Made to count

Randy Singer serves as chief counsel and vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board. He was head of litigation at one of Virginia’s largest law firms and continues to serve on the board of the American Center for Law and Justice defending religious and civil liberties. Singer has written Directed Verdict and Dying Declaration, legal thrillers with a Christian worldview. He spoke with Associate Editor Scott Harrup about Made to Count, the inspirational book he co-authored with Bob Reccord, president of the North American Mission Board.

PE: Your focus in Made to Count is God’s call to the secular marketplace. Can you flesh out that concept?

SINGER: America’s next great revival could well happen through an authentic Christian witness in the workplace. As leaders of a missions agency, we’re proud of the more than 5,000 people involved in the ministries we support. But every Christian must be a missionary to his or her sphere of influence.

PE: Why did you make a transition from the secular marketplace to a ministry position?

SINGER: When I went into ministry, my non-Christian friends thought I was crazy because I was leaving a well-paying job. My Christian friends were all saying, “Isn’t it great that God is calling you into ministry?” And I had to tell my Christian friends that I had always been in ministry. God was simply changing my mission field. The point we try to make in the book is that there is no one right way for Christians to live out their faith.

PE: So God’s call on the believer’s life can take different forms at different times?

SINGER: Exactly. In my senior year of pre-law I helped coach at a Christian high school. I felt God clearly call me to go there and teach. Instead of going straight into law school, I taught for five years and developed a real heart for kids. Funny thing was, when I was totally invested in that, God asked me to give it up and go back to law school. I ended up being a better law student and a much better lawyer because I had been a teacher. After about 13 years of legal practice, God challenged me to give that up for Him. It took a year and a half for Him to reveal to me the next step. Sometimes when God is calling you to something new, one of the most important times of preparation is that time of waiting.

PE: How does God use believers “outside the box”?

SINGER: The book lists so many. Our opening example is a guy who goes from one construction site to another cleaning portable toilets, and his goal is to be the best cleaner there ever was with the best attitude. He’s had a tremendous impact on construction workers.

PE: What are some steps to discerning God’s call?

SINGER: Go to Scripture, because God’s call will never contradict His Word. Listen to the Holy Spirit. Pray. Finally, listen to the wise counsel of godly friends.

PE: Anything a believer should not do?

SINGER: In Made to Count we caution against going to friends and asking them what they think God’s calling is on your life. Rather, ask them how they discerned God’s call on their own lives. God’s call isn’t discerned by a polling process. We also caution against putting too much stock in “fleeces” or in personal emotions. Gideon’s fleece was really a sign of his inability to accept God’s call at first. Jonah certainly had a negative emotional reaction to God’s call to take His message to the Ninevites.

PE: Any other comments?

SINGER: A lot of Christians feel like God will call them to something that will make them miserable, but God doesn’t work at cross purposes with His own creation. He created us with certain gifts and passions. The intersection of those gifts and passions is that sweet spot of God’s calling on our life.

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