I once had a pastor who asserted, “Confession is good for the soul but bad for the reputation!” At my age and stage of life (professor emeritus), my reputation, bad as it is, is of less and less consequence. So, in retrospect, I have a major confession.
I confess that I put far too much effort into my professional success and far too little effort into following Christ. More specifically, I got to work early every morning and worked until pretty late. I ate lunch almost daily at my desk, as I wrote between bites. And, my hard work paid off—in the short run.
I was tenured and promoted at the earliest moment. I was promoted to full professor as soon as I was eligible. I earned a pay raise every year for 32 years. I published a lot of papers and won a few recognitions.
I would justify my extreme work ethic with Col 3:23, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord.” That’s a saintly response, eh? Even more motivating than the Scriptures, but not nearly as “spiritual,” was the feeling that I needed to give the university a “day’s work for a day’s pay.”
Working “as for the Lord” and earning our salary are not bad motivations, but our Bishop family motto is, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth over-doing.” And my academic life was executed according to that motto. And I suspect some of you readers can relate since there is a lot of prestige and self-satisfaction in performing well.
But… as you know, there is only a limited amount of time and energy available to us mortals. What is spent on one thing is not available for another. Looking back, it’s easy to second-guess, but I now have the time for thoughtful reflection. And it is abundantly clear to me that I misspent a lot of time and energy.
Our students and colleagues are immortal beings with only one of two possible eternal destinations (Lk 16:19-31). We have both a great commission (Matt 28:19-20), and a great opportunity.
We can devote ourselves to more publications, more books, more class prep. Or, we can devote some time and energy to helping others discover the narrow way to eternal life. In reflecting on 30+ years in higher education, I have realized that there are plenty of opportunities to be salt and light on campus.
So, don’t make the mistake I did with regard to priorities. You might be able to win an award for your research or teaching. You might be able to publish another paper or a book. But, in 100 years, will any of that matter? From my perspective, I can assure you that even five years after you leave your academic job, these things will be meaningless.
But investing in eternity will provide a much better return.
Phil Bishop
Exercise Physiology
University of Alabama