Call and Answer

“The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.” This foreboding Old Testament language that opens the scene of God’s call of Samuel might just as easily show up in many congregational annual reports these days. In a time of institutional uncertainty, it is all too easy for mainline Canadian Christians to look longingly to the past and forward in fear. As one who is privileged to be a “pastor seconded to the seminary” for this season of my life, I am all too aware of how recruitment for ministry is a challenge in the church and theological education. Where will we get the next generation of quality leaders for Christ’s church? How do we discern the right kind of leaders so that we end up with, to borrow language from my friend Stephen Farris, ministers not of mischief or maintenance but mission?

In the Reformed tradition, the essential work of noticing, naming and nurturing God’s vocational call to ministry is in the hands of sessions and presbyteries. Our Book of Forms Section 202 says: “Sessions and presbyteries are enjoined to make diligent and careful inquiry whether any individuals … should be specially directed to the claims of Christ upon them with respect to the ministry … to aid and encourage in all proper ways suitable young men and women … to consecrate themselves to this sacred vocation.” Many of us have warm and wonderful stories of teaching and ruling elders from our past who encouraged us to take steps towards leadership in Christ’s Church.

For many years I have worked with the Atlanta-based Forum for Theological Exploration (FTE). Established in the 1950s by Christian businesspeople and seminary presidents who were concerned about the decreasing quality of ministerial candidates, the Fund for Theological Education (as it was first called) has generously provided financial assistance to young adults preparing for the ministry. FTE has also offered support to congregations so that they might develop healthier cultures of call by equipping Christians to discover, in Frederick Buechner’s language, their vocation as “the place where our deep gladness meets the world’s deep need.” My last congregation was a test site for FTE’s VoCARE program and we benefited greatly from the discipline of engaging members of all ages in the practice of discernment and testimony (fteleaders.org/resources/fte-guide-to-vocationcare). Now that I serve on the FTE Board of Trustees, I am studying carefully how different denominations are living into the vocational vision to “Call Young Leaders. Ignite the Church. Change the World.” In an increasingly secular and consumerist North American society, denominations of all shades are asking where will the “Samuels” of this next generation come from?

While the Hannahs and Elkanahs of our family of origin are important, I am especially interested in the particular and peculiar role of Eli the priest in helping Samuel notice, name and nurture God’s call to ministry. Samuel, of course, was gifted and blessed by God. In fact, he was dedicated as a nazirite and had a much better track record in that role than Samson ever did. Even so, in the famous call story of 1 Samuel 3, it is of critical importance that Eli helps Samuel interpret the doxological ringtone in the night as God’s own voice. “Go back to bed camp counselor/youth pastor/undergraduate/millennial,” interprets the wise Eli, and next time say, “Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.”

What if we tempered our worry over where future leaders might come from by asking God to activate and equip the Elis in our Presbyterian pulpits and pews for vocational conversations that can change lives for good? Elis like the women and men whose love for the Lord Jesus is naturally expressed in their support and care of young people in their church and community. Who might that young person be that God is calling you to play the role of Eli for this year? How might you help someone discover God-given talents for leadership in the way that a wise elder once helped you long ago? The good news is that you do not need to be perfect to be a vocational ally of God. After all, Eli’s pastoral care at first with Hannah had her mistaken for a drunk and Eli’s own sons were so bad they must have been the source of the original PK (Preacher’s Kids) jokes. No, you don’t need to be perfect, only pliable like clay in the hands of the master potter.

We need Elis throughout our life of service and the ongoing discernment of discipleship. Elis not only serve God’s purpose by noticing, naming and nurturing the call to young leaders before ordination, but afterwards as well. Many of us can tell stories of how kindly Elis got us out of all sorts of trouble in the early years of our ministry.

I was talking recently with 93-year-old Rev. Maurice McLeod. Maurice was the wise old Eli and minister emeritus in a church that I served in eastern Ontario. God blessed our congregation with a revival but it did not come without its detractors. Many a time I heard stories of people grumbling “about that praise music” and “too many noisy kids in church” to which Maurice, my Eli, would say in a voice loud enough to reach both ends of the 613 area code, “I know, isn’t it wonderful what God is doing in this place? There are lots of dead churches to choose from if you’d prefer some place a little more quiet.”

Okay, so perhaps not exactly, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening” but when it comes to supporting young leaders in the church: Help Wanted—more Elis please.