Here is a verse you won’t hear preached at Teen Mania. It doesn’t fit well with the worldchanger rhetoric, and yet it is in the Bible. So what do we do with that?
Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you. I Thess. 4:11
At the Honor Academy, there is an undeniable pressure to come up with a grand vision statement for your life – something that will impact the world for Jesus in a really big, noticeable way. Between character development class with Ron Luce, the “Holy Ghost brainstorm,” the fasting retreats, the required mission statement and the 5 year plan – the average intern mindset is one of making huge, dramatic, grandiose plans. Now, there is nothing inherently wrong with making big plans or wanting to impact the world for Jesus. The problem comes when you believe that everyone has to make those kinds of plans. Does Jesus call some people to very large ministries that impact cities and even nations? Sure, He does. But He doesn’t call everybody to do that. That type of ministry is never stated as the ideal for all Christians to aspire to.
There is a strong undercurrent within the Honor Academy of people feeling that they are second class Christians. Lots of people just want to be business men/women, teachers, tradesmen, moms, dads, husbands, and wives. They just want to work a job they enjoy and love their family. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It is not less spiritual in any way. And yet, many people are made to feel that they are less spiritual, less sold-out, and less Christian because of it.
In Paul’s letters to the New Testament church, he talked about a lot of mundane, every day things. He talked about how God accepts us in Christ and about how we should accept each other, bear with one another, forgive one another, etc. He didn’t give any instructions about “finding your purpose” or making 5 year plans. He spoke to people that were carpenters, fishermen, mothers, day laborers, and farmers. He never discounted their vocation or encouraged them to find something more spiritual to do. So, why do we?
23 comments:
Shannon Kishsays:April 15, 2010 at 8:26 AMReply
I completely forgot about the Holy Ghost Brainstorm.
It was ridiculous!
I found the Vision Retreat to be pointless. Mainly, because I knew prior to going to the HA that I wanted to be a counselor. Because I knew that, my HGB was filled out with that in mind. Nothing in the Vision retreat led me to want to do anything different, except put a “Christian” spin on counseling. I had already started school prior to the HA and had already declared a psych major.
The emphasis on the Great commission and finding your vision led me to leave a GREAT state school and attend a Good Christian school, whose psych department was horrible. All because I was now led to put a “Christian” spin on counseling.
So, instead of paying $5000/yr for school I paid much much much more than that and have a mortgage size student loan payment every month.
gc1998says:April 15, 2010 at 9:35 AMReply
yeah…it would be really great if this verse was presented as well…balance is a GOOOOD thing.
Zsays:April 15, 2010 at 9:49 AMReply
What is a Holy Ghost brainstorm? It sounds so. . . odd.
Zsays:April 15, 2010 at 10:28 AMReply
Thanks for this post, RA, this is how I like to live my life — nice and quiet. It feels good to know that I’m not being lazy by living a quiet, simple life.
Nicksays:April 15, 2010 at 10:34 AMReply
RA I think that while most of the time you are spot on, what you are saying here is no longer the norm at TM. I just graduated 2 years ago and there was a major emphasis put on the fact that if you are led to be a stay at home mom, then be a stay at home mom and do it wholeheartedly or if your supposed to be a buisnessman than do it with honor. When you say “There is a strong undercurrent within the Honor Academy of people feeling that they are second class Christians. Lots of people just want to be business men/women, teachers, tradesmen, moms, dads, husbands, and wives. They just want to work a job they enjoy and love their family. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It is not less spiritual in any way. And yet, many people are made to feel that they are less spiritual, less sold-out, and less Christian because of it”….I think that this might happen with some of the interns but I can tell you that this does not come from the leadership anymore anyway.
Just my two cents 🙂
Eric P.says:April 15, 2010 at 10:37 AMReply
Love that verse. It’s probably worth pointing out the obvious, that Paul is generally stereotyped as one of those “huge, dramatic, grandiose world-changers.” Yet he apparently considered an unassuming stay-at-home vocation something to aspire to!
So all us quiet homebodies, consider: Paul the world-changer wished he could have a job as spiritual as yours.
Cesnasays:April 15, 2010 at 12:50 PMReply
Ehhhhh someone I knew graduated not even two years, ago, and they were fed this bullcrap. So it very much still IS the norm. =/
Shannon Kishsays:April 15, 2010 at 1:35 PMReply
Nick,
They spewed that talk back in 2001 as well. The difference is that you are made to feel like in being a business man/woman or a stay at home mom you are also then called to be a Sender, mobilizer, etc.
So, while you can remain a stay-at-home mom/dad, at the same time you are supposed to be contributing to society in some way– or at least that is the prevaling myth that they present to you.
I remember my first year out of college, I felt that since it was unethical for me to mention God during my counseling sessions with my clients that I wasn’t fulfilling my vision.
Shannon Kishsays:April 15, 2010 at 1:40 PMReply
Z-
The Hold Ghost Brainstorm was a LONG questionaire that you were supposed to ask yourself and the Holy Spirit was supposed to lead you through in order to find out what your likes/dislikes, passions, desires, dreams were. The HGB led to your Vision.
Anyone have a copy of the Holy Ghost Brainstorm
Jacquelinesays:April 15, 2010 at 4:47 PMReply
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with taking time in the silence to consider what God might be wanting to say to you. I find that when I do that he usually says things like, “I love you, come closer, it’s going to be alright, you are beautiful, I’m with you.”
Philip Esays:April 15, 2010 at 5:40 PMReply
And sometimes he says “go marry a harlot.”
gc1998says:April 15, 2010 at 6:51 PMReply
i think…it’s probably good to encourage brainstorming or seeking to know oneself better…esp for 18 year olds. but…it somehow invalidates that exploration process. that growing up and maturing is a journey, and it’s OK to change your major; it’s OK to go backpack around europe and discover you like ________…all those things are ok and normal.
i think christianity tries to skip a lot of normal life-chapters that might be confusing or hard by making formulas or making confusion into a sin or spiritual failure. it’s sad.
Recovering Alumnisays:April 15, 2010 at 6:55 PMReply
Nick – I hope that this truth is becoming more accepted on campus. But unfortunately its not widespread enough yet, b/c this post was inspired by my conversation with a very recent alum. 🙁
GC – TOTALLY agree. TM has a whacked out view of “maturity” that includes skipping alot of normal development processes in favor of prayer and solitude…Those aren’t bad things but they aren’t adequate substitutes for life experience.
I’m all for brainstorming, praying, fasting, etc. I am not supportive of trying to shove everybody into the same mold.
Intern94says:April 15, 2010 at 10:04 PMReply
Balance is the key. 7years after the internship I was still feeling like I was worthless because I wasn’t “attempting great things for God”. I remeber driving home from Church thinking that my life was pointless. I know those thoughts were not from a loving Father who just wants to know me and for me to know Him. They were from a previous standard that had been set to show your true “dedication and passion” for God. I have been so lucky to have friends and family that have brought balance to my life in that I can accept where I am and know that I am not worthless and my life is not pointless just because I am not a full time missionairy living on the forefronts and doing battle against the enemy.
Eric P.says:April 16, 2010 at 9:38 AMReply
Um. They do realize that brainstorming has nothing whatever to do with filling out a detailed questionnaire, right?
Right?
(And that neither of them has much to do with the Holy Ghost?)
Brandonsays:April 17, 2010 at 5:02 PMReply
Martin Luther dealt with this same “Elitism” mentality 500 years ago. Instead of an HA they had monasteries though, and monks instead of interns… I would recommend reading Luther’s treatise on vocation. It’s amazing that we’re dealing with the same types of things that they dealt with 500 years ago. The names change, but works-righteousnes elitist legalism is alive and well… And spiritual abuse is crammed down anyone’s throat who gets in the way to their enlightenment and future glorification.
Anonymoussays:April 17, 2010 at 6:47 PMReply
RA, what do you propose TM does differently to give the interns that “life experience” in place of prayer & solitude? I am interested in hearing your thoughts
Recovering Alumnisays:April 17, 2010 at 9:27 PMReply
Hi Anon, thanks for asking. Let me clarify what I meant. Dave Hasz often talks about how terrible it is for college students to change majors – to him its a sign of immaturity and lack of purpose (and weak Christianity). I see it differently. People change majors because they try something they are interested in to find out if they will like it or not – there is NOTHING wrong with that! If you think you want to major in business, you take some business classes to see how you like it – prayer and solitude alone won’t necessarily tell you that.
I think this attitude is indicative of TM’s general view of maturity…that is skipping out the finding and exploring parts of life, which are some of the richest experiences, in favor of figuring it all out through prayer. Does that make sense?
I don’t think its TM’s role to provide all those life experiences – but it is their role to encourage exploration and not discount it…very few 18-19 year olds know what they want to do with their lives – and that is ok! However, that is not what they are told.
I did a short post on this topic here: http://www.recoveringalumni.com/2009/12/god-can-speak-without-ha-gasp.html
iansays:April 18, 2010 at 11:21 AMReply
TM is essentially steroids for christianity. I think we’ll all agree on that. Good or bad, it forces growth. There are some very good things that come out of teenmania. For example, I learned a lot of discipline. 10 years later, I am still confident that I could make myself run 10 miles if I wanted to. I don’t want to, but I know I could.
The problem is, there are side effects to steroids. They cause hormonal imbalances, they cause fits of rage, they destroy your other organs, they create scar tissue…
People having their own experiences (aka natural growth) is a good thing. It’s healthier, it’s sustainable, it’s how God created us.
Lot’s of people leave TM with strong christian muscles. But as soon as they leave, and the steriods are gone, they crash. Their muscles dissapate quickly, the scar tissue in their life manifests itself as elitism, pride, and bitterness. The walls that they once used to crash through are now insurmountable. They’re no longer able to produce the natural hormones that stimulate growth.
You’re twenties are perhaps the most important time of growth in your life. There is no good way to leapfrog them. Hasz’s claim that the HA packs 7 years of experience into 1 year should be looked at with distrust, not excitement. You’re missing out on 6 amazing years of life.
Recovering Alumnisays:April 18, 2010 at 1:05 PMReply
Ian – that is a really interesting analogy. Thanks for sharing!
Candorsays:April 18, 2010 at 4:32 PMReply
I agree. Great analogy, Ian.
Anonymoussays:April 21, 2010 at 4:29 PMReply
Recovery Alum,
I just want to take this time to apologize for my comment that you used in this post. I don’t believe you have to be “classy” to be a good leader. I wasn’t trying to convey that I was trying to suggest that treating God as a King is something we should fear or be afraid of.
I was saying that because he is the King of Kings. We should approach Him with love, honor, and respect.
I believe that God wants us to be as intimate as possible with Him. We are to share the good, the bad, and the ugly with him without fear of rebuke or reprisal.
He is our father, friend, redeemer, comforter, and so much more. He is our everything. He is also our King meaning he knows what’s best for us.
I’m not suggesting that I agree with Mr. Hasz, because I don’t agree with elitism.
Intimacy with Christ is not promoted at TM the way that it was intended. We were constantly doing things without rest to the point that quiet times became routine and monotonous.
At least that’s what I heard from a few interns that were honest. Spiritual burnout does not please God and makes you vulnerable to satan. It also pushes us further from the Lord because we may even view him as a task-master.
This blog has help me out of my disillusionment.
Thanks
Recovering Alumnisays:April 21, 2010 at 4:52 PMReply
Hi Anon,
I think you meant this post: http://www.recoveringalumni.com/2010/04/place-of-fear-in-christian-life.html
Either way, no apology needed. I’m glad you clarified what you meant b/c I was afraid you were living in a fear-based mindset (based on your comment).
I’ve spoken with so many alumni, especially recent ones, who live in a very fear-based relationship with God. They are constantly afraid that they will be punished for accidentally making the wrong move or doing the wrong thing. So your comment wasn’t the total reason I posted on this, it was just a catalyst. Glad the blog is helping you!
