Don't Go It Alone // M-Note 6.6.2026

I remember as a teenager, someone described life to me as a mountain. The best way to climb it is with someone ahead of you and someone behind you. The person ahead of you is a little further along the path that you are traveling. They have seen things up ahead that you have not seen and accumulated experience that you have yet to accumulate. Most importantly, these are folks who can reach back and give you a hand during the toughest part of the climb. We should all climb the mountain with someone ahead of us. Similarly, we should all have someone behind us – a person that we reach back and help through the tough parts of the trail. We can share with this person any knowledge or experience that we have learned from our journey up the mountain. Rather than trying to climb the mountain alone, it is better to have someone ahead of you and someone behind you.

This week I was reminded of how true that metaphor of the mountain really is. Yesterday I was in Lakeland, FL speaking to roughly 1000 United Methodists at the Florida Annual Conference. In the morning, I talked about a vision for the future of the United Methodist Church and why I think our denomination has an important role to play in our increasingly polarized country. In the afternoon, I talked about practices that help churches grow and reach new people. It is always an honor to get asked to speak and I say yes to this work because I want to invest in other pastors, and offer whatever help I can in teaching and encouraging them.

As I was talking, two of my mentors were sitting there listening. These two pastors (one of them now a bishop), befriended me when I was a young pastor. They invested in me, allowed me to ask them questions, called and checked in on me during the early days of The Gathering. One of them even hopped on a plane to visit me in St. Louis when I needed it most. These were two incredible pastors that did not need to pay attention to a pastor like me, but they did. Yesterday I had the chance to eat lunch with one of them, and have coffee with the other. I shared with both of them how grateful I am for their investment in me.

It felt like a full circle moment. Right there in the same room, I got to see two people who were ahead of me on the mountain, and who played a role in helping me up during some really tough parts of the journey. In being there, I was trying to do the same for other clergy and lay leaders. Rather than trying to climb the mountain alone, I try to regularly remember that I need both - people ahead of me who help me up, and people a little further back, to whom I offer whatever help I can.

Over the course of your life, you will regularly be tempted to go it alone. You will try to climb the mountain of life without ever asking for help, and without ever investing yourself in the journey of others. I urge you to resist that temptation. Instead, identify people a little further along the tail that you are seeking to walk. Meet them, ask them questions, learn whatever you can from their experience. Similarly, find people a little further back on the trail. Even though you are busy and focused on your own work, make time to invest in those other people. Make time to offer a hand to others to help them along. It is a better way to live.

I got home late last night. I can’t wait to see you all in worship tomorrow where I will begin a new series called Make it Make Cents: Reframing Common Money Myths. I hope you enjoy your weekend and I can’t wait to see you Sunday.

Peace,

Matt

PS: The first Pride event of the season is coming up on June 27-28 at PrideFest. Pride is an important event on the Gathering’s calendar, and you can join us no matter how you identify. It’s a fun, meaningful way to show your support for the LGBTQ+ people in our community. Sign up to volunteer here: https://subspla.sh/tc4sp2y.