Just for a second let yourself dream big. What would be your dream job? The one that would even made Mondays exciting. I came across a list of real but unusual jobs. Some of them require unusual skills. Some of them just require patience or a strong stomach. See if any of these fit the criteria for your dream job:
The first one is golf ball diver: these folks dive for the golf balls that end up in ponds or lakes on golf courses. They sell the balls to companies that clean them and re-sell them.
Or, how about this one: Water slide tester? Theme parks hire folks to test out new water slides and rate them according to safety, fun and comfort. If you are adventurous and like getting wet, this may be a great job for you.
Or this one: Online dating ghostwriter: Some people make good money writing profiles for folks to post on online dating sites. If you love to write and you love to play matchmaker, this may be your dream job.
Here’s my favorite: Bed tester: if you like to nap, this is the job for you. Bed testers are hired to test and rate mattresses in terms of comfort, support, and sleep quality.
Line stander: line standers may stand in line for new product launches or to buy concert tickets for clients. This is one of those jobs that doesn’t require many skills beyond the skill of patience.
And this last job is the most unusual one to me: gross stunt tester. This is the job that requires a strong stomach. These folks are hired by TV shows to test out gross and outrageous challenges before the contestants try them. Their purpose is to ensure that the challenges are safe and that they “contain the maximum grossness factor.” This doesn’t sound like my dream job, but it pays pretty well, up to about $800 a day. (1)
Did you find your dream job in that list? I did hear of another job, and I can almost promise you that it’s the dream job of every person in this room. Candy Funhouse, a Canadian candy company, put out an advertisement last year for a Chief Candy Officer. The job involves tasting thousands of different candy products each month, leading board meetings, and crafting company strategy. The qualifications for the job include creativity, leadership skills, and knowing “how to have FUN!” Oh, and the job pays $100,000 a year. (2)
When I read our Bible passage for this morning about Jesus calling his first disciples, I am amazed at how quickly they said, “Yes!” Was this their dream job? As they were fishing, were they secretly dreaming about a job that required lots of travel, being away from their families, and eventually facing persecution, imprisonment, and death? Does that sound like your dream job? What was it that made them leave their families, their homes, and their jobs to follow a humble carpenter and rabbi? And how would our life change if we answered the call to follow Jesus with that kind of commitment too?
Every so often, movie magazines or websites will publish stories about actors who turned down an especially good acting role. What if they had said yes? Did they miss their chance to become a star? Actor Tim Roth turned down the role of Snape in the Harry Potter movie franchise because he knew the movies would generate a lot of merchandise tie-ins---notebooks and T-shirts and action figures. As he said in an interview, “I wasn't ready to be on a lunchbox.”
Actor Sean Connery turned down the role as Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings movies because he didn't understand the story line. In an interview he said, “I never understood it. I read the book. I read the script. I saw the movie. I still don't understand it.” (3)
I think the disciples said yes because they understood the story line. They understood that following Jesus means living an abundant life. In John 10:10, Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees who have criticized him for healing a blind man on the Sabbath. They don’t understand that he is God in the flesh. As part of Jesus’ response to them, he says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” The Greek word used for “have it to the full” can also be translated as “superabundance” or “in all its fullness.”
Most of us spend our lives anxiously chasing our own priorities, our own security, our own definition of success. But what if there is a more abundant life, filled with more joy and hope and peace than we could possibly imagine? If you measure your life in terms of success, you’ll never find an endpoint, will you? You could always make a little more money, get a few more perks, get another promotion or a more prestigious award. But what’s the difference between a successful life and a meaningful life?
Emily Esfahani Smith is a writer and speaker in Washington, DC. She studied hundreds of academic papers on creating a meaningful life and found four common themes appeared in most of them. She wrote about these themes in her book, The Power of Meaning. Her research showed that there are four things that are essential for a life of meaning: a sense of belonging, a sense of purpose, the ability to shape the experiences of our life into a meaningful story and experiences of transcendence. Transcendence is the sense that we are connected to something greater and more awesome than the normal, physical world. (4)
When Jesus called to these first men, “Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people,” he is offering to them--and to us today--a sense of belonging, a sense of purpose, a story that makes sense of the world, and an experience of transcendence. He is challenging us to choose a more abundant life.
In her book Leaving Church, priest and author Barbara Brown Taylor tells of an insight she received from a friend of hers named Matilda. “When my friend Matilda lay dying of Lou Gehrig’s disease, she said that she had been prepared all of her life to choose between good and evil. What no one had prepared her for, she lamented, was to choose between the good, the better, and the best—and yet this capacity turned out to be the one she most needed as she watched the sands of her life run out.” (5)
What is the best way to live in the few short years we have on this earth? What is the highest purpose for your life? If Jesus is God in the flesh, then isn’t our best and highest purpose found in trusting him with our lives? Following Jesus means living an abundant life.
A second reason the disciples said yes to Jesus is because he was offering them the opportunity to lead others to both abundant and eternal life. Through Jesus, you know the overwhelming joy of life in all its fullness now and eternal life with God. Now you get the opportunity to work alongside Jesus to lead others to the source of life too. Jesus has chosen you to be a bearer of new life.
I read a beautiful story of a young man named Tyler who had just graduated from college. Tyler had a passion for creating a men’s ministry, and he was looking for a graduate program that would equip him for this work. He had applied for graduate programs at various universities, but he hoped he would get accepted to a program in southern California, where he had completed his undergraduate studies. He enjoyed living near great beaches, and all kinds of restaurants and museums and amenities.
But then Tyler got an invitation to interview for the graduate program at Mississippi State University in the little town of Starkville, Mississippi. It would be a vastly different experience than living in southern California. Plus, he had no friends or family in Mississippi. When the folks at Mississippi State offered him the position, it should have been great news. But as Tyler drove to the airport to return home, he was deeply conflicted about which university was the best choice for him.
In the airport lounge, Tyler noticed an older Black man who was walking around greeting fellow travelers and making small talk. This man was so lively and full of joy that Tyler couldn’t help but watch him. Then the gentleman approached Tyler and asked him about his travels. Tyler began telling him about his interview at Mississippi State, and his conflict about which university to choose. He also shared with this man his deep passion to create a ministry for men, and how he didn’t know where God could best grow his skills for this ministry.
The gentleman smiled and said, “I want you in my state. I’m going to be praying for you.” Then Tyler asked the gentleman his name, and he replied, “John Perkins.” Suddenly Tyler realized who he was talking to. John M. Perkins is a former Congressman, pastor, and a major leader in the civil rights movement. He worked for the causes of school desegregation and ending racism and injustice in our nation. He was arrested and imprisoned, beaten and tortured, and threatened with death for his work on behalf of justice and equality. He and his wife have also founded numerous organizations to provide education and resources in poor communities. Tyler was speechless when he realized that he had been talking to his hero.
Before they ended their conversation that day, John Perkins said, “Tyler, if I’m still living when you get to Mississippi, I want to come alongside you and do ministry with you.” Tyler could not even imagine a greater and more meaningful opportunity than to learn from John Perkins and do ministry alongside him. All the fear and conflict about which path to choose disappeared when John Perkins said those words: “. . . I want to come alongside you and do ministry with you.” He accepted the position at Mississippi State. (6)
How would your life look different if you left behind your own plans and priorities and gave your life to following Jesus? What if you knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that the Spirit of Jesus living in you would empower you to live a more abundant life? And what if you understood that you are now equipped to lead others to an abundant and eternal life by sharing your faith in Jesus?
When Jesus said, “Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people,” he wasn’t just offering these men their dream job. He was offering them a pathway to an abundant life. And he was offering them the opportunity to bring the power and the message of eternal life to everyone they meet. Anyone can aim to create a successful life. You have an opportunity every day to choose a life that focuses on your own agenda, or a life that is centered around the work of Jesus Christ. You can bring life and light to the world. In this way, your impact will live on long after you are gone. What are you willing to leave behind to answer the call?
1. “13 More Unusual Jobs you might not know exist,” January 12, 2021, https://studyworkgrow.com.au/2021/01/12/13-more-unusual-jobs-you-might-not-know-exist/.
2. “Candy company will pay you $100K a year to be its official taste tester” by FOX TV, Digital Team July 21, 2022, https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/candy-funhouse-taste-tester-salary-chief-candy officer?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter.
3. “20 Actors Who Turned Down Iconic Roles for the Most Bizarre Reasons” by Jesse October 6, 2020 Cracked.com https://www.cracked.com/pictofacts-2125-20-actors-who-quit-iconic-roles-weirdest-reasons.
4. “The Meaning of Life is Subjective: Lessons from Intellectuals” by Thomas Oppong, Postal, June 5, 2020.
5. Barbara Brown Taylor, Leaving Church (New York, NY: HarperOne, 2006, p. 46).
6. http://divineopportunity.com/tyler.