The Way Matt Sees It

For a good while I was fighting thoughts of inadequacy.  I began working at Searchlight Church as youth pastor during my sophomore year of college.  I drove two hours every single Sunday morning from Pennsylvania to the Jersey Shore.  During that commute, I was bombarded by thoughts of inadequacy. You have to understand, I was driving from Valley Forge Christian College .   VFCC is the hub of ministry-hungry students ready to serve their guts out for God.   So how the heck did I become the youth pastor at Searchlight?   I had no idea what I was doing.   I wasn’t the right major.   I wasn’t ready.   I didn’t have enough experience.   All four pastors who worked at the church had years of previous youth ministry experience.   They could have chosen anyone ; how did it end up being me? A QUICK DETOUR TO ONE HOBBIT’S ADVENTURE "I'm looking for someone to share in an adventure." -Gandalf, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journe...

Lately, God has been growing me in my calling.  The past few weeks have been events, prayer times, class sessions, discussions, etc. that have all served as confirmations on the calling God has on my life.  It’s pretty cool how it’s been happening. This also comes with certain convictions as well.   I’ve been realizing just how incredibly selfish I am, in my relationships with people, the opportunities I have, the way I spend my money, and the list goes on.   While I feel like God has been confirming to me more and more what He wants me to do with my life, He’s also pointed out the great areas that need work in my life.   It’s just so, “ ME ” centered I see two versions of myself, in a manner of speaking. CRAPPY ME Living a ME-CENTERED lifestyle is the “crappy me.”   Although God may not be at the center, I can probably still live a relatively nice life.   Besides, there are plenty of people with seemingly “successful” ministries, ...