My Personal Calling From God
From the earliest days of my childhood, I have always been fascinated with the stories from the Bible concerning people hearing God’s voice and following his instructions. As I grew older, I learned that this was often referred to as obeying the call of the Lord. I had marveled at the faith and determination of people such as Gideon, Moses, Noah, and Esther. These were normal people who were called by God to do great things in his name. Never once, however, did I imagine that I would hear the Lord telling me step up and step out just like he had told these heroes of our faith long ago. As I was entering my second year of college, however, that is exactly what happened to me.
In telling the story of my calling, I see it most fitting to explain it with three “C’s”: the call itself, the confirmation of the call, and my commitment to the call. When I first heard the Lord telling me that I was going to be working in ministry, I responded with surprise. Yes, I had entertained the idea of working in a church atmosphere in the past, but this was the first time I was actually told that would be my reality. The Lord had shared his promise to me, and the choice was not mine to make. As MacDonald (2003) points out: “No one in the Bible anointed himself or herself.” When God tells you to do something, it is a guaranteed absolute that you should do that which he is asking of you. Look no further than the story of Jonah for an example of that. What surprised me the most about what the Lord was telling me to pursue was that it was to prepare to lead others in worship. I felt inadequate. I could sing, but my voice was not as good as that of others, even within my church. I had a basic understanding of the guitar, but was not very proficient, having not played since I was in middle school. Most distressing was that I was inexperienced as a leader. How could I lead people into the presence of God when I lacked the confidence to lead a small group in some campfire songs? Fortunately, I was raised by two parents who taught me to obey. So despite my fears and hesitations, my biggest question was where do I start? Less than a week after hearing this life-changing directive from God, I was approached by the youth pastor at my church. He asked if I would be interested in helping lead worship for the youth group with the current worship leader, his wife. I jumped at the opportunity. Over the next few weeks, I spent much of my free time practicing with my guitar. Just about the time I began to feel comfortable with my playing and singing in front of the small youth group, the youth pastor announced that he and his wife were moving on to a new church. Just like that, I was on my own and I was the leader of my first worship team. With the support and help of other leaders in the church, I grew in my leadership abilities. As the years went on, I grew more and more comfortable and confident in taking jumps into the unknown, into new situations. I learned to rely on the faithfulness of God to sustain and carry me through.
When we are called by God into the path he desires us to take, we often challenge the notion at first; did I really just hear what I thought I heard? So many times throughout Scripture we see men and women testing or second guessing the voice of God. For me, it was no different. Even as I was seeing things falling into place and doors were being opened, I desired confirmation that I was truly entering into my calling. I found my confirmation in two different places: from the Lord, and from his people. God continues to lead me to new places, and to new depths of my faith. He has blessed me every step of the way, even when it has not been easy and I have faced challenges and hardships. My biggest confirmation is the overwhelming peace and joy I experience when I operate in my calling. I believe if I was not doing what he wanted me to do, God would turn me around and redirect me back into his will. When I lead worship, one of the biggest compliments I receive is that people encounter God. I have been blessed to be able to lead in such a way that I can fade into the background and let people meet with their Savior. Friends and strangers alike tell me they see the gifts of the Holy Spirit in me, and that they know God has so much in store for my future. I have even been told I have a multitude of pastoral gifts as well, which I attribute to the Lord continuing to lead me further into his plans for my life.
Neither my calling nor the confirmations I receive would hold any weight if I lacked one important thing: commitment. Without my initial acceptance of my calling or my continued devotion to Jesus’ direction in me, I would be getting nowhere. “The cost of following God’s call is change in both location and self. We will be asked to move where God wants us, where he calls us, and we will be asked to give ourselves, our lifelong selves.” (Thompson & Miller-Perrin, 2003). This quote hits home for my wife and I. In following God’s call, we have moved away from home, been challenged, and have loved every minute of it. Though there have been many hard times and struggles, we both know that to follow the Lord’s voice demands that we surrender everything to him. The amazing thing about it is that the more we surrender, the more he reveals himself to us. In the past year, the Lord has shown me that I need to begin preparing myself for the next thing he has planned. And so, I enrolled at Grace Bible College in order to attain my degree, thus enabling me to serve God in more ways and in more places.
When I look back on my journey, on all the places God has taken me, it encourages and inspires me to be that much more excited about my future. I have seen the Lord’s promise faithfully fulfilled, and I can confidently say that I will gladly follow him wherever he calls me next. Whether it be back into leading worship full-time or stepping into new responsibilities as a pastor, I know that I don’t have to face uncertainty with fear. I have a God who equips those he calls leading me forward.
References
MacDonald, G. (2003). God’s calling plan: So what exactly is a call to ministry? Leadership, 24. Retrieved from
http://www.lpd-efcc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Gods-Calling-Plan.pdf
Thompson, D. & Miller-Perrin, C. (2003). Understanding vocation: Discerning and responding to god’s call. Leaven, 11. Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/leaven/vol11/iss1/11/?utm_source=digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu%2Fleaven%2Fvol11%2Fiss1%2F11&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages
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