Eugene Peterson caught me by surprise. All I ever knew of him was that he wrote “The Message” translation, which was not taken very seriously throughout Bible College and seminary. It never seemed as if the “Academia” took him serious. All of that changed when I read, “Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity.” The three angels of which the pastor is to keep his flock attentive to God are: prayer, reading Scripture, and Spiritual Direction.
At the outset of his book, Peterson captured my attention with conviction!
People hear us pray in worship, they listen to us preach and teach from the Scriptures, they notice when we are listening to them in a conversation, but they can never know if we are attending to God in any of this.1
For the first seven years of Pastoral ministry I believe this statement was true for me. I did not know how to pray, read scripture, or play the role of spiritual director without my dogmatic theology gnawing its way into every conversation. The truth of the matter is I experienced the “Dark night of the Soul” and immediately after God changed my spiritual DNA, and I became fully known by my wife, friends, and family, I prayed, read scripture, and spiritually directed people in a new way. I do not want to over simplify that change, but it seemed to me like an overnight change and my wife is my witness :)
Like any sport or challenging endeavor, the game is won far in advance. The hard work of refining and working on these three angles of pastoral ministry is done when nobody is watching before it is executed in public for the, “win.” I know hard work pays and I am also not ignorant to know that God gets all the glory even for the hard work since apart from him I can do nothing (John 15:15).
That being said, I would reframe the statement that these angles are “hard work.” Perhaps it should be said like this: “Prayer, proper scripture reading, and spiritual direction are hard work when fueled by human will versus the power of the Holy Spirit.” I suggest we begin every endeavor with a confession followed by surrender: “Lord, I am incapable of doing this. I choose to allow you to do it…and yes, I submit myself so that you can accomplish this through me. Here I am. Use me Lord. Amen.”
I highly recommend this book for Pastors, ministry workers, or any other sinner in need of a Savior on the areas of prayer, scripture, or spiritual direction. Okay, everyone should get this book.
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