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In part 1 (NA News, March, 2004), we considered H. Richard Niebuhr's tools for discerning one's call to ministry.
Here, we will consider two more.
In his book, Wishful Thinking: A Theological
ABC, Fredrick Buechner writes:
"There are all kinds of voices calling you to all different kinds of work, and the problem is
to find out which is the voice of God rather than of society, say, or the Superego, or
Self-Interest."
By and large a good rule for finding out is this. The kind of work God usually calls you to
is the kind of work (a) that you need to do and (b) that the world most needs to have done.
If you really get a kick out of your work, you've presumably met requirement (b), but if most of the time you're
bored and depressed by it, the chances are you have not only bypassed (a) but probably aren't helping
your patients much either.
Neither the hair shirt nor the soft berth will do. The place God calls you is the
place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet.
On Sunday, February 7, 2004, I had the privilege of being present for the
Ordination and Installation of Rev. Eric Nordgren to the pastorate of Duluth
Congregational Church, Duluth, MN. Eric is new to the NA (so give him a call and welcome him).
In his vicinage council paper Eric writes:
"I was given the following `signs of call' by my mentor....the results of her experience and many years of ministry.
I suggest that these signs of call also pertain to us, the Church, and our call to a more robust ministry:
1. Our first thought is that it is impossible.
2. The thought won't go away.
3. The adventure is not safe, it will be costly.
4. The full plan will not be in front of us. We will have to trust.
5. The commitment will take us out of our comfort zones.
6. It will be counter-cultural.
7. The ones closest to us will balk and exhibit anger.
8. It will possibly have no immediate result-producing qualities.
9. Acting on it will give you excitement and wholeness and your energy level will be high.
10. We will be drawn into a deeper community and will not have to go it alone."
Discerning one's call to ordained ministry is both a solitary and communal task. It requires intense
introspection and openness to the critique of one's faith community. Willingness to undertake such examination leads to a
deeper bond, a deeper community in which one is never alone.
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