Is the bar too low?

I am beginning to like the term "trials of ordination." The idea behind trying someone is that the presbytery would determine whether or not God has indeed called/gifted/qualified this man to serve as a pastor within the church. So, when the presbytery comes together, it is tasked with putting the man through a series of written and oral tests to make this determination. I have recently been surprised by what I have heard men say (or their silence) when they were being "tried" (examined).

Being in the ministry is difficult enough as it is without the nagging question in the back of your mind as to whether or not God has truly called you to serve as a pastor. There will certainly come a time when you will begin to wonder whether or not you are in the right place. And if you don't know if you are called to serve as a pastor, then you will quite easily jump ship and forsake your ordination vows for some other position.

My concern here is that we have lowered the bar so low that even those who are uncertain of their calling are entering the pulpits of the church and yet they don't know if that is their place. These men are standing in a position where they are to proclaim the truth of God's Word with clarity, specificity and application. But the bar is so low that I wonder if they are doing any of the above.

Maybe this is God's way of disciplining His people for their sin: "I will give you leaders who do not lead; pastors who can not pastor; shepherds who will not shepherd."

A Standing O ...

Thursday night we went to see Joshua's band concert. He plays the clarinet and, in my uninformed opinion, plays very well. He's also taken up playing whatever instrument he can get into his hot little hands. Now, he has begun playing the contra-bass clarinet. He plays the flute, bari-sax, and tuba (at times). We're still working on learning the piano. He already knows how to transpose music on sight and tries to explain it all to me.

All of that to say, the concert went very well (and I am the proud parent of a Berry Junior High School band member). At the end of the concert, the entire crowd of parents stood up to give the students a standing ovation. Obviously, if you noted the previous paragraph, I am all for encouraging our children to excel in everything to which they set their hands/minds. But, a standing ovation???

It reminded me of my favorite line from The Incredibles. You remember when Dash has gotten into trouble for putting a tack on his teacher's chair? Supposedly he got caught on tape. His mother, Mrs. Incredible (aka Elasti-girl) has to go to the school and hear the teacher drone on about how Dash openly mocks him and puts tacks on his seat. As they are riding home, his mom tells him that they (the Supers) have to fit in and be like everybody else. To which Dash responds, "If everyone's special, then no one's special." What a brilliant retort!!!

I would suggest there are some folks who are special: Bill Gates, Michael Jordan, Stephen Hawking, just to name a few. They have excelled far beyond what the average person has accomplished. As a result, they should be applauded, given the title "special" and receive a standing ovation. But not a 7th grader performing 2nd year music at a local junior high school. When they accomplish something of greater significance and ability than any other 7th grader in the state/country/world, then I will certainly rise to my feet and clap louder than everyone else combined.

Maybe that means we need to raise the bar of expectation for our children, to push them to greater heights, and to believe they can excel far beyond our own limitations. I look forward to the day when my children surpass my meager accomplishments. It shouldn't be too difficult. But for the time being, allow me to sit in my seat at the end of the performance/game, catch my child's eye through the maze of bodies standing in front of me, and give him a hearty "attaboy." He knows that I love him and am proud of him.

Not so fast, my friend ...

We live in a microwave society. We expect everything to happen so quickly. A microwave is perfect for cooking food in an instant. But, there are times when the speed of the cooking actually hinders the taste of the food.

Just to mix my metaphors, the Christian life is similar to growing vegetables. Having lived in SC for four years, I learned a miniscule amount about growing vegetables. We planted corn, tomatoes, grean beans, peas, watermelon, squash, zucchini, cucumbers, pumpkins and an occasional peanut. The process was somewhat painstaking. I had to till the soil, plow furrows, plant seeds, till the soil again, water, and pull weeds, all in the hopes that within the first month I might see an inch high green shoot protruding from the earth. There was a lot of work that took place, a lot of sweat equity poured into the soil, with great expectation of a harvest.

You can't speed up the process of growing vegetables. If you do, the taste is horrible. In the same way, you can't speed up the process of maturity in the Christian life. It takes time and a lot of work. You till the soil of your heart, provide the right fertilizer, water, etc., pull the weeds and then wait, work some more, and hope God provides the growth. If you try to speed up growth, it's all fake, pseudo growth.

All of that to say, it seems to me that we ought to learn to put in the work to grow, till the soil of our hearts, and then trust that God is doing the work He desires to do in order to accomplish in us the growth He desires. It's not until later that the growth we desire to see will actually be seen by those who know us best. Persevere in your working and yet trust that God is working in you. Get rid of the microwave and hop in the crock pot.