What would you do? Part III
Good feedback and food for thought. I would suggest reading over some of the comments if you haven’t done so already.
When the question was presented to me at OIL, my first reaction was: ‘This isn’t life threatening it can wait. My ministry to my wife is a higher calling so I must attend to that first.’ The counter point to that (from basically all the girls in my small group) was that she should be understanding and wait for her husband to attend this situation. When I heard my friend’s situation, it seemed very much like the theoretical question. To me, work-place ministry is as much as calling as pastoral ministry. If she understands my calling to my work-place, and I already committed to it, the Christmas party would be an excellent way to build personal relationships with people at work. These opportunities don’t come around very often and greatly increase the chance for ‘informal ministry’ to take place.
However, hearing the comments have made me reconsider. I sought counsel from my wise coservant for her view. She likened it to small group. Small Group Bible Studies are like the counseling situation – critical to your ministry. The Christmas party is like a Friday Night hang-out. They’re expendable when necessary. I approached the problem as purely calling-oriented. Is this part of my calling? If so then which calling is higher? I realized two things from this.
1. Things aren’t black and white. There are so many external factors that can influence the decision. There is no cut right wrong answer. It takes wisdom and judgment.
2. I need a good wife. As I think about marriage, it’s all about ministry. Serving these past 2.5 years has showed me my deficiencies in ministry. I need someone who would help me serve at the next level, who pushes and sharpens me in my walk w/ God and in my calling. This said – in either situation, the question is, which is the more important ministry opportunity? I should have a wife who would understand either decision or give me wise counsel in these tough spots.
To paraphrase P.Min – It’s not about making the right decision. It’s about becoming wise deciders.