Pastors like you and I, they show up to life for several reasons, we all have our reasons. We all know why we step out of our beds, into the bath and out of our doors. What happens when you exhaust all the reasons?

“Things are dark until they’re not. Most of our unhappiness stems from the belief that our lives should be different than they are. We believe we have control — and our self-loathing and self-hatred comes from this idea that we should be able to change our circumstances, that we should be richer or hotter or better or happier” – Jamie Varon from Huffington Post. 

Imagine a man in his mid-thirties, a few years back he chose to leave a lucrative line of work and go after a job with no specific description. He has to be everything to everyone, he wonders a lot about who he is exactly. Your career is one of your greatest headaches and you hardly can share this burden, it’s a solo journey. 

The Pastor knows he is not necessarily the doctor, engineer, therapist, politician or delivery boy. Also, he knows he may have to take on all those roles at different times.

Say the man now has had a few years of hustle, his congregation has grown, his portfolio is enlarging. Today he has Pastored more politicians than he could have become on his own. Yet he is plagued with bills, fear, loss, mistakes. So, why does he show up every Sunday and all the other days in between?

“People don’t trust people who don’t show up” – A saying by someone out there.

Really, it’s easy to be a Teacher, Writer, Engineer, Doctor. It’s easy to get a certificate and claim to be qualified. The hard job is showing up every day even when you feel sick to your guts. Showing up when you just had a fight with your wife, crashed your headlights into someone’s brake lights.
Showing up is the hardest part of growth. The test of our faith in what we profess. That’s why it’s called a profession. You have to show up even when there is nothing to prove that you are really who you claim to be.

This word “profess” gives a meaning, surprisingly one I didn’t expect. According to my google search result, it means “claim, often falsely, that one has (a quality or feeling).

In this case, the Pastor claims to believe in God and has been called by God to lead others to him. Does he achieve this? Every Sunday? Every day of the week? All through the year?

Obviously not. Doubt is a constant companion for every one of us. No matter who we think we are wired to be. There is always that fear that we are not worthy or sufficient to make the kind of bold claims we make. This is really not about just you anymore, it’s also about that one person who has placed their trust in you.

Don’t be shocked when a lot of Pastors make lots of fearsome claims behind the Pulpit. “If I be a Man of God!!” Those kinds of expressions may sometimes be meant to help the Man of God to overshadow the voice of doubt in his heart and mind. He has to believe for the sake of those who have obeyed and trusted his judgment.

Why does he show up every day? Because he knows that someday he would be just the answer a Doctor, Engineer or Politician needs. Yes, there may be 363 days where he is of no use to fifty percent (50%) of his congregation but that one time or day when he truly works, he gets to validate his profession.

He becomes a part of those who show the world that Pastors are needed to make this Universe work! We all are a part of this system. We are elements in this whole chemical reaction. There is a purpose for every one of us and this is why we show up every day. You can’t just disappear, you are a part of this huge mechanism and without your input, we all suffer a setback. Our trust must not be misplaced or broken, it destabilizes things and sometimes costs us way more.

Whether you like it or not, that one valuable thing you have done for one person matters. It keeps them alive and for this reason, your presence is appreciated. Don’t bail on people, accept that things won’t always work. The days will not always be bright and lovely. There are dark clouds and then there are sunny days.

Now you know why we all show up. It’s what we profess that counts. The faith we have in one another is very important.  You should be clear about this, what makes you show up every day? Why do you wake up and find yourself busy all day? What is your profession? I am a writer who also wants to be a real estate consultant, odd world! However, people have trusted me and worked with me. This is enough reason for me to show up every day.