The Dream Job?

Can you imagine this job posting?  You begin your search online looking for just the right position.  You know your qualifications…you know your education level…you have a good feel for your abilities.  You search like you have done so many times.  Only this time is different…there is a very different position that causes you to stop and ponder…your eyes can’t leave the screen…you can’t even move on.  There it is…Executive Assistant.  It’s not that this is a unique position.  It’s not that this is something you have never considered before.  It is the boss that catches your eye…the ‘executive’ you would be assisting.  You would be the right hand to this person who is famous…and well known… People read all about him.  When he speaks, people listen.  It’s not that they always do what he says…but they at least listen, they can’t help it.  He has that spark.  He captivates when he gives speeches.  His stories are riveting.  You can’t believe that this is actually an option…so you apply…and you hold on…if you get this position, you know your life is about to change forever…

Driving to work a couple of days ago, I was listening to a podcast as I often do.  This particular segment was focused on what people think would make them happy…dream jobs and such.  There was a survey conducted that asked respondents if they would rather be the president of Harvard or an executive assistant to someone famous.  A large majority chose executive assistant.  When they were asked who they would like to be an executive assistant to…the first person was Je-Lo (Jennifer Lopez).  The second was Jesus.  That caught my attention.  I was not surprised that people would want to be Je-Lo’s assistant.  She’s famous and seems to have a lot of redeeming qualities of someone you would like to be around.  But then to hear…Jesus.

What might it look like to be Jesus’ assistant?  To be an executive assistant is one who plans trips, takes care of speaking engagements, makes sure the logistics from one place to the other are taken care of.  A really good assistant would know what the person needs and wants before they even speak.  They would be right there for it all…at their beckoned call…to assist in any way possible.

I’m not sure if the respondents considered what it might be like to assist Jesus.  He wouldn’t want to be booked at a large speaking venue.  He wouldn’t want to have his face plastered in Times Square.  I can’t imagine that he would want to be interviewed by the Today Show.  It seems to me that he might have his assistant book him a flight to the poorest parts of the world…the forgotten places…the places where no one would go.  I think he would want to go meet people who are out fishing or in the middle of the field…people in prison or in the middle of a board room.  You might have to spend time in places where there was no bathroom or houses or even quality food.  This is where I am sure we would see Jesus.

But, isn’t the Executive Assistant Position really what we should have as Christians anyway? Isn’t that already our position? Following Jesus…watching him work…going where he tells us to go…reaching people he wants to reach…feeding people who are hungry…going to the places that no one else would go…doing the dirty work…loving the unlovable…going out into the world to show his love to all you meet.  That sounds like the call to be a Christian to me.  So maybe we already have the call to be an Executive Assistant and we don’t even know it.  Maybe we have that dream job and we just haven’t accepted it.  Maybe it is time we actually started following Jesus and reaching…the least of these…