How To Find Your God-Given Calling
One of the biggest struggles plaguing Christian women is trying to figure out their purpose. What does God want them to do… specifically.
If you find yourself asking that very question, keep reading.
“Good morning! Good morning!! Good morning!!!”
This is how I greeted my high school English students for 11 years--once they were seated and before we started the day’s lesson.
With each good morning, I said it a little louder. And most times they said it back to me the same way.
The intention was that I would wake them up, get their attention, and fire them up for learning.
Today I want to fire YOU up!
I want to light a fire under your purpose, your spiritual calling, your gifts, your usefulness… FOR THE CAUSE OF CHRIST.
You see, your purpose, your calling, your talent, your usefulness is not really about you. It’s about Him. It’s building the kingdom, furthering the kingdom, pointing people to Jesus.
Let me clarify using a phrase from Mary A. Kassian’s book The Right Kind of Strong:
Every human being is created to hear and obey God’s word, and so, indeed, women, men, boys, and girls must all be learning and living the Scriptures together. Among all his people, God generously distributed gifts and abilities, wisdom and knowledge, and intelligence and skill, all for his glory and for the good of the body of Christ.
As believers we want so badly to know that what we do matters, makes a difference. We all have a desire to impact the world. Including me!
But I have a feeling we need to refine what it means as believers to impact the world.
Your God-given purpose is to Impact the world FOR Christ WITH Christ.
Impacting the world FOR Christ indicates our desire to deliver his message of the saving knowledge and acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Impacting the world WITH Christ indicates clothing ourselves in his garb, different and set apart.
I hear these words so often:
I wish I knew what my purpose was?
When will I figure out what God wants from me?
Am I really making a difference?
What is my calling?
Be assured you have purpose, my friend. Your life matters. God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, has given each of us a gift to be used according to his will, for his glory, to build up the church, and to promote the kingdom of God.
1 Corinthians 12:11 reminds us,
believers that it is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
You see, God himself has equipped you. You are prepared.
It just may be that your tools need sharpening.
That’s right. Tools. Equipment. Utensils. That’s what our gifts are.
In a wealthy home some utensils are made of gold and silver, and some are made of wood and clay. The expensive utensils are used for special occasions, and the cheap ones are for everyday use. If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work (2 Timothy 2:20-21).
There is always occasion for God to use you. There is always work to be done.
To walk out your calling, I encourage you to sharpen:
Your knowledge of the Word
Your prayer life
Your time in fellowship
Your forgiveness
Your kindness
Your compassion
Your joy
Your discernment
Your repentance
Your love for others
Your hospitality
Your worship
Your service
I bet you could confidently circle one of these, thinking, “Yep, that’s my gift!” (Go ahead and do it. You know you want to 😊)
I’m also willing to gamble there’s one you’d like to black out with a super fat Sharpie, the one the Holy Spirit has been bringing to your attention. The one that is hard. The one that is going to stretch you, grow you spiritually. (Instead of blotting it out, star it and whisper, “God have your way in this area. I submit.”)
Remember these tools—gifts—make a difference for Christ. They make a difference for your neighbors, your friends, your children, your family. They make a difference for those watching how you live and work. And trust me; someone is noticing.
So, if you’ve tucked your gifts away somewhere, pull them out. Dust them off. Put them to good use.
If you need a friendly elbow to the side to exercise your gifts, I’m happy to be that elbow!
Practical Ways To Live Out Your Calling
Here are some tips (and scripture reference) for putting 2 Timothy 2:20-21 into practice:
Increase Your Knowledge of the Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
select a book of the Bible to read
opt for the audio version and listen
choose a short book to start
record this commitment on a calendar to keep you on track
join a Bible reading group
invite 2 or 3 women to read along with you
Renew Your Prayer Life (2 Chronicles 7:14)
acknowledge God for His greatness
confess your sins
thank him
present your needs, wants, concerns
Spend Time in Fellowship With Other Believers (Matthew 18:20)
coffee with the girls
puzzle parties
holiday baking
game night
Ask God to Help You Practice Biblical Forgiveness (Colossians 3:13)
write a letter forgiving someone who hurt you
apologize to the one you hurt
choose to let go, release the person who hurt you
stop reliving the situation
Practice Biblical Kindness (Colossians 3:12)
consider others before yourself
offer to help
send a card just to say hi
check on friends and neighbors
Show Compassion (Leviticus 19:33-34)
listen
be available
seek to understand or know
pause before responding
Extend Authentic Joy (1 Peter 1:6)
smile
be thankful
extend gratitude
give…and give more
Seek Discernment (1 Corinthians 12:10)
pursue knowledge/truth
pray for wisdom
be quick to listen and slow to speak
measure everything by the word
Repent Regularly (Luke 5:32)
acknowledge your sin
choose to turn away from the sin
consider an accountability partner
pray for the work of the Holy Spirit to change your desires
Love Others (Romans 12:9)
choose to see them as a child of God
bear one another’s burdens
make allowance for faults and weaknesses
Extend Hospitality (Romans 12:13-20)
start a supper club
host prayer meetings
house teens for student conferences
be the breakfast stop for a mission group
Worship (Psalm 100:2)
sing loud in your car
dance in your living room
raise your arms in surrender
verbalize your desire to be near the Lord
declare his goodness
Serve (Matthew 25:42-46)
cook and deliver a meal
clean house for elderly/disabled/new mom
babysit
be someone’s ride to church or the grocery
greet at church
participate in neighborhood clean up
While this is not at all a complete list of the gifts, the tools, that make a difference for Christ, they are biblical and practical.
So march out to your tool shed and sharpen those tools! It will transform you into the image of Christ and bless others—a win-win.
Jennie McChargue has a heart for helping women learn to pray. She knows there are times in our lives that we don’t even know what to pray. After overcoming a near-fatal incident in 2013, she has experienced first-hand the power of prayer. She wants everyone to experience that same healing and restoration.