Spinning Hats
Spinning Hats
Early in my ministry, a mentor gave me an image for what ministry is like. He said it's like wearing a baseball cap with multiple bills, and you spin the hat depending on what you're doing in that moment. This past Thursday, that was completely true. I had so many different applications of "pastoring" people that day — and it was so cool to help people take a step forward in their gifts, their talents, and their understanding of their value to others and to God.
Here's a simple breakdown of a day that started at 4:00am and ended at 8:30pm.
Thursday:
Bible time, workout, prayer walk, speed breakfast
Men's Small Group
GFC Operations update and decisions
Personal mentoring
Sabbatical prep for one of our pastors
Lunch — marriage counseling
Business meeting — mentoring/life application
Dinner and catch-up with Kristin
Spoke at Married Life on "Feast to Famine and Back to Feast"
That was a day in the life of a pastor. Look at each item and you'll see the consistent threads running underneath — but you'll also see the sheer diversity of what it takes to walk with God, apply truth to life, value people, and bring your best self to the moment. Not every day is this chaotic (thankfully). Here are the principles that help me bring a strong presence to all these different "hats."
Principles for Spinning Hats
1. Grounded in relationship with God — invite the Holy Spirit into all of it.
There's a reason Bible time, a workout, a prayer walk, and a speed breakfast are first on that list. These are the things that fuel me personally, emotionally, and spiritually. My time in the Word never gets old — I'm still amazed that God reveals new truths and convictions every time I open it. And whatever I read in Scripture that morning, I find myself using it throughout the day's hats. It happened in my Men's small group, in the operations meeting, and in mentoring that businessman. I also use my prayer walk to invite the Holy Spirit into my day. My wisdom, understanding, courage, knowledge, and approach to everything packed into that day go so much better when I do this. The Holy Spirit gives me an advantage — God leading and speaking into whatever I'm about to face. I leave that time and spin the hat with confidence, humility, and a readiness to make an impact for good in whatever comes next.
2. Be genuinely me.
Grounded from that first part of the day, I bring my best to everything else. I work through my own relationship with God in that time — and it might surprise you to know that pastors have questions, get frustrated, and even argue with God. That's when I do it, and it's truly freeing. I've never won an argument with God, but I've let Him know how I feel. He listens, and He communicates back in a way that always ends with me repenting (when I need to), acknowledging His place, and loving Him more. By the time I show up to anything else that day, I've centered on who God is and that I'm His. That frees me to celebrate my own personality, gifts, and talents — and to respect what He's blessed others with too. I'm very comfortable being me: loving, honest, direct, forthright, conviction-driven, goofy, silly, and someone who loves a good story. I bring all of that to every hat spin.
3. Take time to breathe in between hat spins.
This is a newer discipline for me. I used to go full throttle, back-to-back meetings, one hat spin after another. I actually took pride in how fast I could move through a day. I'd be exhausted by the end, but I looked back on the wreckage of all those spins with a kind of grim satisfaction. I don't do that anymore. I surrendered my pride in "getting it all done" and asked my assistant to build in at least a 10-minute margin between meetings. I get up, move, breathe, ponder, say hi to people — then go back in. Sometimes I have to drive to meet someone, and that time in the car is life-giving. I make calls to connect with others, or sometimes I just ride in silence and soak it in. I'm not nearly as drained at the end of the day, because I'm not spinning hats in my own strength anymore. I'm inviting the Holy Spirit to help me tune into what He has for me in the moment. It's been a game changer.
4. Be present — value each person.
This has been my biggest win as I keep spinning hats. I used to be terrible about living in the future. I'd have regrets that challenged me, but I moved on quickly — because I'm wired to be strategic and love solving future scenarios. That's not a great quality when you're sitting one-on-one with someone, or leading a group. I recognized it and asked God to help me be present with people in those moments. Game changer. I enjoy my time with people so much more now, and I value them differently. Listening for their benefit — not for my agenda — was a massive shift. I used to listen for how I could help, what steps they needed to take, or how I'd respond. Now I listen for them. I focus on their thoughts, feelings, and desires. And ironically, I still get to the strategic part of the conversation — it just comes after I've valued them first. I care more about the person than about winning the moment.
Are you spinning hats every day, or are you just surviving them? Take one hat you'll spin this week — a meeting, a conversation, a moment with your kids — and run it through these four filters before you walk in. Ground yourself first. Show up as you. Breathe before you enter. Value the person more than the outcome. Then ask the litmus test question: what would that person say about you afterward?
