July 06, 2007
God with Skin On: Becoming Agents of Calling
The longer I have been in ministry, the more I have wondered about "passing on" parish ministry to the next generation. Will the church have an ample supply of pastors for the church's future needs? Where will these pastors come from? As I had been active in my local church as a youth (my grandfather was a Congregational minister) I realized my experience there helped to shape and form my own call to ministry. This experience, coupled with common sense, told me that the local church has been and will continue to be the place that "plants the seed" for people to hear the call to ministry.Our success in raising up future leaders will depend, in part, upon our capability to articulate a radical idea of call - that is, a call shaped by and surrendered to God.