The world is currently on an investment rollercoaster, going up with the bears and down with the bulls. The ups and downs of the market are keeping individuals and businesses anxious and concerned about the present and the future.

If you study the buying and selling of stocks, you will soon learn the difference between traders and investors. Traders buy a stock for immediate return. They are interested only in the short term. If a stock is not going up today, they sell it and buy another. Investors, on the other hand, buy stock with the expectation of holding it for a long time. They are not particularly interested in the day-to-day, or even month-to-month, fluctuations in the market. Investors are looking at long-term return on their investment. They have confidence that the stocks and the companies and people they represent will increase in value over time.

Traders and Investors in Discipleship
As I have talked with and traveled among clergy and laity of the Tennessee Conference, I have met both traders and investors, when it comes to Accountable Discipleship.

The "traders" say that they are not quite sure about Covenant Discipleship, its place in their lives and faith, and anyhow, "I don't have the time to put to one more thing." In this sense, they are looking at only the "short-term" benefits and are willing to sell low and buy high. The "investors" among us are those who see the necessity of being accountable — to ourselves, to others, and to God. We have a tenacity and a drive that makes us see how important regular meetings with fellow Christian disciples are to our life and faith.

The "traders" are those who say with one breath, "I don't have time," then with the next breath acknowledge that they are spiritually drained and their faith-energy is running on empty. They are constantly looking for the "quick fix" that will get them by — at least for the moment — when in fact they need to make time for regular fill-ups.

Long-Term Commitment
The "investors" realize that in Jesus Christ they have found a "company," a "product," and a "prospectus" to meet their needs for the long term. "Investors" feel committed to the leadership, the mission statement, and the covenant of those with whom they meet. Christ looks for "investors" in discipleship, not "traders." Christ needs us for the long haul, not for a short-term sell-off.

The Rev. Wayne G. Reece is Associate Director for the Tennessee Conference, Office of Pastoral Formation. This article is an adapted reprint from "Pastoral Formation: An Occasional Bulletin of the Office of Pastoral Formation in Murfreesboro, TN."