Our Precious Life

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild
and precious life?" Mary Oliver

My dear friend gave me a Guidepost Devotional for Christmas. This year’s theme is 'Giving Thanks'. 52 writers are involved in writing 52 daily devotions to lead their readers through another year of faith.  For the most part, the writers have their devotionals sprinkled throughout the book.  But on a few occasions they have one individual, writing throughout the entire week.  Now why would it surprise me that I come across an entire week of devotions written by, Scott Walker, a Pastor of thirty-some years, seeking to follow his passion?

I would prefer to gently tear the 7 pages of devotionals out, scan them and send them to you, but alas, I’ve decided to summarize them instead.

Scott Walker shares an internal career struggle with his readers.  Should he continue to finish out his life-long commitment in the ministry all the way into retirement, or instead should he listen to a voice beckoning him towards what he calls a’ far-fetched dream’ that he and his wife had wistfully shared. One of his daily devotionals ends with this prayer, “Father, help me to listen to my life and pay attention.”

As Walker works through his monumental decision, he writes of stumbling across the advice of one of his favorite authors and minister. Frederick Buechner.  “Don’t be compelled to do what you should do, ought to do, must do, have to do, don’t want to do". Buechner says, " Rather, get in touch with your great gladness and be free to go do it. ….The place God calls you to be is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s great hunger meet.”

 “This last short sentence," writes Walker,"grasped me and set me free.  At age fifty-seven, I knew that my deep gladness was to work with young adults....and help these precious lives discover their sense of purpose and vocational dreams."

 As you might guess, discovering your passion is one thing…. walking away from a calling in the ministry because of it, is quite another.  Walker continued to be in turmoil about his decision, and his weeks’ worth of devotions walks the reader through a whirl wind of the writer’s emotions.  He recalls the wonderful memories that emerge while perparing for and preaching his final sermon at a church he had loved and served for 15 years.  He shares his doubts and his prayers and God’s word that led him through the tunnel he must walk.  He writes of challenges that lay in front of him as he pursues his dream and his passion, with little money, and no job. 

Walker recalls once reading the book, What Color is Your Parachute. Its author, Richard Bolles words suddenly had new meaning, “Take a good look at yourself, define what brings you great gladness, and write your own proposal and job description.  Then go find someone who needs your skills and believes in your dream.”

And this is exactly was Robert Walker did as he penned out his vision of his dream and wrote a proposal to two different Universities, requesting to make his passion become a reality.  One University expressed interest, but said Walker would first need to get the funds to start it.

“The day after I resigned as pastor, Walker writes, I woke up early in a cold panic.  My next task was to raise funds to start an ‘Institute of Life Purpose’.  As I squirmed and pondered my dilemma, the phone rang. “   It was an unexpected call from a friend who had not yet heard about his resignation. He met with his friend and told his story and shared his dream.  His friend’s response, “That sounds like a worthy cause and a wonderful idea.  I would like to help you do this.”   

Walker was blown away! “I had nothing to do with the phone ringing that morning.  I never would have initiated the conversation.  But God had a way of saying, “You can do this! I am working with you.”

 As the weeks of devotionals end, Walker borrows the words from a poem by Mary Oliver and asks this question to all of us,” Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

“Sometimes a singer has only one song,” concludes Walker, “a preacher one sermon, a writer one book and a prophet one vision.  Life is drawn into narrow and intense focus.  Now I know that my one question for each person I meet is, “What is your dream for your one precious life?’ Each answer will shape the course of history.”

Because an individual listened to a voice beckoning him to follow his passion, the dream that Dr. Scott Walker and his wife once had, is now a reality. The ‘Life Purpose Institute’, continues on today, at Mercer University, lighting a fire of passion in the young people it serves.

http://community.mercer.edu/lifepurpose/

I'd love to hear from you.  Email me at Smallsteps4bigresults@yahoo.com