The prophet-priest must be wary of spiritual depletion. For that reason, we read of Christ, "The news about Him was spreading even farther, and great multitudes were gathering to hear Him and be healed of their sicknesses. But He Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray" (Luke 5:15-16).

Words that do not issue from such times of spiritual retreat will become chit-chat, prattle and idle talk. Unfortunately, much of professional ministry majors in these kinds of words. In contrast, prophetical-priestly words are intentional. They intend to create Christian heroes and heroines, who rise above self-service. They intend to create visions of the kingdom of God on earth. Most important, they intend to create action that will bring the kingdom of God to earth. All of this is idealistic, but prophet-priests will not stop short of the ideal. They are never satisfied. They know that life could be better for someone. Thus, there is the wild hope that they can plant a word that will be replicated ad infinitum in the lives of Christian disciples until Christ returns.

Neil Postman equates "word meaning" with "world making." The church continually competes for the dominant world view. The gods of economic utility and technology always seek to displace the radical monotheism of the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. The only way by which we can effectively describe the one true God is via our shared narrative. Telling the Christian story has never been more critical. Postman writes, "Our genius lies in our capacity to make meaning through the creation of narratives that give point to our labors, exalt our history, elucidate the present and give direction to our future."4

The pastor is responsible for the perceptions of his or her people. Lack of a clear Christian perception of the world leads to an amalgamation with the prevalent world view of the secular culture. This world view is deadly. We can escape only by being summoned to God's transcendent ideals. Unless leaders of the Christian community sound a certain trumpet, the people's allegiance to God surely will be compromised.

When we accept the call to ministry, we accept the duty to get the Christian narrative correct. Relating the definitive narrative -- i.e., the drama of Christ's redemptive work -- to the totality of life is the prophet-priest's primary task. This work is as deliberate as the worship of Job, who rose up early in the morning and offered burnt offerings according to the number of his children. '"Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.' Thus Job did continually" (Job 1:5b).

Spoken words which bear prophetical-priestly application will be no less premeditated. They begin with the Christ perspective. They end by asking, "What is the Christian implication of the words which accompanied my latest task or encounter?" All ministerial tasks bear this kind of accountability.

Ministers accept the fact that their words are more than words, and never spoken for words' sake alone. The Jewish author Elie Wiesel, in reflecting on his life's work, commented: "For me, literature must have ethical dimension. The aim of literature ... is to disturb. I disturb the reader because I dare to put questions to God, the source of all faith. I disturb the miscreant because, despite my doubts and questions, I refuse to break with the religious and mystical universe that has shaped my own. Most of all, I disturb those who are comfortably settled within a system -- be it political, psychological or theological. If I have learned anything in my life, it is to distrust in intellectual comfort."5