This year also marks the 18th anniversary of my own Call Night. On April 11, 2000 I was one of 90-some men who received a Divine Call into the Holy Ministry.
While there was much pomp and circumstance on Call Night, combined with sanctified holiness and old-fashioned nervousness for us, and more than a dash of mystery at how the Spirit used the placement committee to determine where we would go, the real "action" was taking place in the back of the sanctuary. There, wives
and girlfriends sat with mothers and mothers-in-law, with old-school maps and
atlases subtly hidden in purses, ready to be unfurled, like Isaiah's scroll, to show where the men of their lives would be sent. In
those cartographical scriptures, they found Helena, Montana and suburbs of Miami,
Florida. They tried to pronounce towns in Iowa with Indian names and big cities
in California with a Hispanic flavor. They were called to places where you
don’t think of churches – like Las Vegas – and to places where you can’t throw
a baseball without hitting a Lutheran church, like Red Bud, Illinois. There
were small churches and big churches, solo pastorates and multiple staffs. One by one, from A to Z, we were summoned forward to receive our Call.
When
Dean Rockaman came to my name, he said, "Candidate Jonathan F. Meyer, Texas District, Grace Lutheran
Church - Crockett, Texas." He shook my hand and said, "Congratulations." I passed by President Johnson and the director of placement, shook their hands, and made my way back to my seat. In the meantime, I knew Laura was in the back scouring a Texas atlas, trying to find that small town in East Texas and figure out how close we would be to our parents in the Austin area. A few minutes later, my best
friend, Scott Schaller, received his call to St. Peter Lutheran Church in Gun
Barrel City, Texas ("Gun Barrel City" received quite a few chuckles from the crowd that
evening and from classmates in the days to come). Later, after the service was concluded, Scott and I found our District president, Jerry Keischnick. He shook my hand slowly as he congratulated me, then solemnly added, "Crockett...that's a good place to begin."
April 11, 2000 |
We call this "Call Night;" perhaps it should be termed "Night of the Call." That sounds a little more ominous, doesn't it, like a Stephen King novel or something? Perhaps that is more accurate, in a sense. We
work in a field where, I have read, the average pastor only lasts seven years after
his academic training before leaving the ministry behind. Every vocation has
it’s challenges, I know, but the ministry is unique: it’s the only vocation I
can think of where we meet the devil face to face on a daily basis, both in our
lives and in the lives of the people we serve. Yet the Lord has seen fit to use
us in His church for almost two decades. It’s a humble thing to stand in the
Lord’s stead, to preach and teach, absolve and commune, baptize and bury all in
His name. It’s not always peaches and cream – sometimes it’s more like sour
milk and spoiled fruit – but it’s where the Lord has led Scott and me, and our
families, to serve. Sometimes, it's tough and gritty work; we lose sleep and pound our fists in frustration. If I had to do it again, I don't know if I would. But now, I can't see myself doing anything else.
A couple of
weeks ago, I was privileged to preach at Brother Schaller’s installation at
Trinity Lutheran Church in Taylor, Texas. I’ve known Scott longer than I've known my wife. Second to Laura, he's my best friend. It would be difficult to put into words the emotion I felt that afternoon,
getting to share the Gospel with my friend and his new congregation. We had
some time afterward, at the reception, to reminisce reflect, and tell stories. But the greatest wonder was realizing that
the Lord continues to use two sinners
like us, saved by grace, to serve His congregations.
March 11, 2018
Laura, Lisa, Scott and me
|
I
remember the emotion of Call Night and I know what those Seminarians will feel tonight. The candidates will be excited and nervous. Their girlfriends and wives
will be sitting in the pews with their cell phones open to their map app and, with a few clicks, they will
know all about their new home and new church. Some will go to small churches,
others to bigger churches. There will be rural churches in Nebraska getting a
new pastor, and ethnic mission plants in major cities will also get a new
pastor. And the Lord will work in and through those new pastors to share the
Gospel.
Keep
them in your prayers. They have a few weeks left of class, then they will pack
and head out, all around the country. They will move into their new homes and
apartments a few weeks ahead of their installation. And they, too, will promise
that, with God’s help, they will faithfully serve as pastors of God’s flock.
And,
in another 17 years, they will also look back and remember. And, hopefully,
they will rejoice and thank God for what He has done for them and through them.
Thanks
for remembering with me.
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