In April 2015 I observed a thread of Facebook posts in which deacons and prospective candidates for deacon were sharing the various places and roles they were working in service to Christ. Another thread inquired about whether deacons were having difficulty finding employment that would be approved by the church for appointment. As a commissioned “provisional” deacon one is told to “live into your calling”…..By that one might imagine that one is to do the things deacons (clergy in the United Methodist Church) would be expected to do. That, however, is almost as elusive as attempting to nail Jello to a wall as deacons’ calls to ministry are as varied in tasks and venues as the individuals themselves are. It would also seem that the few years of “provisional” status (essentially a required “residency”, minimum 2 years, maximum 8 years) would hardly be sufficient to mold one into all that God might intend to accomplish in one’s ministry calling and role. And, in fact, it would be a shame if, once ordained, one simply ceased further seeking of God’s will, refining, and growth. So how “fully formed” should one be in the ministry to which she is called before moving forward into ordination and beyond, appointed by the church? It seems more easily defined for an elder whose call to preach, serve, and lead a church is more uniformly standard and universally understood. Not so much with the deacon’s role….A deacon may be deployed in any number of venues, in chaplaincy in military service, hospitals or elsewhere, in social work, in government, in education, in law, in business, in healthcare, in publishing or journalism, in music…..managing an orphanage or a mission or a medical clinic, working on an environmental conservation project, building schools or churches, digging wells, teaching, counseling, and so much more. The diversity of deacons is limitless. Therein lies the challenge….how is the decision made as to what constitutes a ministry vocation that is desired, needed, and affirmed by the church? Or is any vocation and venue where a God-called, church-equipped, and Gospel-committed person who serves others and brings the gospel to bear with compassion and justice a legitimate place for the church to send its representatives? Is there any venue, any geography, any enterprise, any activity, any place that people live, work, or play (within legal and moral considerations) that we would NOT want such called, equipped, and committed persons to be deployed in the name of Christ? Perhaps we should be identifying and equipping as many prospective deacons for deployment into our culture as we possibly can….to “connect the church with the world and the world with the church”. Hmmmmmm. Just a thought…..
