This column originally appeared in the Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader on May 12, 2012.

What I'm about to say will strike some of you as sour grapes. I don't think it is, though. I've been around long enough to truly feel this way.

That is, I sometimes thank heaven I haven't amounted to too much as a preacher. The congregation I lead is small; our finances are tight.

Usually, I consider both of those things to be blessings.

When I first entered the ministry, an old preacher gave me advice I've never forgotten.

"Be careful with women and money," he warned me. "Those two temptations have derailed more preachers than all others put together."

I still see the great wisdom in his words.

I would add, however, a third perilous temptation: success.

Ministerial success -- a big congregation,

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