Selected Writings |
| Forrest Gump for Pastor Calvin Miller, of Southwestern Seminary, wrote an article in SBC Life entitled "Forrest Gump for Pastor." Some ideas are expressed so simply and succinctly that they deserve repeating. Miller's article is one worth sharing. He writes: "Most preachers are looking for a miracle. The miracle is simple in most of their minds. They are looking for enough acceptance to lead and enough congregational support to believe that their dreams are worthwhile. . . "Enter Forrest Gump . . . Is Forrest Gumpism the antidote to pastoral criticism? It may be. "Pastors often succumb to criticism when they have neglected the spiritual disciplines and begin to play the shallower game of brinkmanship. In this spiritually depraved state, they actually begin to believe that achieving some great plateau for God lies in outwitting the powerful lay structure of the church. If they fail and the lay structure outwits them, they suffer. But even when they succeed at the administrative battle of wits, they still feel spiritually cheap and wish they had done it some other way. "I have become fascinated with Forrest Gump for outdumbing the world in his meteoric climb to success. In fact, I have fallen so hopelessly in love with Gump that I am reluctant to mention his intelligence. I like him too much to remember that he had only a 75 IQ. So I am prone to notice that he had a knack for remaining innocent in a world where only the conniving succeed. And Gump had an honest innocence. "In fact, it was more than an honest innocence. It was a holy innocence. Holy? Forrest Gump, holy? Well, it could be. God has a way of living in those who are not clever enough to sin willfully. It is generally agreed by theologians that you have to be smart to sin. Goodness, on the other hand, seems the automatic virtue of all those whose IQ's are insufficient to permit them to connive. "So, all in all, I'd like to see the man ordained. It would be refreshing to have for my pastor, a man who saw life simply, and therefore acted morally. It would be inspiring to see a man so innocent, ego was not a possibility. Above all, it would be nearly rapturous to have a pastor who didn't compete with the laity, not because he was consciously humble, but because his world consisted of a oneness that never wasted time trying to figure out who was the brightest and the best." Calvin Miller Maybe we all could use a little Forrest Gump. |