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Off to
Work?
by Major Robert Evans
Over the past several months I have felt a growing
dissatisfaction in my spirit with the language that I and
other Salvation Army Officers use to describe who we are and
what we do.
In an attempt to bridge the communication gap between the
quasi-military culture of The Salvation Army and Australian
culture when explaining who I am as an "officer", I have
described myself as a pastor, minister, church leader or
minister of religion. While these titles capture
elements of what I do, they don't adequately describe who I am
as a Salvation Army Officer.
When it comes to discussing what I do in casual conversation,
the reference to 'my work' or 'going to work' grates against
the very heart of my calling as a Salvation Army Officer.
Let me be clear, this is not because I have an aversion to
work! I have a strong work ethic that borderlines on
compulsive (according to those closest to me). Although, the
term 'work' flows naturally off my tongue, it feels like an
inadequate term that reduces my divine calling into a dutiful
career. Maybe this tension between calling and career is
because I am so passionate about what I do that I can't
separate it from who I am.
Is it just a matter of semantics? I don't think so,
because language is powerful. Our choice of words are
often a window into our soul revealing the heart of who we are
as people. Jesus reminded us of this when he said,
"out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks" (Luke
6:45). So when I communicate about something as
significant as the fulfillment of my calling, I am no longer
content to default to language that will simply align who I am
and what I do with what is familiar in a religious or social
context. I want to find and use language that casts a
powerful vision of God's mission to the present age through
The Salvation Army.
One of the best examples I have read of a church leader
communicating effectively who he is and what he does is Erwin
McManus, the lead pastor of Mosaic Church in Los Angeles.
He describes himself as a Cultural Architect, which suggests
that his role is not about trying to keep up with the current
culture, but reshaping it through influence and innovation.
It is any wonder that his church has been named as "one of the
most influential and innovative churches in
America."
While I have yet to discover how I best communicate who I am
and what I do as a Salvation Army Officer in concise and
compelling language, I do know that being referred to as a
'minister of religion' and 'going to work' just doesn't cut
it! I am privileged to be a part of a select few who are
"CALLED BY GOD to proclaim the Gospel of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ as an officer of The Salvation Army"
and embrace this calling as a lifestyle not a job!
So, I do not get up and go to work, instead I get up and enter
the mission field "to live to win souls and make their
salvation the first purpose of my life."
See more at:
http://ephesiansfour12.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/off-to-work.html#sthash.nxIkQy6Z.dpuf
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