A Calling - Part 1

When I became a Christian in 1976, people told me right from the start that God had a plan for my life. I was made for a purpose. There was a reason why I was alive. There was something that God wanted me to do. In other words, I had a destiny and a calling to fulfill. That made me special and unique in the sight of God. I soon learned that all of us are special and unique because we all have a calling that is tailor-made for each one of us. Over time, my views concerning a calling have not changed.

But finding your calling is by no means an easy process. It can be downright difficult. Why? Because we have to get ourselves and what we want to achieve in life out of the process of God using us to fulfill His purposes. It has taken me years to discover my calling and purpose. So what have I learned along the way?

Your view or opinion of a calling will depend on how you see God. Is he a personal God involved in our daily lives, active in the affairs of this world? Or is he a distant God who created the universe and turned it over to man? If God is a distant God, that means you really have no purpose other than to do what you think is right. And, frankly, that’s a recipe for disaster. As far as I can tell by studying the Bible, God is clearly involved in the affairs of man and desires a personal relationship with his creation. The Bible says that when we diligently seek Him we will find Him. If he is a distant God, he would be inaccessible.

Many Christians also believe that only some have been called, but that’s not true either. Galatians 1:15 says, “But God had special plans for me and set me apart for his work even before I was born.” NCV Isaiah 49:1 says, Before I was born, the Lord called me to serve him. The Lord named me while I was still in my mother’s womb.” NCV Sounds to me like we all have a calling; however, our view of a calling is rather narrow. It depends on how we view the world. For some of us, the world is divide into two parts, secular and sacred; therefore, a calling must be sacred, such as being called to the priesthood or becoming a pastor or a missionary in Africa. That would exclude a career in film or television or becoming an electrician or even a politician. But God has no division. Everything in life is sacred. That makes finding your calling even more complicated.

However the one thing that is not complicated, if you are a follower of Christ, you are called to spread the Word of God. The how part of spreading the Gospel takes into consideration your unique calling as well as the part that you will play in the Body of Christ. Therefore you can be a missionary working in Hollywood producing mainstream films as well as working as an engineer in NASA. We each have a specific, unique skill set to fulfill the mission of spreading the Word of God through our vocation.

Monday Part 2