Photo, Square photo | Comments Off on Fat pastor just deals with it Posted by joelkilpatrick on Jan 17, 2011 in 2012

TULSA, Okla. — Every January for the past five years, Doug Jones has given his obligatory “I’m losing weight for the sake of my health” sermon, to great applause from his congregation.

But having failed to keep off weight, this year he’s trying a different approach: just dealing with it.

“I’m tired of making promises I can’t deliver,” says Jones. “Time is short. The fields are ripe for harvest. There is Kingdom work to be done. I’m done shrinking my waistline, people. I’m fat. Deal with it.”

Jones says he’s grown tired of people sizing him up and asking for updates.

“When you announce that you’re on a diet, people take ownership of it,” he says. “They email me, ‘How much did you lose this week, pastor? I haven’t seen you at the gym.’“

He also gets dirty looks from church members at the local barbecue pit.

“They glare at me like I’ve fallen into gross sin when I’m having a plate of spare ribs,” he says. “I guess I should only be seen at Yogurtland.”

Right around June, just before the men’s houseboat retreat, people always expect him to have an Oprah-in-tight-jeans moment where he “does this big reveal in my swim trunks on Sunday morning to advertise the retreat.”

“Not this year,” he says. “I’ll just invite them to behold my 55-inch waist as we dive into the sermon.”

Many people have encouraged him to join the Daniel Plan, Saddleback Church’s health initiative. But Jones politely declines.

“I love Rick Warren, but this year I’ll stick with the Doug Jones plan,” he says. “Eat what I want and let the negative comments roll off my back.”

Jones invites people who are bothered by his weight to attend any number of churches in town with “skinny seminary-grad pastors.”

He points to a major upside to his decision: his world-famous cannonball off the houseboat at the retreat will retain its pizzazz.

“That’s always fun,” he says, laughing. “‘Hey, guys. I’m fat, but you’re soaked.’” •