In Chapter five of Assumptions That Affect Our Lives, Dr. Overman discusses why the Hebrews were poor philosophers. In a section entitled Overcoming Western Dualism I have found an amazing revelation for me. My world has been shaken a bit by this revelation because, at this frustrating time in my life, I have never needed to hear this more.
The following is not meant as an insult to anyone in ministry. I love and respect my pastor. I have friends and family that are pastors. A calling into ministry is a high calling that not everyone is called to do.
However, this notion that is prevalent in American society is strong in the Church today. Pastors, missionaries, and those in full-time service or ministry are often looked at as more spiritual than others in "secular" professions. In fact, most assume that those in full time ministry have a lot more time to spend with God, studying His Word and Praying. However, that is not always the case. Many in ministry have come from studying the Bible intensely in Bible College or Seminary. However, the pastors I know are often so busy that they struggle with finding time for prayer and keeping in the Word. According to Barna Research, the average pastor in America spends 30 minutes per day in prayer. Even as their hearts cry out for time with God, they are often doing the work for the church. Many pastors have second jobs to help support themselves and their families.
My husband and I began ministry school several years ago. We were so excited. Then, after a few classes, our finances fell apart when my husband was laid off of work. We could no longer afford to pay for those ministry classes, and it was a huge disappointment. My father--in-law was a pastor that didn't become a pastor until he was older. However, the calling on his life was strong. I believe that was passed down to my husband, and I have seen the proof of that repeatedly. However, we have to walk where God leads, and right now the finances isn't there.
My husband works as a diesel mechanic. His income barely covers expenses every month, but he works hard. For the longest time we both felt that, while we are grateful for a job, this was somehow not "spiritual". My husband especially struggled with this since the work environment is quite secular with only a couple other Christians working at the entire garage.
In America we don't just tend to classify ministers as more spiritual than the rest of us, we tend to see our entire lives as split into two categories. For instance, Church is spiritual, Work is secular. Anything dedicated to church or God is spiritual, anything outside that realm is secular. It is this thought process that has lumped academics in America with secular, and the placed the responsibility for spiritual growth of our children on children's teachers and youth pastors.
"The 'sacred/secular' dichotomy is not legitimate. It confuses the real issues, and misleads people into thinking certain aspects of life pertain to God, while others do not. Life cannot be divided up like this. God is the God of the material as well as the spiritual, the God of the temporal as well as the eternal. He is just as relevant to the things of time as He is to the things of eternity, and as relevant to the things outside of church as He is to the things inside church." - Christian Overman
God is God of All!
The Hebraic perspective on this interested me greatly. Life and worship not two separate things. God is relevant to every aspect of our lives. He is at our jobs. He is in our homes. He is in the car as we drive. He is at the computer as we surf the web. He is in our relationships with our family. He is with us as we do business. Are we honorable in our practices? Do we demonstrate Holiness and Godliness when we are greeting that customer or teaching our children?
What this means for my husband as he is working on that semi, or for me as I am teaching exponents to my daughter, is that these are not secular areas. For my husband and I, feeling a bit disappointed and discontented because our job is not in ministry was a real emotion. However, as I have read, this view is warped. Again, not to bash anyone in ministry, but if all Christians were preachers of a church, our impact in this world would be nill. In fact, I think the impact of Christians on those around them has been damaged because those that work the secular jobs haven't felt qualified to do ministerial work.
The secular world says we can't bring our faith into the workplace, even though our faith is who we are once we are saved. We have become a nation of delegating. If we need our car fixed, we go to a mechanic. If we are sick, we go to a doctor. When our child turns 5 or 6, we send the to school to get an "education". When we need prayer, we call a pastor. And, when we want our children to receive training in the Bible, we send them to children's church or the youth group.
Now, I would not want a mechanic to prescribe me medicine for an infection. I wouldn't take my car to be repaired at the local veterinarian's office. However, consider this quote:
"As Christian farmers, businessmen, civil servants, parents, and educators, we can and should be involved in doing 'the Lord's work' no matter where we are planted in the kingdom of God at large, doing our work heartily as unto the Lord, for His glory in all the earth. This is true worship at work" - Assumptions That Affect Our Lives, Christian Overman
Are we being a good steward of the job that God blessed us with if we don't see it as an area where we can glorify Him? Can my husband glorify Christ as a mechanic? Yes. We are His Children, His Ambassadors. We represent Him everywhere we go and with everything we do. In fact, it was the Hebraic tradition that Hebrew children were taught a trade to go along with their studies of the Hebrew texts. Most of the great Jewish scholars worked with their hands at some endeavor. Paul is reported to have been a tent maker, though I"ve also heard that the actual translation is not tent maker but prayer shawl maker. Either way, he had a skill that honored God just as much as his preaching. I believe it was because he honored God in every area of his life that the Holy Spirit knew that Paul was an open vessel to flow through in the penning of letters that ended up making up the majority of the New Testament.
Christians need to stop seeing life as divided. It isn't. In our homeschool, all our study, all our subjects will bring glory to Christ. Whether it is math or Bible, God will be honored. The same should be true in every area of our lives. We NEED Christian business men to stand up to immoral practices, to be known as honorable men. We NEED Christian teachers, lawyers, scientists, mechanics, and every other traditionally known "secular" job. Even more, we can't be husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, or children in our homes and consider it separate somehow from our walk and relationship with Christ. We can't be a people any longer that divide our lives up into two separate areas, excluding God from half of it.
There's a song that we sing for worship that has been covered by such bands as Jesus Culture and Misty Edwards. It's called "You Won't Relent". The words to the beginning are simple but profound. "You won't relent until You have it all. My heart is Yours." Is this your cry? God won't relent until He has ALL of you. He doesn't want to just have you for a couple of hours on Sunday. He doesn't want you only when you aren't at work. He wants you in every area. He wants you to honor Him when you are at work, dealing with a discipline issue with a teenager, and even when you are intimate with your spouse.
I stated earlier that my husband and I both were in ministry school. While I teach children at church and homeschool, I've never felt any clear calling to be a pastor. I have a sphere of influence that God desires me to reach for Christ, to pray for daily, to fast for when needed. What I felt then when I was taking the ministry classes, and what I feel now is the desire to be a student of His Word. Study is a form of worship. As we get to know our King, His Words, His Thoughts, then we can truly make an impact for the Kingdom!
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