Decisions of Consequence

What a week it's been. As a matter of fact, what a "4 weeks it's been." The middle of last month we got a new general manager at the dealership. Since then I've sold 7 cars. Which means I'm 10 cars behind at least. Last weekend I went to the beach for a vacation with my family. It was hands down the best vacation I've ever had. The Wednesday before I left, I got a call from my mom that my grandmother was dying and they were calling the family in. She's still around as of today and seems to be getting better. She's 95 years old and a believer, so it's sad her time is almost finished, but comforting that her life has been so long and that I'll be reunited with her in a much better reality than this one day.

This past week also found me with a decision concerning my church. I was voted to be a deacon. Now there are a lot of factors to consider with this.

Here are a few of them:
1) Am I qualified? The qualifications listed in the New Testament are not light and are not to be
taken lightly. Although many churches view these qualifications as simply suggestions, I can't
seem to help but think these are strict and final. They aren't a joke. So I've had to work
through some tough questions of myself and my family the past few days.
2) If I am qualified, do I have the time? My job demands a lot of me and my time, so I have to
make sure that I can fulfill this commitment.
3) Does my wife think I'm qualified, and does she think this is something I need to do even if
it requires more of a sacrifice for us? I've got to make sure she believes this is something to
do for the joy of our family and that she doesn't feel it's going to be a burden.

After spending a lot of time talking with people I respect and trust in their theology and biblical interpretation, I think I am qualified despite mistakes and circumstances in my past. From talking with my pastor, I think the time factor won't be a problem. And my Missy thinks I should accept and that it would be a joy for me and our family to sacrifice for this.

So the only thing I've got to do now is to decide if I want to do it. I'm pretty content right now where I'm at in life. And, to be honest, this has the potential to cause a disruption in that. It's more responsibility and it seems like it would "throw a wrench in the works". But the question isn't, "Will this disrupt my life?", because it probably will. The question is, "Will the joy to be had by sacrifice and accepting this callm out way the sacrifice?" Jim Elliot said that a man is no fool to give up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. He was speaking about salvation, but I think it applies to life post-conversion.

I don't want to sound pious here. I haven't made the decision yet. I'm still contemplating and praying. I wish I was spiritual enough to make the decision without considering all these things, but I'm not. I also know that I'll be encountering some opposition from people that think I'm not qualified because I have a divorce in my past. And that I've made some mistakes after the divorce. I'll have to have an answer for those people and live with their criticism.

But in my talking with people these past few days, someone reminded me of a great truth. I'll post more on that tomorrow.