I am not the Messiah. (John 3:28)
John the Baptist’s disciples were worried. The new fellow, Jesus, was taking away John’s followers. “Everyone is coming to him,” they lamented. Competition was causing friction. Arguments between John’s disciples and Jesus’ about “ceremonial washings” only fed the tension. But John wasn’t worried. He understood who God called him to be: the best man, not the bridegroom; the voice, not the Word. He also grasped who Jesus was, and so he could rejoice at the bridegroom’s arrival.
Now, none of us are the bridegroom, or even the best man (or maid of honor). But each of us is called to be and to do something in the kingdom of God, something that fits in, most likely, with where we are now. If you are the primary breadwinner for your family, you can be fairly confident in eliminating “itinerant preacher” from the list of possibilities. If you are the homemaker, you can be pretty sure God isn’t calling you to a cloistered life. No, most of us will find God’s calling embedded in our current state. Your goal is to ask the Holy Spirit how you can take your current state and fill it with God’s grace.
Being clear on “who” and “what” simplifies many things: how to serve, and where; when to say yes, and when to say no. It frees you from nagging doubts and the fear of getting things wrong; from doing too much or doing nothing at all because you don’t know what to do. Most of us will gain clarity on our calling one step at a time, rather than receiving a complete download of who, what, how, and where. Start with what you know, and move forward from there.
It’s a good idea to spend time every month or so asking the Lord to help you gain more clarity on “who” or “what” he has called you to be. You’ll find that the clearer you get, the more secure you will feel as well. Like John, you will find yourself content with who you are and with your calling in life. And that will make you even more pleased about what other people are doing in the kingdom.
“Holy Spirit, what are you calling me to be? Help me to know my calling and to begin to walk in it daily.”
1 John 5:14-21; Psalm 149:1-6, 9