Another Simple List

Last time I wrote about the things about Christianity that I miss from when I was younger. It was a list that reflected genuine things from that part of my life that I really enjoyed. While I struggled with them all and all of which contributed to the place where I find myself now, they were things that I really loved. But to be honest, so much of what I miss from that time was working in the church. The things that I didn’t enjoy about church are things that I have written about extensively. It began as a frustration with the institutional nature of church and ended up with a concern that the Christianity of church was not consistent with the faith that it was founded on. While I recognized that this was something that varied from church to church, the dominant culture of Christianity was unacceptable to me. However, despite this deep frustration, there were things that I really loved about working in the church that I truly miss. My purpose in identifying those things is to help me with context as well as to show to remind me that this is not a rant against the church framed as a crisis of faith. 

·         A professional network committed to meaningful relationships. This was significantly flawed, but the commitment to each other found in professional ministry offered me lifetime friendships as well as timely interventions. 

·         A deep sense of calling. Probably the concept of calling has been what has changed in me most over the past few years, but when I was in the ministry I felt that God literally handpicked me to do His work. It felt meaningful, powerful, and vindicating.

·         A truly fun experience. In the ministry I got to go skiing, kayaking, and touring as part of my job. Most of my daily activities consisted of being at a coffee shop or playing Bond. This was such a fun time in my life ad one that I worry I will never have a gain.

·         Jeans and sandals. This sounds insignificant, but working in the church was so much more casual. Now, I look forward to Fridays when I get to wear nice jeans with a dress shirt to work. Nice jeans used to be my dressy outfit.

·         Time for spiritual formation. It is unfair that people who work in the church get to spend a disproportionate time reading and studying, but that was a time when I felt the most productive and creative in my faith. 

·         Similarly, creative outlets. In the ministry there are so many opportunities to try new things and go in new directions. 

·         Being the hero. It would be a lie for anyone in ministry (youth ministry especially) to say that at least early on it wasn’t a real ego boost to be the hero in someone’s life or to have someone have a crush on you. Eventually everyone should grow out of that, but early on, it is a real perk.

·         Being a part of something big. Even when I worked in a small church, I felt like I was contributing to something really big. The work I did, I knew changed lives and shaped the world. Was this correct? Probably not. At least not any more than any other job. 

There are things I didn’t include that are great, but more something that anyone can experience like the joy of service and worship that might be heightened in the church. These are the things from the job that I miss.