church...and that included me. She was actually our secretary for a while, and I had to talk to my pastor about the way she treated the whole staff...we all ended up resigning our positions. A several hundred member church closed its doors within two years of that day.

The man who came to me as a Paul...I would not heed his loving concern. I was about to take the position discussed above. He came to me pulled me aside and told me his son was in the ministry. With tears in his eyes he begged me to stay with the company I was working with and doing very well. He informed me that its not what its cracked up to be. I believe he was telling me I was going into the ministry with blinders on. I had just graduated college, just had a baby, just come through a marriage crisis, still connected to pastor #2 and I had promising opportunities that could have landed me in Chicago. Now, that I am forty and have had some struggles and some victories I think about that mans words at least on a weekly basis. He was the manager of SEARS, and he was my boss....I wish I could have kept him in my life over the past 15 years. My mother recently told me I need to go back and have a discussion with Mr. Gentry!

Life is painful, but life is great! Not only do we need a mentor in the times we are confused and unsure, but we need that person in our victories as well. I promise some of my victories lead to crisis moments just because I didn't handle the victory well. And sometimes we all just need some godly input. Don't take me wrong I have godly people around me...many of whom I rely heavily upon. But I still think that this is true....That we all need a Paul in our lives!