My Experience as Youth Pastor

What is wrong with accountants? There must be some serious deformity in their brains that makes it possible to look at accounting books and makes sense of it all. Even their “simplified” reports are enough to make my head hurt. I’m not dunce when it comes to numbers. I plan a monthly budget for my finances and I balance my checkbook and track expenses then compare those to my budget. You would think the church finances would look like my own expenses but larger.

For some reason this isn’t true. At some point I think the accountants got together and said, “Hey this is way to easy and anyone could actually do this, but we want to seem more valuable so how do we make it more complex?” This is the only logical explanation for how funds are tracked and why it took my all morning to understand what I should have been able to get in an hour tops.

Of course, I can’t blame accountants alone for making things complex to seem more valuable. Lawyers certainly make things too difficult. Have you ever read a legal brief? Why can’t they just say what they mean without all the extra wherefore blah blah blah garbage? I’m assuming doctors don’t pull the same trick. I’d totally do my own surgeries except they have me terrified that you need extensive training and stuff.

OK, maybe doctors don’t make things intentionally difficult when it comes to stuff like that. I’m betting taking a person apart and putting them back together is significantly harder than tearing down the engine in my car and reassembling it (something I did without specific training).

Preachers can be guilty of this too though. I’ve watched so many preachers throw out these huge words and drop Greek and Hebrew as if they use those words on a daily basis. It makes a person feel like they need some kind of degree to understand the Bible. That is totally bogus. I know this is true because I have been consistently blown away by the ability of some people to digest and understand Bible passages I’ve struggled with after years of training.

Let’s face it. You can write a will without a lawyer, you can take medicine without a Dr., you can do you finances without an accountant, and you can read your Bible without a preacher. I know as a preacher it seems like a hurting myself, but there are reasons for accountants, lawyers, and doctors. There is also a reason for preachers. Some are given a special gift from God to preach the word and build up Christians through this gift.

Anyways, preachers, stop trying to sound like you need special training or a special gift to understand the Bible. Busy yourself with preaching the Word not sounding like you are worthy to preach the Word. Everyone else, take time to read. You’ll be surprised how much you understand.