Some choices are hard to make. Life can be hard because life is filled with choices. Here are a few you might be struggling with:
Where should I go to school?
Who should I marry?
Should I take this job?
What career should I choose?
Should I choose the job that pays more or the job that I would actually enjoy?
How much should I take out in student loans?
Choices can be hard.
We have all found ourselves in the “in between” moments of life. In between jobs. In between relationships. In between happiness. Perhaps you have just graduated from college and now you’re looking for a job. In between. Perhaps you have moved to a new town and you left behind the world you knew. In between. Perhaps you have received a call into gospel ministry and you’re trying to convince a church or ministry organization to take a chance on you. We all face similar in between moments. The issue is not if you will be faced with an in between moment, but how you will respond once you find yourself there.
The obvious mistake you can make during this in between moment is to make a poor decision that only furthers your struggles. The other not-so-obvious mistake that I would like to focus on is doing nothing during this in between time. I have noticed an epidemic among my generation of doing nothing in the name of “Waiting on the Lord.” Numerous college graduates refuse to take an opening level job because they’re waiting on a company to hire a new grad with zero work experience as the next CEO. I see young men avoiding responsibility like it’s the plague. Young dudes are dragging out their college career. A 4-year degree becomes an 8-year adventure. They spend more time playing video games than they do at their actual job. And they wonder why no decent woman wants to marry them.
The same can often be said of young men who claim to be called to vocational ministry. I have few greater frustrations than sitting in a seminary class and listen to young men who claim to be called to gospel ministry say they do not serve in any church at any capacity. On numerous ocassions I have also witnessed men avoid getting a job in a secular field because they’re “Wating for the Lord.” All the while they have zero income and they’re family suffers due to their laziness. There is also an epidemic among these young men that causes them to believe they will become the next Francis Chan or Mark Driscoll because they’re obviously super awesome. If you want experience, go serve in a local church for free. Nobody in their right mind would hire a dude in their twenties who has zero experience. Receiving a call to gospel ministry does not exclude you from hard work.
Many people use the phrase “Waiting on the Lord” as a crutch. It is true, we should wait on the Lord and seek him in all we do. But could it be that “Waiting on the Lord” is more about actively serving Him than doing nothing? If you want out of debt, work hard and don’t waste your money. God isn’t an ATM. You can’t punch in the magic code you received from a televangelist and hope all your problems dissolve. If you want to find a godly woman to marry and start a family with, stop playing Xbox, get a good job, and read your bible. If you want a job in ministry, prove you can handle the responsibility. When we find ourselves a midst the in between moments of life, it is an opportunity to ask, “How can I glorify Christ in this period?”
Thomas Edison once said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it comes dressed in overalls and looks like work.” View the in between moments as an opportunity to grow in Christ and serve Him, not to be served.
