For as long as I can remember, when asked, “What do you want to do as job?” my answer was always an Engineer. It wasn’t just an engineer, but a “Martin Engineer.” My father was an engineer and the company with whom he was employed for almost all his career was Martin Marietta. Dad was actually a mechanical engineer who would transition into aeronautics working mainly on missiles used by the military. Like a lot of boys, it was pretty natural to want to be like their father. Dad knew how to fix things, how to build things and how to design things. Part of this knowledge came from growing up on a farm and it was necessary to have these kinds of skills. We worked on a lot of projects together. He taught me how to repair toys; we built a row boat together, dig trenches for an irrigation system, mix and pour concrete for our boat ramp (He also taught me how to drive the boat) and coached me on simple home improvement projects. All skills I value and have used even though it was sometimes not so fun!
Fortunately, I had some of those same natural mechanical propensities and even as I grew older, I thought engineering would be the path for my life. In school, I did well in Math and Science. Even though I didn’t have the steadiest hands at the drafting table, I learned the basics of how to draft a plan.
During the fall of my senior year of High School the two universities I visited were University of Florida and Auburn University. Both have great engineering departments and I thought either would help me achieve the goal of becoming an engineer. God, however, would start to reveal another plan!
Early in November of my senior year, I still hadn’t applied to any college or university. For some reason I was dragging my feet. At the time I couldn’t figure my lack of motivation. Most of my friends had already made their decision where they would attend and were already accepted.
During my teen years, I was involved in a lot of activities at my church. Playing guitar and singing opened a lot of opportunities for me to share my faith. Quite frankly, I am not sure how good I was, but people were kind and encouraging and over time it built my confidence! People would often comment, you would be a good Pastor, Preacher, Minister. I was very fortunate to have had some wonderful Pastors who were great role models, but I didn’t quite see myself in that role. I smiled and thanked them for what felt like a great compliment but stayed true to my plans of becoming an engineer and insured them I would serve as a member of a church.
All that changed one Sunday night in early November of 1970. Our youth group met early Sunday evenings and concluded in time for us to attend the Sunday evening worship. Most of us stayed for that time, largely because our parents would let us stay out a little later on Sunday night. The pastor who was preaching that evening was probably the one I knew the least. He was likeable and kind, but he didn’t have any responsibilities for youth and music which were my major interests and places of sevice. I don’t remember the sermon, but as he closed, he started singing an old hymn, “There is a Balm in Gilead.” I had never heard one of pastors sing as a part of the message. I was struck by how well he sang and how engaged I felt by the hymn. One of the verses in the hymn was similar to a song I had learned. It said, “If you can’t pray like Peter, if you can’t preach like Paul. Go out and tell your neighbor, He (Jesus) died to save us all.”
In that moment, I felt God speaking to me. There was something in me saying, “You could do that!” We always had a time at the end of the service when we could go to the front of our sanctuary to kneel and pray. I had gone many times with requests like, “I am sorry I spoke back to my mom, forgive me!” “Please help me pass my English literature class, because I didn’t study enough and chose to go to youth group!” “Please help me love my sister more and make her nicer to me!” They were all very mature and selfless prayers. LOL! This prayer time was different. I began to cry. There was a still small voice saying you can do anything you want with your life, but I do have plan for you! Oddly enough, the plan was to attend Florida Southern College. It was last on my list of choices. Actually, it wasn’t even on the list. My sister Sarah was already attending and there was no way I was going to be in her shadow. There’s a funny statement which says “If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plan!” It was like a weight came off of my shoulders. I felt very peaceful about applying to Florida Southern and within a few weeks I had applied and was accepted.
Florida Southern was a great environment for me to grow into early adulthood and to get a great education. Still holding onto the original plan of engineering, I majored in Math. There were moments I felt like God might be calling me into ministry, so I minored in Religion and in Education.
As I got close to graduating, my future plans were pretty fuzzy. My life was a bit fuzzy. Having a math major won’t really get you an engineering job, so I knew I would have to pursue a graduate degree. By then, I wasn’t very passionate about being an engineer. To be honest I wasn’t very passionate about anything except having fun and avoiding responsibility. Equally, I couldn’t quite see myself as a pastor. In college I had a lot of interests and been involved in a lot of activities and felt like I really didn’t fit the pastor/preacher/minister role. To be honest, I didn’t fit the role. Fortunately, having a Math major and a minor in education which led to my secondary education certification, math teachers would be in high demand. So I took a job teaching 9th grade math. I mentioned this in an earlier note.
Teaching was a great transition from being a college student to being a slightly productive and responsible young adult. During the next year and a half, I realized I did enjoy teaching, but what really motivated me was watching students come alive when they could accomplish the math they needed to succeed. During my second year of teaching, I became a bit restless in my job. I asked myself if this was something I would want to do the rest of my life. It didn’t think so. I began to think back to my days in the church and how fulfilled I felt when I was involved. It had been a while, since I had really taken my faith seriously. It had been a while since I had actually consulted with God about His plans for my life. I had been doing alright on my own. Now, however, I wasn’t so sure.
There is a lot that would transpire over the course of the semester. Just as I was preparing to sign a contract to teach another year, a position for youth and assistant pastor was offered to me. What made it most appealing was the lead pastor had been the college chaplain when I started at Florida Southern. He was a great communicator and was so kind and loving towards all people! The opportunity to work as his assistant was enough me. Tom Price, and his family made an incredible difference in my life. His wife Nancy and their children, Jimmy, Laura and Andy were so instrumental in the next stage of my life. The time I spent in ministry at First United Methodist Church in Haines City would prepare me to hear God speak to me about entering the ministry. Actually, the church made a bigger impact on my life, than I did on the church. During college and those few years teaching I had become distant from the church and was not following Jesus faithfully. I followed Jesus when it was convenient. I had compromised a lot of my early beliefs in high school as a follower of Jesus. During that year, I was doing a lot of realigning and reviving my faith. God and His People were so patient!
For the first 9 months, I began to be more comfortable in the role of youth pastor. It seemed like this might be a good path. I didn’t have any desire to go to seminary or to be ordained. It did feel good to be doing ministry!
Over the course of time, I began to see God at work in the world in a new and powerful way. I was always comfortable with God as Creator. I had been experiencing Jesus as Savior and Redeemer. There was, however, more I had to learn. You can’t read the New Testament without hearing about the work of the Holy Spirit! Of course, the Holy Spirit was the third person in the Trinity, but what did it mean. Well, it means a lot! I began to notice more peace and joy in my life. Decisions were easier to make. I felt truly loved by God and a new level of trust God was at work in the world and in my life. I started to realize God was at work through the Holy Spirit and I needed to trust in Him! The more I acknowledged His work, the easier it was to see a path for my life!
As I grew in my knowledge and surrender to the Holy Spirit, I began to see a new path in my life. In late May of1977, I attended the ordination service at our annual conference. Several of my friends from college had gone to seminary and were going to be ordained. I had never attended an ordination service. There is a point when the bishop lays hands on the person and prays. As I watched, I heard this inner voice say, “That’s for you!” It kind of echoed louder each time the Bishop prayed! As I sat there, tears formed in my eyes. It had been a long time since that Sunday evening worship service when I heard the nudge to go Florida Southern. This time the nudge was saying go to seminary, pursue ordination; the two things I was pretty sure were not for me.
The next day, I spoke with Tom about it and he laughed and smiled. He let me know he had been praying I would hear the Call and answer it. It was part of the reason he had pursued me to join him in ministry. He assured me he would do everything he could to get me into seminary and help me get ordained. He did! (I am shedding a few tears of gratitude as I write about his great support!)
As they say, the rest is history! I would go to seminary! I would be ordained! God opened doors and provided opportunities to stretch me. Those opportunities were so much greater than anything I ever expected or envisioned for my life.
There were times I longed to be an engineer or in some type of profession where 1+1 always equaled 2. Math and Engineering have a lot of formulas which always produce the desired result if performed correctly. Ministry, however, is not like Math. It can be very ambiguous. I like to be orderly and to perform tasks which always get the right result. Ministry doesn’t provide that. For many years, I thought God must have made a mistake calling me into the ministry. Often I longed for a simpler and more predictable life. Ministry is not something I would ever choose. I found it chooses you. Not because a person is any more special or holy, just because God chooses. Over time, I realized I would have made a terrible engineer. I doubt I could have paid attention to all the details. As an engineer, I don’t think I would have ever felt the same sense of satisfaction building a bridge or a missile guidance system as I did helping someone build their faith. I think God got it right!
For the record, I believe God has something special for every individual born! It could be a whole host of things. You are created first and foremost to give God glory. Any job you do, try to accomplish that. I hope you will pursue things about which you are passionate. I pray you do all to the glory of God.
There is a prayer Jesus taught his followers to prayer. Matthew records it in his account of the Good News. Matthew 6:10 NASB 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Even at the lowest levels of my faith, somehow I would always return to this prayer. In the back of my mind and heart was always this lingering feeling God was at work and actually knew the best path for my life. Sometimes I didn’t want what God wanted for me. Sometimes things worked out, sometimes they didn’t. I learned to prefer God’s plan, even if it was contrary to mine. If you never learn any other prayer, learn to pray this one! Give God the chance to direct you!
If God calls you to the ministry, you will know, and I pray you will answer.