A comment on my pastoral search

When I say that I am waiting to hear from God, I mean just that. Through whatever medium He chooses to speak.

The following is the text of an email I got from Matt regarding this.

"I read the blog post about your questioning of your calling. You said, "I remember when He called me into ministry that the call was clear and distinct."

What exactly did He call you to? Did He say where? Did He give you the name of a people? A city? A denomination?

Everytime I have heard you talk about your ministry I have heard a description of what you want (e.g. a church with 400 people in a small city or vtown) not a description of what God wants. But if God called you He must have told you wnat He wants.

When Fraces of Assisi was called he couldn't control himself, he had to preach. And for lack of an audience he preached to birds. When my dad was called he preached to trees when he deidn't have people to preach to. Do you have that feeling of "fire shut up in your bones" described by the Holy Prophet Jeremiah?

If you are called to preach then preach. But know that God doesn't owe you a thing. Not a living, not a house, not respectability, not a career path, not a middle class lifestyle, not a familoy, not food, not even an audience to hear your words. But if you are a precher then none of that stuff ought to matter. If He called you then obey the call. But if you called yourself stick to banking. There is nothing bad about being a banker."

It is words like this from a close and trusted friend that carry much weight. I have been brooding over them the last few days and will continue to do so until the end of May.

By the way, I'm still working on the church fathers book. I had to balance it out with a light baseball book. Reading Basil the Great can cause headaches after awhile.