I am not your child

I've heard that it's preferable for ordination candidates to have done a previous occupation for a few years. In theory, this is so a 18 year old kid doesn't leap into ministry before getting "life experience." In truth, I think it is just so ministers will have a non-ministry source of sermon illustrations.

Every ministry agent have a past.

They have previous occupations.
They have their family background.

I will always be a former retail worker and water meter reader.
I will be a son of a father who died in middle age of cancer.
My wife and I will always have gone through miscarriages and the journey it took to get our daughter.

I only have one request (and this goes for myself as well!).

Be aware of how your past and present situations influence the way you treat others.

Were a boss of a company? don't treat the church council like you might a boardroom.
Did you work with children? Then you need to be alert to the differences which exist between a church and a school setting.
Are you a parent of teens or young adults? Then you need to treat others in their age-range differently than you would your child. Don't nag or lecture.

There is nothing worse than having a conversation with someone in ministry and thinking... I am not your child.