I Think I'm Supposed To Go There
by Anonymous
I had a lofty goal in confirmation on Wednesday night. We talked about the Ten Commandments, something that deserves more than a chaotic half hour at a time. We went down the list rewriting them, turning prohibitions into affirmations and affirmations into prohibitions:
You shall have no other gods. -> I'm the only god you need and I want you all to myself.
Honor your father and mother. -> Do not slam your bedroom door in your parents' faces.
There were plenty of right answers. Some had their Lutheran Handbooks open and were cleverly throwing around words like "integrity" and "monogamy". The more we talked about the commandments - rephrasing them and wondering about them - the more we realized that these rules weren't made just to annoy and constrain us. They don't simply tell us what to do, but illustrate who God wants us to be.
Courageous. Peaceful. Kind. Honest. Respectful. Patient. Prayerful. Faithful. Satisfied.
It felt like a victory because we got that far, regardless of whether or not they retained this Vocation 101 lesson. There was laughter as they tried to figure out the grammatical patterns and learned new words. But these weren't the only reasons I went home smiling.
As they scrambled out for small groups, one bright eyed girl approached. "Ms. Meta? Um. I was wondering if you could tell me what seminary is like because I think I'm supposed to go there."
Awesome. Because I, too, was nurtured and called by this congregation I knew what to do.
I knew to keep in conversation with her, to put a bug in each pastors' ear, to make sure she is invited to Previews. I'm looking forward to this - teaching the world about the deep value of vocation and the difference between what we do and who we are. I'm looking forward to telling young people that I see their eyes light up with passion and that I notice the strengths God has given them.
For now I look more like them than their parents and feel no shame in admitting that their fabulous, answerless questions are bigger than me and seminary. If nothing else, I can show kids that pastors get zits, Hebrew is cool, and you don't have to have all the answers about God to serve him.
How do you affirm God's call in the lives of young people - in your family, in your church, in your community?
You shall have no other gods. -> I'm the only god you need and I want you all to myself.
Honor your father and mother. -> Do not slam your bedroom door in your parents' faces.
There were plenty of right answers. Some had their Lutheran Handbooks open and were cleverly throwing around words like "integrity" and "monogamy". The more we talked about the commandments - rephrasing them and wondering about them - the more we realized that these rules weren't made just to annoy and constrain us. They don't simply tell us what to do, but illustrate who God wants us to be.
Courageous. Peaceful. Kind. Honest. Respectful. Patient. Prayerful. Faithful. Satisfied.
It felt like a victory because we got that far, regardless of whether or not they retained this Vocation 101 lesson. There was laughter as they tried to figure out the grammatical patterns and learned new words. But these weren't the only reasons I went home smiling.
As they scrambled out for small groups, one bright eyed girl approached. "Ms. Meta? Um. I was wondering if you could tell me what seminary is like because I think I'm supposed to go there."
Awesome. Because I, too, was nurtured and called by this congregation I knew what to do.
I knew to keep in conversation with her, to put a bug in each pastors' ear, to make sure she is invited to Previews. I'm looking forward to this - teaching the world about the deep value of vocation and the difference between what we do and who we are. I'm looking forward to telling young people that I see their eyes light up with passion and that I notice the strengths God has given them.
For now I look more like them than their parents and feel no shame in admitting that their fabulous, answerless questions are bigger than me and seminary. If nothing else, I can show kids that pastors get zits, Hebrew is cool, and you don't have to have all the answers about God to serve him.
How do you affirm God's call in the lives of young people - in your family, in your church, in your community?
posted by Anonymous at 2:53 PM
1 Comments:
Meta,
Long time reader of this blog, though I don't comment much. Isn't it great to hear that question? Good for you, and what a great way to describe your position right now: "pastors get zits, Hebrew is cool..." Yeah!
I think the first and most important thing about affirming the vocation of the young is treating them as though they are worthy of a vocation in the first place. So many aspects of their lives are "not yet" adventures: driving, dating, voting, etc, and in many ways there are good reasons for this. But they're whole people, not almost persons, and affirming their dignity and worth as God's servants is SO important I can't emphasize it enough.
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