The Sunday morning invitation ends, and the pastor invites a young woman to join him as she shares her decision. She has submitted to the call of God on her life, the pastor says, and wants the church to affirm her as she seeks to enroll in law school.
Law school? Shouldnt somebody that bright be using her gifts in full-time Christian ministry, possibly as a missionary? Or, if God is still working on her, maybe even as a teacher at a Christian school?
Most of us would never admit such biases, but theyre there. And a critical part of the North American Mission Boards strategy for reaching the United States and Canada is convincing many of us that God doesnt just call people to the ministry. He calls each of us to minister where we arepenetrating the culture with a gospel that can change it.
Dr. Juan Campos checks the ears of Gumaro Calles during an examination at a health clinic in Birmingham, Alabama.
PHOTO BY GIBBS FRAZEUR
We need to unleash the laity, says Randy Singer, NAMBs special assistant and chief counsel. If we want to see great revival in North America, first we have to get past the notion that the pastors have to do it all.
That army of Christians can make a difference in any career and any workplace. But look around, and youll find that the professions most able to impact the culture in a positive way are the very ones Christians have tended to avoid.
Consider the legal profession. One survey by the Barna Research Group found that only about four percent of attorneys consider themselves born-again evangelical Christians. Meanwhile, attorneys not only run the entire judicial system, but large numbers eventually move on to equally influential careers in politics or as top executives of large corporations. Similar dichotomies also exist in the entertainment industry, news media and higher education.
Why have we stepped away from those culturally impacting professions? asks Singer. Theres the notion that certain secular callings are more Christian than others.
Singer, a trial attorney himself, is leading efforts to impact the legal profession in partnership with the Christian Legal Societyincluding conferences to help Christian lawyers see how they can make a difference. A Southern Baptist chap- lain also will be endorsed next year to work specifically with attorneys, Singer says. Similar efforts are being developed to work with Christian business executives to help them use their influence for kingdom work.
In Hollywood, Mission Service Corps missionary Victorya Michaels Rogers is a former talent agent who now devotes her time to developing relationships with individuals at all levels of the television and film industriesleading them to Christ and encouraging them in faith as they impact those around them with the gospel.
And in Midtown Manhattan, NAMB is helping start The Four One One Church, which is seeking to minister to the thousands who work in the Times Square theater district.
NAMBs strategy of penetrating the culture also extends to other efforts outside the church, including evangelistic advertising campaigns, the FamilyNet television network and the dedicated Evangelism Response Center telephone answering system to allow people who respond to those efforts to talk further with someone about Christ.
But while the air war of broadcasting and media-based efforts is important, its the ground forcesindividual believers like all of us living out our faith dailywho are likely to have the greatest impact.
If were going to penetrate the culture of North America, its a calling for all Christians to take their ministry to their profession, Singer says, and use that as a platform for sharing Jesus Christ.