Pastoral Education

I had an intriguing conversation the other day with my roommate’s boyfriend about whether pastors should be required to have a seminary degree. His point was professionalism in the church: why should doctors, lawyers, and teachers be required to have a degree, but not pastors? Honestly, that mindset doesn’t make sense to me. All the other professions are institutions of this world, while the church is an institution of God. It seems like He should be able to make His own requirements for the position of pastor (and He did -read I and II Timothy and Titus). It doesn’t say in the Bible “thou shalt attend seminary.” My point in all of this is that a pastor’s training doesn’t have to come from a seminary. The Holy Spirit can use life experience, good books and sermons, and other Christ followers, as well as formal education. In Acts it says that some of the apostles were uneducated men, but would anyone say that Jesus made a mistake in calling them? On the other hand, Paul had an extensive formal education. Why be so wrapped up in the world’s way of doing things? Seminary can be a great thing, but it isn’t the only thing.

Marriage

I want to get married. There, I said it. It wasn’t that hard, was it? Actually, yeah it was. Why is it like pulling teeth for me to admit that I would love to spend the rest of my life with a guy whose sole purpose is to follow Jesus in a radical way? Maybe it’s because I’m afraid that just because I want that to happen, doesn’t mean that it will. Am I so arrogant to think that there isn’t a single guy out there that would give up anything in the pursuit of God’s glory? They’re out there, I know. The litmus test is this: will we serve God better together than we would apart? That’s a tough question to answer, but I think it’s the right question to ask. If it’s all about bringing Him more glory, then the purpose of a Christian marriage should be to bring Him more glory. The problem still remains. What if I could bring Him more glory outside the context of marriage? Hmm… Praise God that He is in control. Otherwise, I might go crazy.