By Greg Miller © 2019

Pastor Amos was deeply involved in the work of the ministry.

“Jesus Christ is my life and my reason for living!” Pastor Amos declared to his wife, Adrienne. “Without Him, I could do nothing, and I would be nothing!”

“I agree with you 100 percent!” said Adrienne. “I feel exactly the same way!”

Pastor Amos enjoyed reading and studying God’s Word, the Bible, as well as preaching, on a regular basis. “I’d rather preach than eat,” he chuckled.

“And you do love to eat!” Adrienne declared knowingly. “I love watching you enjoy our Sunday afternoon feasts. Every bite is like an explosion of happiness for you!”

“You’re such a great cook!” Pastor Amos complimented Adrienne. “It would be a shame to let the food go to waste, so that’s why if I’m unable to eat it all after church, I plan to take leftovers to work with me for lunch the following week.”

“What’s your favorite Sunday afternoon lunch?” Adrienne asked.

“Oh, you know, the fried chicken, mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, homemade cornbread and fresh-squeezed lemonade would fit into that category,” Pastor Amos smiled.

“That’s why you make a special request for me to prepare that for our Sunday mid-day meal on most Sunday’s, huh?”

“That’s right, sweetheart,” said Pastor Amos. “That’s right.”

“And that’s the reason you ask me to make a homemade apple pie every Sunday, right?”

“Absolutely right,” Pastor Amos grinned. “Apple pie is my favorite dessert, and your homemade apple pie is the best in the world.

“By the way, to what do you credit your ability to bake such delicious pies week after week? You do it so joyfully and effortlessly!”

“My mother taught me how to cook and bake,” Adrienne responded. “She was a great teacher, and I was an eager learner.”

“As you know, I enjoy preaching as much as I like to eat,” said Pastor Amos.

“Yes, I know that, as do most of the people in the church,” said Adrienne. “Sometimes, I get the idea there are a few in the congregation who don’t think you’re going to dismiss the morning service until it’s time for the evening service to begin.”

“Well, there’s one thing I know for sure,” said Pastor Amos.

“What’s that?”

“I know that as much as we all enjoy our afternoon meal after the morning service, one thing is more important. And that is to eat the message from the Word of God, digest it and let it transform our lives. If we don’t do that, the meal we eat in the afternoon to nourish our bodies won’t even be able to begin to do its job. Not even a little bit.”

To contact the writer of this column about speaking engagements (in the U.S.A.), including Christian Comedy Fundraising Outreaches, Christian Creativity Seminars and/or puppet ministry, please type “Speaking Engagements” in the subject line and e-mail  [email protected] [email protected]or [email protected].

By Greg Miller  2018

 Greg is retired from the Elizabethton STAR Newspaper, after working there for almost 23 years. He now freelances for the paper. Contact email address is [email protected], also facebook.com/kidcool4jesus. Available for speaking engagements/other ministries. Jesus is Lord