One of the fundamental truths of the Gospel story is that our lives matter. God created each of us for the purpose of playing a unique role in his grand story.
In Ephesians 2:10 the Apostle Paul expresses a beautiful thought: “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Every faculty, whether a full professor or adjunct, whether at an elite R-1 university or the local community college, has been created by God, gifted by God, and called by God to play a unique role in God’s plan. These good works will include works with students and colleagues, works within a department and across a discipline, and works done to bring hope to the world. It’s a stirring thought to think God created you, gifted you, and called you to play a particular role in changing the world, from your unique place in the academy.
You were created for this Grander Story.
Many Christian professors are tempted to think they are in a particular job or location solely because it was the best opportunity they could secure. Very few, from our experience, would seem to view their current professor position as something that i) God created them for; ii) God gifted them for; iii) God called them to, and a place from which iv) God can use them to help change the world.
But when we embrace these four truths, our vocations find new meaning. We literally begin to discover the good works that God has prepared for us. Nothing can be more thrilling.
Three Initial Steps to Being Part of A Grander Story
- Read “A Grander Story: An Invitation to Christian Professors.” You can get it on Amazon here.
- Find or start a community of Christ-following faculty at your university. All of us need a company of colleagues to weather the challenges of the academy. Start meeting together—perhaps using the discussion guides at the end of each chapter of the “A Grander Story.”
- Encourage other Christian colleagues to Sign up for weekly encouragement. Over 1500 faculty receive our weekly FC Missional Moments and find it helpful as they seek to live A Grander Story in the academy.
— Rick Hove and Heather Holleman