|
Didn't the Apostle Paul Have a Side Job?
Wed., Jun. 11. 2014 2:16pm EDT
Acts 18:3 notes that Paul was a tentmaker by trade, and when he met Aquila and Priscilla in Corinth, he stayed and worked with them. Occasionally, somebody will mention that verse and suggest that we take additional jobs and do ApologetiX on the side.
Actually, most of us do have other jobs, and all of our wives have jobs. Those of us who don't have other jobs also take care of our kids when our wives are working. But we'd like to point out a few other things:
When Paul was making tents, he was using his job skills in addition to preaching. We're already doing that. We preach through our lyrics, concert messages, newsletters, and correspondence with fans who ask questions and want counsel, but the other side of our ministry is an occupation just like anybody else who makes music for a living: writing, rehearsing, recording, designing, producing, booking, touring, accounting, social media, etc.
The music is our job; the message is our ministry. We're music-makers by trade and preacher-teachers by vocation.
Also, please note that Acts 18:5 says that once Silas and Timothy arrived, "Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching."
Before 1999, ApologetiX was something we all did on the side. However, things grew to the point where we needed people who could do it full time. Ten years ago, we all were able to do ApologetiX exclusively, and none of our wives had to work. Now only some of us can, but there's too much work that needs done for it to be a side project for everybody.
As J. puts it, "Before doing ApologetiX full time, I had a job where I worked at least 40 hours a week. Before that, I had a job that was at least 50 hours a week. I put in a lot more hours with ApologetiX than I ever did with those jobs. It's much more rewarding, but there aren't enough hours in the week for me to do both."
That reminds us of the guy who went to a psychiatrist and said, "We've had so much extra work at my job lately, I've started having crazy dreams. One night, I dreamed I was a wigwam and a teepee!" His psychiatrist replied, "Relax -- you're two tents!"
|
