But… No Church Called Me

A letter from a young man who was convinced God had called him into youth ministry and can’t find a church to call him. What wisdom do you have for him?

Hey Scot,

Love your blog! I have a question on a personal note. I have been out of college for a few years. I was convinced that God was leading me to be a youth pastor because of my passion for youth and helping them to see what God is really like. 4 years have passed since I felt this ‘call’ or what I thought was a call. In that time I had at 4-5 churches where I was a finalist and none of them worked out- a few where between me and one other person.

I have almost given up because I now have a family and a newborn and doubt a starting youth pastor salary will be able to sustain us- not that we live lavishly at all. This has been a big faith struggle for me understanding why the passion and drive were there and God did not seem to be there with me in my pursuits.

I have gone through many cycles of going back to the old cliches of ‘God was protecting me from a bad situation’ or maybe ‘I am not good enough to do this job’ and many more. My passions are still there; any advice on how you walk forward from here? It has made me doubt any of my desires are God’s will even if the best intent is there.