Spiritual Implications of Hamlet

I shared some of this story about my son in chapter 11 of my book, Immanuel Labor – God’s Presence in our Profession.  In the discussion of what Proverbs teaches us about how wise and righteous men and women who walk with God should work, I made this statement:

In contrast, Proverbs 22:29 instructs us that a man who is skilled in his work will eventually go far in life. This is one of the biblical principles I intentionally highlighted to my youngest son after his face was plastered on a billboard on the main drag of his college town after he had been cast as the lead in Hamlet. My son’s hard work and passion for his craft motivated him to learn technical aspects of his field, improve his skills, stretch his wings, and audition for big roles. I pointed out to him that if he faithfully used his God-given talents as they developed slowly over time and polished them to perfection, his work would catch the eye of people who could make a difference in his life. Then they would find it easy to trust him to take on more and more responsibility.

Since it has been eight years to the day that this major achievement took place, I thought it would be worth sharing my original thoughts that I posted on my personal blog in early November 2011.  My intention is to help my readers see ordinary work through a biblical and theological lens and to know that God is present in it.  I also want to show other parents of adult children one way for them to encourage their own kids to see the many blessings God provides for them in His mercy and grace.

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So, my youngest son sends me a text between 3:30-4:00 this afternoon.  Not so unusual.   That’s how my kids communicate with me, when appropriate.  I was excited to hear from him.

What was it?  He’s in college.  Did he need money?  (Probably not.  He’s got a good handle on his money this semester, living off-campus for the first time.)  Was it something about this weekend’s long awaited family get-together at Cape Girardeau to see him play the lead in the best-known drama in the history of theater?  It was!

He sent me a photo of his ridiculously good-looking face, taken from the Southeast Missouri State University Theatre Department’s Hamlet publicity poster, that had been placed on a huge billboard on the main drag through town.  Holy cow!  How cool is that!

I must say that at that moment, I was a pretty proud papa.  I showed the picture to several co-workers.  I posted it on Facebook.  (I did send him a reply, too.)

However, as I headed out to the parking lot about an hour later, I got to thinking about what I wanted to say to him face to face.  There appeared to be several spiritual life-lessons, applicable to all ages, that immediately came to my mind for such a time as this.  I believe they are worth sharing with anyone who is willing to listen.

1) God’s amazing grace.  When something this big happens to you, you have to understand that it is a clear demonstration of the grace of God.  Grace is getting more than you deserve, and it’s a gift; it’s not earned.  Although my son definitely worked extremely hard to land the role of a lifetime over several older, more experienced actors, an opportunity like this doesn’t come along every day.  It is not unlike graduating from college or graduate school, getting married, celebrating your 30th wedding anniversary, or getting your first real job; all wonderful things that have happened to people I know really well over the past couple of years.  You just have to stop, acknowledge, and marvel at God’s abundant goodness to you, because events like these are beautiful gifts that many people never get to see.  My entire family is extremely blessed, and I don’t think any of us take it for granted.  It says in Ephesians 3:20 that God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.”

2) God exalts the humble.  One of the reasons my son was selected for this role was that he had developed a reputation as a quiet hard worker.  He made the best of the small roles he had his first two years in college.  He was not boastful, arrogant, or a prima donna, which can be typical of some young talented actors.  The funny thing about humility, though, is that just when you think you have it down, and become just a little bit proud of your success at being completely humble, you have to go back to square one.  James 4:10 says, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.”  (Perhaps He may even lift your face up on to a billboard.)

3) Hard work, skill, and reputation will open up doors for you.  This relates to what I said above.  However, no one gets picked by the director to tackle a role like this just for being a man of humble character.  You have to have the potential to bring the fictional character to life and carry the play squarely on your strong shoulders.  (No pressure, there!)  Whatever your God-given talents are, as they are developed slowly over time and polished to perfection, people who can make a difference in your life can’t help but take notice.  They find it easy to trust you to take on more and more responsibility.  My son’s passion for his craft motivated him to learn technical aspects of his field, improve his skills, stretch his wings, and try hard to reach for better results.  I’ve seen this rare combination of passion and hard work in his sister and brother in their respective young careers also, as well as in my wife’s dedicated work with preschoolers.  Proverbs 22:29 states this, “Do you see a man skilled in his work?  He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men.”  Your work matters to God!

4) God always has a purpose and a plan for the places that He puts you.  Who knows where this will eventually lead to.  Future employment after graduation?  I certainly hope so.  But more than that.  Opportunities open up for a reason.  We are blessed to be a blessing to others.  And, it’s all for His glory.  Ephesians 3:21 explains the purpose for His power that is at work in us, “to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”

5) This is a really big show; but life is mostly made up of little things.  So, enjoy them all.  You can see evidence of God’s amazing grace every single day, if you just look for it.  James 1:17 says, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

(Note: readers who enjoyed this article may want to check out an article I wrote on the value of the arts from a biblical worldview.)

Master Sergeant Russell E. Gehrlein (U.S. Army, Retired) is a Christian, husband of 38 years, father of three, grandfather of four, blogger, and author of “Immanuel Labor – God’s Presence in our Profession: A Biblical, Theological, and Practical Approach to the Doctrine of Work”, published by WestBow Press in February 2018. He received a B.S. in Mathematics from Colorado State University in 1980 and an M.A. in Biblical Studies from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary in 2015.  He is also a former junior/senior high school math and science teacher and youth pastor.  Russ currently works as a Department of the Army civilian at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.