Your Calling

What will make me happy?

That is the question that most frequently guides how we discern our place in society and this world. But there are far better questions we should be asking.

What is my purpose?
For what am I designed?
What role can I play in this world?

For a few months now, I have been writing about finding an extraordinary purpose despite our ordinary lives. I've described biblical figures and stories that highlight the truth about God's desire to see His people grow and change the world for His glory.

Recognizing that God wants us to do great things is only half of the equation. We can know that we are meant for the extraordinary, but the hard part is figuring out what that purpose is.

For the next few weeks I will talk about the "calling", that surreal and ethereal thing that hovers off in the distance that defines what we should be doing. It makes us feel guilty for doing what we do now. It makes us unsatisfied where we work and play, because we are unsure whether where we are is where we are meant to be.

But the calling shouldn't be something that pains our hearts and drives us to guilt. Instead, we should find great joy in seeking that purpose and even greater joy in serving when that purpose is found.

"I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things." ~Philippians 3:8

 Paul saw that the greatest joy in life is in knowing Christ and giving up everything for Him. With that in mind, the search for your calling is simply one more step toward giving your whole self to God.

With all of that in mind, it is important to recognize that before we can really seek our specific purpose or role in this world, we must uncover that greater, and certainly more vague, purpose that God has set forth for all of his people. We can take a hint from Christ.

"My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work." ~John 4:34

Jesus had a very specific purpose: to bring good news of God's plan to rescue a broken world. He was to die on a cross to save those set apart in faith. But he made it clear in John 4 that the very thing that sustains Him is doing the will of God and finishing the Earthly work set forth for Him. He refers to it as "food", as if without it he would die.


So as we explore God's purpose for your life, remember that before all else, we seek to know our role so that we can do what God desires of us. It is for His glory first, not so we can gather praise from others or so we can find success. The praise and success should always come back to the Father!