Searching through some Church of God online sermons, I heard one of the pastor’s say that in recent months several young men in his congregation had been called to preach.That got me to thinking about all the churning questions one has in trying to validate that call and to enter into it with the least amount of disruption possible. Of course colleges and seminaries have been built trying to answer the many questions within that central question.
Yet today in my old age, I thought of a question that should be written out and placed inside the flyleaf of your main bible. That question is; What can I do or say that will add value? By this I mean to my own life, to my spouse and to my children. Secondly ask what can I do to add value to that little congregation that I am being called to? Visualize in your mind a church of 50 people of all ages and then ask yourself; What can I say or do that will enhance their lives? Then along the way you will need to ask that same question about your denomination.
Trying to answer this three pronged question may be overwhelming at first but if you work at it one bite or thought at a time you will find yourself coming up with the right answers.
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Asking the right questions by the preacher TO BE is crucial to getting the right start!
As a wise man once said, “ first know thyself.” then if you are already married you must think about your spouse’s strengths and weaknesses, if you already have children then your questions increase and your answers become more complicated. Beyond that there is your family and her family and their attitude toward your entering the ministry.
Dr. William’s, twice in recent months brought up the competitive nature of the ministry. In his case he mentioned that independent and other denominations are competing for COG trained ministers. But at the local level there is another kind of competition. Take the pastor in my O P with 6 new young people expressing a call to the ministry. How does he work them into the church program? How does he do so without creating jealousy and tension in the families of the preachers to be? -
When we read ( Mt. 9 :36-38 ) this and several other statements of Jesus we might well see a need for vigorous recruitment to the ministry. Yet in our tradition we are told to wait for the call. It seems to me that there is an opened ended call. Another verse says that “ many are called but few are chosen “ So young people I believe that there is an ongoing call to you to enter into the labor. Even so there is a lot to consider and a lot of frustrations.
In the Real Estate field they keep making the tests harder and harder to pass. Why? Because if too many get in, it makes it harder and harder for those already in to make a living. Because with churches already established a novice runs the risk of tearing down what has already been build up.
It’s a complicated world and many young preachers have done more harm than good, even though that was never their intent. -
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