WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE CALLED OF GOD?
God loves it when the desire of your heart is to find His “calling” for your life. But you don't need a title or a job description. What you need is an attitude of service on the inside.
A calling isn’t somewhere you go. If it were, that implies there would be a starting and an ending time. Of course, you should participate in group projects and trips. God has given you skills. You need to use them for others. But serving when there are projects or trips is only part-time and periodic. You are to be a 24/7/365 servant.
Your "calling" is to serve the person who is right in front of you, whether it be a baby or a store clerk. Who do you come into contact with in the normal course of your everyday life? That is your person, your calling, your assignment. Your calling is everywhere you already are.
Every time the phone rings you are representing Jesus when you answer. Every time you come into contact with a cashier you are an ambassador for Christ. Every nose you wipe and diaper you change is to be done as unto the Lord.
When you leave your home do you engage people in conversation as you are standing in lines or sitting in waiting rooms? I'm not talking about obnoxiously getting in their private space. I'm just asking if you can make eye contact and smile. Can you look for conversation openers and conversation continuers.
Always be conscious of the fact that what God has just poured into you He intends for you to pour into others. And He knows who needs what He just gave to you. He will arrange for the right people to be in your path. These will rarely be people the world thinks of as important. They will be people that no one else notices. Your calling is to be a finder of those types of people in the normal routine of your life. You are making this service thing a lot harder than it is.
Everyone you see is your Divine appointment. I doubt your calling is to quit your secular job and take on a ministry title.
It might be. Sometimes it is. But generally, your calling is to be a representative of God at the job you already have. (God will clearly tell you if He wants you to quit). If you hate your job, you probably hate it because you are surrounded by people who desperately need Jesus. There it is! There is your mission field. You are already getting up and going to it every morning.
In addition, in the past, I would have tended to say that little opportunities are a test to see if you are ready for bigger assignments. But now I'm not so certain that’s the way it works in God's kingdom. The fact is that many times it is easy for big opportunities to turn into performances rather than genuine service. God doesn't care one bit about your photo ops. He cares about the little things you do with the little people in the little places. God's kingdom is a kingdom of opposites. In God’s kingdom, the first shall be last and the little things are the big things.
