Excerpt from Chapter 9 - Higher Calling
As Dick would later tell the story, it was during a hotel room prayer vigil, and not until then, that God called him to leave the bank and surrender to full-time ministry at Shades Mountain Independent Church.
Months before, as others urged him to leave the bank, Dick sought the advice of ten trusted friends, some in the ministry and some in the business world. He asked each one the same question.
“What do you think? Should I stay at the bank? Or should I go to the church?”
The response was a split decision. Five said he should stay at the bank, and five said he should go to the church. When the answer came, it would have to be God’s doing. And that is just what happened in Gatlinburg—Dick heard God’s call.
Outsiders might mistake his response for delayed obedience, and even some friends might have thought him blind to the obvious. The issue, however, was the “fullness of time” as the Scriptures often put it. God’s timing was at work.
Dick knelt beside his bed, an open Bible before him, as he agonized in prayer and soul-searching. The Lord brought to mind once more David’s prayer promise from Psalm 16:11, “Thou wilt show me the path of life.” Like a compass guiding a pilgrim lost in the woods, God’s Word gave him direction and calmed his spirit.
Dick knew that God’s will was not like a piece of merchandise to be taken out of a display case for him to examine and then accept or reject. A clear answer from God first required a yielded heart, no matter what the future held.
Finally, peace came over him, not because He knew God’s plan yet but because he was surrendered to whatever God wanted. But if God was calling him to leave the bank and to become SMI’s Pastor, the call would be tested. Dick was enmeshed in several complicated business deals that would require a lengthy and ongoing role at the bank. It would be unethical to walk out on them. But SMI needed a pastor now! And Dick needed resolution too. |
This biography is a must-read and a fun one too! Here is inspiration for seekers who want to hear the claims and power of the Gospel to change a life. Here is encouragement and “how-to” instruction for pastors and Christian workers from a corporate executive who brought a CEO’s perspective to ministry leadership.