You can find your calling, and by so doing discover what you are meant to do with your life.
You could unearth a previously unrealized direction, or you may find a project that adds new purpose to your life. Or you might discover that your search for calling becomes a journey where you are given direction one exciting step at a time.
In my twenties, I tried lots of lifestyles; none of them brought purpose into my life. My pursuits were somewhat self-focused, and did not resemble anything as grandiose as a “search for calling.”
Calling is the truth that God calls us to himself so decisively that everything we are, everything we do, and everything we have is invested with a special devotion, dynamism, and direction lived out as a respond to his summons and service.(Os Guinness)
I didn’t know at the time that I would find direction in different ways over the next few decades. Each of those stages of my life taught me a new way we can find our calling.
Search for the Truth
In my thirties, getting married and having kids did bring a sense of purpose. But I was still searching for something, without really knowing what it was I was looking for.
I knew there must be a God, so I began to investigate the claims of the Christian faith. I read books, questioned everything, and treasured insights from Josh McDowell, Lee Strobel, Bruce Wilkinson, Hugh Ross, and C. S. Lewis.
If ours is an examined faith, we should be unafraid to doubt. If doubt is eventually justified, we were believing what clearly was not worth believing. But if doubt is answered, our faith has grown stronger. It knows God more certainly and it can enjoy God more deeply. (Os Guinness)
Eventually, every question I had about Christianity was answered, often decisively. I also found that if we actively look for meaning in life with an open mind, we can find it.
#1: Find your calling by pursuing a search for the truth.
Any of us can read books, follow good blogs, and talk to knowledgeable people.
If we actively look for the truth about God with an open mind, he will help us find it.
Respond to God’s Direction
Later, we moved to Orlando and chose a neighborhood close to a certain school and church. Circumstance led us to a different school and church, both of which turned our wonderfully. At First Baptist Church Windermere, I met a group of people who captivated me; they were authentic, fun, and interesting, and also Christians.
I found myself reading the Bible and praying regularly for the first time. I was learning a lot, and later that year God showed himself even more powerfully, and he changed my life.
At a Promise Keepers event in Jacksonville, God presented himself to me in a way that was absolutely unmistakable. As I gazed down upon a stadium crowd of 60,000 men, gathered together to worship God, the roadmap of my life seemed laid out for me.
I found the faith, the spiritual calling, I was always meant to have.
Thus, for followers of Christ, calling neutralizes the fundamental position of choice in modern life. “I have chosen you,” Jesus said, “you have not chosen me. (Os Guinness)
This period changed my life forever. It also gave me new insight into how to discern the will of God, and how to surrender to that calling.
#2: Find your calling by responding to God’s direction.
We can receive such direction through prayer, the Bible, circumstances, and other people. Sometimes, if we are truly open to God’s direction, he will change us dramatically.
Question: Do you believe God will help you find your calling?
Action: Read the next article in this series on “How to Find Your Life Calling: Part 3.”
