"spiritually and vocationally on my own"

Eugene Peterson's classic, hilarious, true story of the stunts he pulled on his denominational system/officials is a must-read:

and posted here:

"Sex and Drugs in Church: Peterson on Why the System Can't Care"

But the story takes a tragic turn, as it is also true:

"Their faces were blank, and then confused — followed by a splendid vaudeville slapstick of buck-passing and excuse-making. It was a wonderful moment. I had them dead to rights. ...

The laughter and fun of those days, though, was cover for a deep disappointment: I had discovered that spiritually and vocationally I was on my own. ..."
link, see p.80