P.C- My Hero

November 28, 2004
As I go about my day, I can’t help but remember the news I received last week. As much as the news made me tear up (it was just allergies, I’m sure), it actually didn’t come as a surprise. I am not quiet sure why, but I knew what was coming, I just had a gut feeling about it. My youth pastor is moving on and leaving our church to pursue the plan God has for him and his family in adult ministry, possible a position as a senior pastor. Although I am extremely excited for the new journey God has for him, his wife and his boys, and am blessed to have had the most awesome youth pastor for the last 6 ½ years, I am incredible sad. Sad to be losing not only a great pastor, but a friend and a mentor as well. Sad that I will not be able to drop in his office for a place to cry and share my heart, pray, or just say hi, anytime I want. Sad that I will no longer be able to look forward to hanging out at his house. Sad that I will no longer be able to serve along side P.C. This man I call P.C. has been the most incredible mentor and guider to me over the last 6 ½ years I have had the privileged of knowing him.
I have had some incredible moments in youth. Although he might not know the impact he has had on my life, the impact he made was huge. There are countless sermons I continue to apply to my life because of the enthusiasm he showed. I remember several very well actually one of these sermons sticks out in my mind more than others. But then again who could forget “ the sermon from the throne”. P.C. began by telling us all to close our eyes for a moment. When we were instructed to open them, the charming P.C. was sitting on a toilet. He gave his entire sermon from this “throne”. He even passed out toilet paper for us to take notes on. The message was that no matter who we are, where we are, and what we do, we all make our own mess, and all need to clean up our own mess ourselves. I still have the toilet paper somewhere around room. I laugh every time I think of the grotesque analogy. I can still picture P.C. sitting on the “throne”. Although the setting in which the message took place was , well, disgusting, P.c. made his point. The way in which he presented this message has stuck with me as well as many youth for years. Whether it was a lighthearted sermon like the “throne” sermon, or a more serious topic, such as “the power of positive thinking”. P.C. had a way of making things stick with me. I really appreciate his eagerness to share with us topics we needed to hear about, issues we were facing in our teen lives from witnessing to friends, how to pray, and dating standards.
Because of the influence P.C had in my life I became a leader instead of a follower. He was the most passionate person about youth I have ever seen. Not only did he enjoy being our leader, and mentor, but he was our friend. He loved just hanging out with us, whether it was going out to eat, the movies, or his house for games and just a good time.