Forget the Fatted Calf….Slaughter the Oxen!

I just finished teaching a leadership and church government class at my church. One of my students responded to a writing assignment about Elisha and his call to ministry by dealing with 1 Kings 19.19-21 with a powerful analogy that the class talked about for over an hour. In the written response to the call of Elisha one of my students capitalized on the fact that with Elisha’s initial calling to service he killed his oxen, burned the hardware associated with the oxen and then proceeded to follow and minister to Elijah.

We began to uncover some of the “oxen” that inhibits us from serving God, following and serving leadership and can actually dissuade us from our “calling” entirely.

We discussed emotional attachments that can inhibit us. Elisha did request and was granted permission to go back and kiss his parents. But the kiss was one of saying “so long, see ya later”. The kiss wasn’t symbolic of a tie that would keep Elisha from service but one that warranted support and approval.

I can’t tell you in my 35 plus years of leading people in the faith community how many times I have seen “callings” crash and burn because of emotional ties that couldn’t be cut. In order to fully follow Christ and serve Him in complete commitment we may have to kill some analogous emotional/relational oxen.
I don’t think God calls us to destroy family relationships. God is about family and has been since He created Adam and Eve. But what He also created was the total dependence on Him and not family. In other words Elisha left the instruction, guidance and resource of family to pursue following a prophet who had a price on his head (remember Jezebel?). Family, friends, relationships can interfere with our calling and we may have to make choices to accept, deny or integrate family with our calling.

I see this more with men and women who are called into a ministry venue after marriage. The spouse didn’t enter the marriage with intentions of going “full time” in ministry. “Are you insane?” I have heard spouses ask their partners. In order to salvage family you may find yourself balancing family and calling. Does God call someone into full time ministry knowing that his or her calling will destroy their family? i don’t think so! But callings are without repentance and when He calls He is well aware of our circumstances. God expects us to work out our calling by communicating that calling with our spouse, family and friends.

Let me also say that not every person who has a calling to serve has to do so on a full time basis. This is entirely a whole new subject matter. Know this though, callings will force us to slaughter some emotional ties that could inhibit our obedience factor.

Money, as in income, can be another “oxen” we may have to slaughter. Without a doubt, when discovering your calling, rather in full time ministry or in vocational employment, you will be faced with making a choice that may point to less income, less money for your service. Many people who “take a church” or “accept a transfer/promotion” may do so and actually make less money in their new venture. I have made several ministry decisions that on the outside looked like financial gains when in reality I took less salary in my decision to relocate.

Calling isn’t about money. Calling is about the absolute will of God and trusting Him for total provision. When I left employment with General Motors in 1987 to enter full time ministry I made a covenant with God. I told God, “Get me into full time ministry and I will never depend on vocational employment again.” Over thirty years ago we stepped away from a great income with great benefits. I have seen tough times and lean times but God has never failed our covenant.

In moving to Ohio to assume our current pastorate we were met by a lady in the altar who informed me, “You will be our next pastor and you will come by paying a great personal sacrifice.” Needless to say she was on target. We had just had a house built and had lived in it for only a few months. We left Michigan just before the housing crisis of 2005. The house stayed on the market for over four years. We continued to make payments on a vacant home until we finally sold it in a short sale. We put the house on the market for $300,000 and we sold it for a mere $138,000. We lost our shirt and nearly every thing we owned. Our total lose in the scenario was over $200,000. We were certainly slaughtering some oxen!

Folks kept asking if we missed the will of God in coming to Ohio as if the will of God is painless and exempt from financial loss. We finally got it across to people that if the perfect will of God meant no pain than Jesus was out of the Father’s will by going to the cross.

We were in the center of God’s will and we were also prophetically told our choice would be at a costly personal sacrifice. I believe that at some point in our future God will restore what the enemy stole from us. My faith is in a God who holds the world in His hands, not just the housing market.

We slaughtered that oxen of financial loss. We picked up and began chasing our “Elijah” – aka Lancaster, Ohio. God has blessed our ministry here with church growth and an incredible congregation that is committed to following anointed visionary leadership. The lost money? Oh its still lost!! It hasn’t found its way back to our bank account yet. It may never. In the mean time we have a calling to engage.

Finding the will of God is sometimes costly. You may have to take a step backwards financially to see the will of God manifest in your life. But I can assure you of this, God’s word and will is at stake. He will sustain what He calls. He will resource your calling. He will uphold your calling. He will guide your calling. We first have to make a choice to “slaughter the oxen.”

There are a lot more “oxen” in relationship to calling that have to slaughtered. For each of us it could be something different. For some its the “comfort zone” of our job, our geographical location, friends, family, assets, salary, etc. The one thread of commonality in all calling is obedience. Obedience should trump everything else in our lives.

I am reminded of the cost factors Jesus spoke about in relationship to following Him.
Luke 9:59-62 And He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” (60) But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” (61) Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home.” (62) But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Rather you are in full time ministry, part time ministry, vocationally employed as a minister or vocationally employed and serving in a church or ministry to fulfill your calling – you at some point have had to slaughter some oxen.

I would very much like for you to respond to the blog and let me know some of the “oxen” you’ve had to slaughter along the way.