(Not my actual teacher)
He was wearing jorts (it was the late 80's, so he gets a pass) and a smile, neither of which I had ever seen before. Mr. Lockridge was pushing a cart full of groceries and I realized he was just like me, needing milk, cereal, and potato chips to exist. That encounter pretty much rocked my world.
When I run into people from church around town, they have the same look I shot my teacher that day. It takes them a moment to remember I'm not just a pastor, but a person with all the same needs and errands that make up their lives.
And that's the case on a spiritual level too.
Recently in my men's small group, I confessed to having a real prayer struggle as my list of people and requests kept growing to overwhelming levels. My prayers lacked any joy or power as I merely ticked down the the list.
That's when Fred, an actual person, said to me, "Don't forget that prayer is just talking to God." How many times had I said this to people? Probably more than I could count, but I had forgotten it myself. And so that's what I did. I put away the list and just talked to God, trusting Romans 8:26 as my source of simply allowing the Holy Spirit to show me what was important to pray for today.
And my prayer life has been renewed.
Don't forget your pastor, priest, youth minister, and worship leaders are just people. We do our best to be spiritual leaders, but we're still just people with all the same worries, doubts, and issues. Pray for your spiritual leaders. Encourage them. And remember, they put on their jorts one leg at a time just like everyone else!
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