Do what I love?

On television and in the popular press we are told, “Do what you love and love what you do.” Pretty simple advice that seems an obvious prerequisite to happiness, but is it? The gospels tell us He has come to bring us life and life more abundantly. The gospels also tell us to pick up our cross and follow Him. Which is it? I have spent a very large portion of my life doing things I really didn’t enjoy because I believe there are some things that are more important than my happiness.

At a retreat, during counseling, my spiritual director observed the Germans had a word, pflichtbewurstrein, that described a condition of the soul. It means to be conscious of duty. My spiritual director believed that I had a bad case of this disease. He is probably correct. At times when I slog through life, I am more likely to hear the voice of my father than the voice of my Heavenly Father.

Consider; one day my father chose to drive to work in an ice storm. He had absolutely no business on the road in such conditions. He drove his car over a railroad bridge. At the bottom of the bridge there was a sharp right hand bend in the road. My father turned the steering wheel but the car did not turn. It continued to go straight into an oncoming truck. Since the speeds were pretty slow our car was totaled but my father was not too badly injured. He was taken to the hospital where it was discovered he had a broken rib. He also had a pretty nasty gash on his chin. They sewed up the gash, wrapped a very large ace bandage around his rib cage, gave him some pain medication, and released him. My mother picked him up in her car and drove him home. My father ate something, got right back into my mother’s car, and drove to work. His values are not the values of a typical American employee. They are the values of a German solider fighting at the siege of Stalingrad.

Now that I have spent almost 400 words explaining why I can not write this essay, let me continue. There are people who get lucky in life. They see an opportunity, they roll the dice, work hard, have the necessary talent, and they win. It doesn’t happen very often. Eight out of ten Americans are dissatisfied with their jobs. The two out of ten that are satisfied tend to be medical doctors, college professors, and ordained clergy. There are exceptions. I once read a story in one of the Millionaire Next Door series (I strongly recommend these books). A young man graduated from a prestigious MBA program and found employment with White Trucks. As he was destined for upper management, he was placed in a program that would expose him to every aspect of the company’s business. In one of his postings, he was asked to sell a wrecked truck to a junk yard. He was given $600 for the truck. The next day he was asked to find a used engine for a truck that was in their shop for repair. He went to the same junk yard that bought his truck and found the correct engine. It cost $600. A light bulb went off in the young man’s head. He worked long enough to buy his first wrecked truck. Then he turned his back on a certain future and never looked back. Today he millionaire many times over and the owner of the largest network of truck junk yards in the Southern United States.

I think the first step is actually determining what it is that we love to do. I think we can tell what we really love by examining where we put our time, treasure, and emotional energy. If you are willing to expend these three commodities on something, regardless of outcome, I believe you have found what you truly love. After hearing Doug’s recent sermon on Nehemiah, I would add one more step. If it is truly something to pursue, I believe that a day will come when you can no longer stand not doing it. Maybe doing it will make you happy and maybe not, but perhaps you will find something more important than doing what you love. Maybe you will find your way through this valley of tears.

May God have mercy on my soul.

Nehemiah Chapter 1 (NIV)

The words of Nehemiah son of Hakaliah:
In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa,
2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.
3 They said to me, "Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire."
4 When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
5 Then I said:"LORD, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments,
6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my ancestral family, have committed against you.
7 We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.
8 "Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations,
9 but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.'
10 "They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand.
11 Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man."