3 posts tagged “calling”
Reading here about a conversation that's started up about renewing denominations, I'm struck with my initial sense of apathy: is there any hope for real denominational life?
We're taught by professional theologians that denominations are a "must" in a fallen world. Best as I can figure, this is basically like international boundaries or fences between neighbors.
(Ever wonder what the wildlife on the border between Mexico and the US think about the border fence? I can see it now: the endangered Sonoran desert Jaguar is stopped at the border and asked for his identification papers as he migrates north to find a mate. "Shoot!" the Jaguar says, "...woah, buddy. I didn't mean that literally. But darn-it, I left 'em on the kitchen counter!)
Anyway, denominations. My sense is that our structures constrain us, and when we toss them, newly unconstrained, we create another whole set of problems.
So denominations are intended to keep us connected. But, I've heard about connectional churches that are practically independent. So independent churches are supposed to keep us from becoming wrongly ruled by someone else. But I've heard of independent churches that are, for all intents and purposes, connected to other churches.
Whatever the answer, it seems like a good reason to pray. Pray that the Church would as St. Paul urged her to do, "walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which she has been called."
In the spirit of the NFL playoffs, and also taking an opportunity to praise a modern hero, here is Brett Farve, Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, on his favorite memory in his long quarterback career:
Ask people around Green Bay for their favorite Favre memory, and you'll get countless anecdotes but rarely any hesitation. So many elite athletes captivate with their otherworldly physical gifts, but the common theme among the Favre highlights is the human element.... Ask Favre for his own favorite memory, and he's quiet for a moment. "I've got so many plays running through my mind," he says, finally. "The funny thing is, its not only about the touchdowns and the big victories. If I were to make a list, I would include the interceptions, the sacks, the really painful losses. Those times when I've been down, when I've been kicked around, I hold onto those. In a way, those are the best times I've ever had, because that's when I've found out who I am. And what I want to be.
--Alan Shipnuck, "Sportsman of the Year: Brett Favre," Sports Illustrated, 12/10/07 p. 56.
I read a book at the beginning of this year or end of last year called Vocation and the Ethics of Ambition. It was an outstanding and warm, yet scholarly treatment of the subject of "how do I know when I'm pursuing the right calling?"
The bulk of the book dealt with the ethics of "ambition" per se, and explored how being ambitious is in many ways the exact opposite of being called. Ambitious for that Ivy League education? Or called to serve the poor?
The gem quote of the book is when the author quotes Buechner's concise yet profound definition of calling:
Calling is where the world's great need and your deep gladness intersect.
That is a version of Ovid's classic motto for a liberal arts education: dulce et utile, "sweetness and usefulness." In other words, gladness alone is not enough; nor is usefulness. It is also a version of Piper's Christian Hedonism motto: "God is most glorified when I am most satisfied in Him."
May God give us, then, a holy ambition for His Church, such that we are both useful, and beautified in the process; both satisfied in Him, and glorifying Him.
