Christian Living

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Larry Lilly's Letter Monday April 9, 2007

Talk about a raft of negative response!! WOW. A Titanic load fits the bill. I merely pointed out that many a pastor/Christian worker feels trapped in a profession which they no longer believe to be their life calling and one reason for the 'trapped' feeling is the degree they hang on the wall is in actuality worthless except among the rather small confines of their particular group and the moment the group marks you worthless, so is the degree, as far as gaining entrance into the real world of employment.

Obviously I did not over the weekend, descend into the very hot lower realm where it was strongly suggested I should and will eventually abide.

The stats I am using for this series concerning the Christian life at large seem to parallel the stats of what is erroneously called the secular world. The stats show that:

"80 percent of seminary and Bible School graduates who enter the ministry will leave the ministry within the first five years."

A large number, around the same percentage, of graduating students from 'secular' schools, after about five years are not laboring in the field of their particular major.

Whether the field be 'secular' or religious the results are near the same. Why is this? Most likely because our younger people are not programmed through tough reality in their youth to deal with the way things are. Hence, the high drop out rate professionally, maritally and life itself. I believe it was Henry David Thoreau who stated it well when he wrote:

"Most men live lives of quiet desperation."

In Henry's time it was normal to tough life out in a profession/career, even calling that you did not really enjoy. That's why his statement lingers on. In our day it is not like that at all, because we see from the stats that men and women do not tough it out, but abandon ship. The problem is they are still leading lives of "quiet desperation" largely due to the fact that they do not have the foggiest idea of what they really want to do. And be sure that feeling good about what you are called to do is NOT a very reliable indicator of God's will for your life. Jonah is the text book 101 case.

Years ago a teacher asked her fourth grade class what they wanted to be when they grew up. One was sure he would be a cowboy (Pre Broke Back days), another a policeman, and still another a pilot. Finally the teacher asked Johnny why he had not shared with the class his life ambition when he grew to maturity. Johnny said, "What do I want to be when I grow up? Teacher, I can't even decide what I want to be for Halloween."

I do not believe it is a sin to enter the Lord’s work, nor is it a sin to leave it, but the sin is failure to spend the necessary time in prayer, even fasting to properly discern His will concerning you.

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2007 Use with credit.

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