A good Utility Player...

I was recently thinking about my gift package and I came to a realization about myself:

I am very much like a good utility player in baseball: A good utility player can play several positions, and can hit a little; BUT he doesn’t hit well enough and he doesn’t play any one position well enough to get hired as a starter. Here’s what I mean concerning my own gift package:

Gift: I can sing and I love to lead worship: Problem: I would never get hired as a full-time Worship Arts Pastor because I can’t read music, I don’t play an instrument, I can’t really help musicians get better at playing their instruments, and I couldn’t put together big musical productions that are so popular in the church.

Gift: I am approachable. Most people sense that I am trustworthy and sensitive: Problem: I am not a people magnet. It takes all the courage I can muster to meet new people on my own. I am better at developing close long term relationships with people… but that takes time. I am recharged by spending time alone or with immediate family… I am drained around mostly anyone else.

Gift: I’ve noticed that I can relate to most kids and I’m authentic enough that most teenagers feel comfortable around me. Problem: I have a really hard time teaching kids and teenagers. I don’t know why. In Kalamazoo, I could hang out with the students for hours… but as soon as it was time to start teaching… I froze up. I felt like I came off dry and stiff and irrelevant. Weird, huh? It gets weirder, though.

Gift: I’ve been told that I am a decent preacher. Problem: I’ve found that I am only effective when preaching to adults. I’ve also found that older adults love my preaching (unless they are just being nice); but I have a harder time connecting my preaching to the younger crowd. However, when I am just hanging out… it’s easier for me to build relationships with the younger crowd than it is for me to build relationships with the older crowd.

Gift: I had success recently as a Sunday School teacher. I have found that I enjoy researching topics and putting together lessons that help people better understand a difficult topic. Problem: The only type of teacher I’ll ever be is a Sunday School teacher. I’ve thought about how much I would enjoy being a college teacher… ministry classes… bible classes… that sort of thing: but that means I would need to probably finish getting a graduate degree and a doctorate. This might change, but I am not interested in that pursuing ANY degree of ANY kind at this stage of my life, for a host of reasons…

Gift: I’ve been told that I am a good writer. Problem: The only writings of mine that will ever get published are my self-published blog posts: Mostly because I struggle with Attention Deficit Disorder when it comes to writing. I can’t even fathom writing a book of even 150 pages on one particular topic. I have a hard enough time writing about one particular thing for just ONE page on Microsoft Word. I also struggle with academic writing… mostly because I am made to feel that I need to include big, intellectual words. I have an ok vocabulary… but I when I write, I want it to be simple and understandable. One other problem… I am not an original thinker. I like reading what other people think and then deciding if I agree with them or not. I am decent, however, at breaking down complex thoughts into smaller more easily digested pieces.

Gift: I am organized and get detail work done well. Problem: I love detail work… but it can get boring in a hurry if that is all I am doing. I would never want a job where all I am doing is administrative work. (I like how my job is set up now… I do a lot of administrative stuff… but it’s mixed in with hanging out with kids on Wednesday… mixed in with teaching adults on Sunday… mixed in with about four or five other ministries…)

I’ve decided that I do a variety of things decently…. but I don’t do any of those things like an All-Star. In other-words: In Cardinal lingo… I’m like a John Mabry… I hit decent and play a variety of positions well… but I’m not an Albert Pujols at any one thing.

I was reading a book about a year ago called ‘Good to Great.’ Without giving a full book review, there was a concept in there called the ‘Hedgehog Principle.’ Basically, the author asked businesses and leaders to identify the one thing that they could do as good as anybody else… and then be willing to pour money, resources, time, and talent into that one thing. He nick-named that ‘one thing’ as a hedgehog. (Book explains it better)

Maybe my personal hedgehog is versatility. I can be an asset to a church or organization because I can do a variety of things in a variety of different ways. I guess I’ve just been thinking lately about how curious I am about how God plans on using me in the future. There are a few people that insist I will be a lead pastor someday. Maybe. (In the next month I will be posting an article about why I don’t want to be a lead pastor… it might give you a clue as to how I feel about the whole issue.)

Anyway… don’t know why I shared all this. I guess it’s more of a personal reflection post… and maybe not worth posting on here… who knows?