In my exploration of the subject I’ve read various descriptions of the nature of calling—for the most part, insightful words I have heartily agreed with. Not unlike a gemstone, calling’s beauty is multifaceted, revealing itself to be more than what any single plane is capable of conveying.
Those who have written on the subject who confess to being followers of Jesus Christ are in agreement that calling presupposes, as its source, the existence of a Caller: a God who beckons. And his calling is true because he alone knows each individual he has created and brought into being with a specific purpose in mind. A role unique to each individual man and woman made in his image.
Step 1: The awakening
Through the person of his Son, God issues his first call: Follow me! It is foundational, the supporting base for everything that will come after. Until you respond to this universal, primary invitation, you can go no further. For until you begin to follow Jesus you are but faintly alive.
This then, your starting to follow Jesus, is the awakening of calling in your life. The first step towards fulfilling the purpose for which you were created. The beginning of your sonship, your daughtership.
Step 2: The blossoming
But, of course, there is more! For what father is content to utter to his child but a single phrase then afterwards be silent?
In the intimate conversation that follows, a conversation that never ceases but continues throughout eternity, Jesus asks you to do things in his name. Assignments that take full advantage of the unique person God created you to be. Opportunities that can transform your life from drudgery to deep satisfaction. Adventures that connect with the deeply rooted longings of your heart.
To respond in the affirmative, to reply to love’s invitation with an answering love of your own, is to live your calling. For calling is the lived-out response to Jesus’ invitation to follow him into the fullness of what his Father’s love intends for you to become, and in the becoming, do. Living out who you truly are!
Michael
Does calling play the definitive role in your life it should?
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