Ah Man, I Don’t Want To A Be Prophet

Back when I was growing up in the orphanarium, the overseers would often ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up. Right next to my standard answer of world dictator would be “well, I always thought I could be an apostle.” The overseer on that day's shift would always respond; “Frank, you just wouldn’t make a good apostle, you’re more of, I don’t know, more of a prophet kind of guy.” I would often angrily shout back “you had really better hope that my first choice is well beyond my capabilities. No really, if I get to be word dictator, the entire overseer corps will fear for their lives” Following such an event I would often run to the sleeping bay and brood.

Ah, the good ole days back at the orphanarium.

What got me thinking about wished for vocations was a link to a survey sent to me by my favorite niece, Valerie. Yesterday she sent me a link to Woodbury Lutheran Church’s Spiritual Gifts Inventory survey. Now, what cool about this survey is that WLC doesn’t require you to give them your email address to find out what spiritual gift you might have.

What has my blood pressure elevated several points is that upon completing the survey I find out the orphanarium overseers seemed to know what the heck they were talking about. According to the results my spiritual gift is prophecy with an emphasis on the speaking gift of knowledge and the serving gift of discernment. My sign gifts of tongues, interpretation, miracles, and healing all registered as null. Also in the zero columns were teacher, leadership, giving, mercy, and hospitality.

I now face a most difficult decision on whether or not to resign from my position as high school for Sunday school as well as my position on the Board of Youth. Thankfully, with results like these, my time chairing the boards of education and caring ministry are behind me and my congregation.

As it turns out, the overseers were right in saying that I was meant to kick it up “old school” and be all prophety and such. I’m just glad that such surveys are available to help us all find out where our true gifts lie.

This doesn’t mean that the overseers at the old orphanarium need to or even should stop looking over their shoulders. One day, their uppence will come… they shouldn’t have tried so hard to discourage me from being an apostle, they really shouldn’t have.