The Path Splits

I spent a long time trying to come up with a title for this post, and I must admit, the final result is weak. I guess this is the best you can get from someone as lame as I am, am I right? However, even though the title is lame, it is pretty much exactly what this entry will be about.

If you are a creeper of some sort, or just someone that has talked to me about my future, you would know by now that I am planning for Bible college as the ultimate goal in my formal education. It's been a long time coming, but I can sincerely tell you that I've actively pursued to try to get opinions and views from people to help me with this process - when the oppurtunity arose. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate the feedback and help I've received from anyone that I've chatted with recently. As most people that have been down this path before have experienced and know, it's not going to be easy; but it is that first step that is all important.

And then I'm faced with two main roads for me to choose from; the end goal is the same in both paths; the journey through them is the main difference. Both of the directions I can go will eventually merge and go towards the goal of "pastor" in the home stretch. I think the easiest way to describe the difference is, if I can use this analogy, whether or not I want to take the detour and go to Tim Horton's to pick up a cup of coffee (I don't drink coffee, but it'll work) before I come back out to get from point A to point B; today is busy, the drive through line-up is incredibly long and the line-up inside swirls for a couple circles. It is not all too desirable to go grab the coffee, but knowing that by doing so, it will help you by fueling you while you continue your little adventure. Of course, it is optional since you eventually go down the same path anyway, but... you get the point by now.

So how does this relate to me? The suggestion from people are split pretty well between how I should be approaching Bible college. One option, a more direct one, is to go straight, skip the coffee, and go right to Bible college when conditions are favorable. This choice would mean that I spend the next however long to ready myself and make the transition into school right away. As of this moment right now, this path seems to be more of what I would like to do because, today, I am feeling impatient and I don't want to line up to get my drink. I know what it could give me, but I would much rather pass on it. It is also good that I choose to skip out on it because I would be able to get to my destination earlier which allows me to finish and come out earlier. The results of doing so would mean that I'd be a little more fatigued because I didn't get that coffee that might have provided me with an extra boost to help me get by, but it may have saved me a few grey hairs from being too impatient while waiting in line and that I will have more time to go along and tackle my job.

Okay, snap back to reality. This really means that I go straight to Bible college, which means that I can graduate at a younger age and start my pastoring earlier and not have wasted some time doing things that might hold me back from getting the degree. This is the option that some people have suggested to me. The problem with this, even though I am leaning on this more, is that I lose out on some life experience. I'm young enough as it is for people my age group, so I really don't have all that much experience as a person to be able to help me relate better to people when I am pastoring. You can probably already see what the next option is.

You guessed it, the second choice would be to go grab that coffee so I am better fueled for the path down the road. For me, this would mean that I go out and achieve a bit more experience on this whole "life" business and then go to Bible college so that when I graduate from it, I will be better equipped to take on that pastoring role. To put it into perspective, I will probably have to finish a degree, perhaps at the U of A, first, and then work a bit to, both, make money for school and to provide me with that work experience. After that, however long it might take, I go into Bible college to get my theology degree. It seems that even though I am leaning to the former choice, this path is much more favourable to me in the long run - assuming that I feel the same towards both choices. It would allow me to know what it's like to work hard to finish my undergrad studies, to be in the workforce and know what it's like to do that, and ultimately aid me in being more relateable to whoever I am helping when I become a pastor. With all things, come a price, or a sacrifice. I previously expressed, with my Tim's example, that I feel impatient so I don't want to wait in line. Over the past two semesters at the U of A, I have generated a real negative vibe towards what my life is like in this university. I can't come up with the exact word for what I feel towards my U of A experience, but the point is that I really don't want to go back for another three years to graduate; I don't have the willingness or the patience. To support my affection for it, let me tell you now that throughout this first year, school almost literally was never in my mind when I was outside of it, except when I had to do my assignments. I could go on with this, but I don't want to turn this into another one of my "/emoschoolmakesmemiserable" posts.

The "too long, didn't read" conclusion is that I don't and can't put up with three more years of continuing studies at the U of A to gain a degree in order to give me the experience of working for a degree so I can relate to people better. Some might say that I can work for a couple years, then I'd be more than set for Bible college because I'll have the money and I'll have the workforce experience. The thing is, though, and we all know it, that it is risky to drop school completely t0 work then go back to school because you might completely lose that education desire. So, working for a year or two, while skipping out on my degree, before going to Bible college isn't very favorable.

After all that blabbing that you probably didn't read, I think my biggest challenge is to find a way so that I can become the best pastor I can become and, at the same time, be doing it because it is a passion and not just my "job". I must note that the average span of time that a single English pastor spends in one church is two years. Why so short? Well, there are many reasons you could probably come up with, and none of them are really "good" reasons. And this is what I am saying, I want to do everything possible, with God's help of course, to not be a pastor for X amount of years and then go, "I can't do it anymore, I just can't". My dad just told me that he wishes he'd never see the day that I become like that, and neither do I.

Mind you that even though I've said all that I have, I am set on going down the road of being a pastor; I have the passion to serve and with all the cards that have been dealt to me, it is a reasonable choice to go down this path. I am only struggling with the means of getting there. I want start and end the process as best as conditions can be so I'd be able to maximize my effectiveness as a future pastor.

Hmm, yet another surpremely monster of a blog. If you have read everything, good on ya'. I still have plenty, plenty more to say about both my situations that go into excrutiating detail, but I don't want to make this post so long that it'd take fifty years to read it. However, if you read, or skimmed, my post and want to either help me or just know more about the way I picture my situation, let me know! I would be glad to talk to you about it and get your opinions and feedbacks, because I could really use every opinion I could get. I know a lot of my points may be unclear because, after all, this is on the internet, and I much prefer the method of talking face to face in these kinds of discussions, so please don't draw conclusions based on what you might have read that lead you to assumptions; we all know what when you ASSuME...

Well anyways, go Caps!