There is a bipolar nature to ministry itself. An ebb and flow from the heights to the depths. At one end of the spectrum is a conviction that this vocation is a most sacred calling. At the other end of the spectrum is a depressing thought that perhaps ministry itself is but a fool's pastime. As a sacred calling ministry taps into the manic side of our existence. As a fool's pastime there is nothing but despair and an overwhelming sense of irrelevance.
And it all hinges on the question of life, truth, and that which is of ultimate importance. And it is a question of faith.
God either is, or is not.
The Gospel either is a matter of ultimate importance, or it is not.
These questions confront us more and more as the culture in which we live drifts toward an increasingly secular society where faith in God is either non-existent, or a matter of little importance. "When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?" (Luke 18:8)
Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. So Jesus asked the twelve, "Do you also wish to go away?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." (John 6:66-69)
This is the thing about ministry. We are caught between these two poles. At one end of the spectrum we are confronted with a world that increasingly has no faith. At the other are those who cling to our words as the way of eternal life. The ministry we share as the Church is either the highest of callings, or a pitiful excuse of a way to live.
At times of deep depression, when faith eludes me, I sometimes view myself and my life as that of a modern day medicine man, leading the tribe in the ritual of the Ghost Dance, clothing them in the Ghost Shirts in the vain effort to protect them from all evil, and yet, unable to stop the bullets from penetrating.
At times of deep faith there is a sense of walking with my people from the cradle to the gates of heaven. In these sacred moments there is a recognition that this ministry we share is an integral part of God's redemptive work for all creation. That the Word we are called to proclaim has the same power as the Word God spoke at the beginning of time-- the power to call forth life itself.
What is truth?
It is either one or the other. There is no in between. The faith we hold dear is not just an icing on the cake, a sweet topping to make life more palatable. Either God is or is not. And that makes a difference. It makes a difference in the way we live. It makes a difference in what is of ultimate importance. Or it is a fool's pastime.
What song shall we sing?
