calling.
that’s sometimes a weird word to discuss.
some people use “I feel called” to make everyone around them feel ok with the decision they made.
some people use “I don’t feel called” to get out of things, like getting out of cooking for church potlucks and being in charge of youth lock-ins.
there’s those people that know exactly what they’re supposed to do, there’s the folks that think they know, there’s the people that have no idea and then there might be those that never find it.
i don’t know about that last one.
your calling is usually something you are good at and that you enjoy doing.
everybody i’ve ever met wants to know what their calling is so they can head towards that goal.
this way you can get the stuff that you’re not good at or not called to do out of your life and concentrate on your strengths.
it’s just easier when you have a goal in sight.
a tool i’ve found that is pretty useful to at least get you started in the right direction is the strengthsfinder test.
you get an access code when you purchase the book, strengthsfinder 2.0 from tom rath.
the book does state that it wasn’t necessarily created to help you with your career decision, but it does help you make the most of the career you’re already in.
the first time i took the test the results were:
woo
maximizer
belief
developer
relator
i’m actually taking this test again because it’s been a while since i’ve taken it.
i also think that the first time i took the test, i answered some questions the way that i wanted to be as a person, not the way i really am.
so, have you taken this test?
do you know your calling? if so, what is it?
I’m about to dive into this book. The Cross Point staff just went through John Ortberg’s “The Me I Want To Be”, which you should check out as well. Great stuff.
cool. will do
I’m about to dive into this book. The Cross Point staff just went through John Ortberg’s “The Me I Want To Be”, which you should check out as well. Great stuff.
cool. will do
“Your calling is usually something you are good at and that you enjoy doing.” Wondering how you came to this, Adam. My reading of the Bible shows story after story of those who are called to do things outside of their skill-sets and comfort zones. In the years since I came to faith I have frequently been compelled by my best discerned sense of the leading of the Holy Spirit to do things that I neither enjoyed nor was equipped to do. In fact, in some areas I have felt compelled to hold back on using certain skills for which I am highly trained and was highly successful in my business life before coming to faith and doors have opened as a result that I would not have dreamed of. All of this to say, I’m not sure I want to rely on the same tests that I used to light my path when I was an atheist to determine my path as a Christian. I know it is less certain, but I am convinced there is more to a fully surrendered life of faith than that.
absolutely. this just helps some people that might not be quite sure. i definitely don’t believe this is a tool to be used instead of prayer and the Bible. Sorry if it came across like that. as for that line that i wrote i made sure to put “usually” in it. i didnt have that word in there before and it made it sound more definite. i didn’t want to do that because I was also reminded of the stories in the Bible that people were called to do things that I know I would never want to do and i’m sure other people wouldn’t want to as well. but, it seems most people i talk to these days that feel they have found their calling, they are also working in their “genius”. maybe i just surround myself with too many “happy” people. 🙂
I wonder if the presumption that strengths, gifts and happiness = calling becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that leads people to spend more time discerning their strengths and pursuing what makes them happy than they do learning to discern the leading of the Holy Spirit. I’ve always found this to be counterintuitive in a faith that preaches strength in weakness and surrender.
Wow. Good thoughts. I believe ultimately God wants his people happy, but I do believe there has to be some surrender along the way. Sure. Maybe there is such thing as situational suffering. Example: A pastor that is called but doesn’t like public speaking. I think he has to ultimately like pastoring. But the situation might be something he doesn’t care for. This example being public speaking. I mean for people to follow someone or even work along someone well, I think people need to enjoy what they do. In the post it was more toward careers. I’ve always been taught to focus on my strengths, but maybe that’s not right either. But now you have me thinking about that whole situation. Maybe another post? Thanks for keeping me thinking Joan. Love this.
I guess its kind of like raising kids. When they are 2 and 3 they only like macaroni and cheese, hot dogs and McDonalds. That’s what-to extend the metaphor-makes them happy. We as parents stretch them to eat things they do not like – that don’t make them happy – and in doing so they learn that their culinary palate for what they do and do not like is far broader than they could have imagined. If we allowed them to live in their desires – we would have adults walking around eating hot dogs with no idea that something richer exists for them. I often wonder if this happens among people of faith as well.
Please indulge me one more comment, as I woke with some thoughts on this that I am compelled to share.
I believe that deep pursuit of God: not what are we supposed to do, or how do we follow, but the deep pursuit of Father, Son and Spirit is the beginning of a journey that redefines “happiness” for Christians. Paul sang joyfully in a cold, wet jail cell not because he was a masochist. It was because his mind and heart had been so transformed that his own desires for traditional comfort had been replaced by contentment in all things that were in service to God and others. It is this transformation that shifts our thinking from “what do I like to do” and “what am I good at” to “I trust you to equip me to do anything and I will go anywhere you send me to do anything with joy and gratitude for the opportunity to know you and serve you.”
I have been meditating on a prayer from Saint Niklaus of late that captures this concept.
My Lord and my God,
take everything from me
that keeps me from you.
My Lord and my God,
give everything to me
that brings me closer to you.
My Lord and my God,
take me away from myself
and give me completely to you.
The implications of a prayer like this are many. What will God take from me? What will he choose to give? What if I do not like this person I am meant to be? Am I willing to put my well-appointed home and my best guess at what it means to pursue the perfect American family life through the gauntlet of this sort of prayer? Am I willing to surrender what I perceive to be “my genius” and wash toilets at Starbucks if that is where God places me? Will I fall into obscurity and serve without recognition? These, I have come to believe, are the questions this faith begs of us and they are questions I rarely hear asked in certain circles. I would love to hear your/your readers thoughts on this, as you all have been at this far longer than I have.
“Your calling is usually something you are good at and that you enjoy doing.” Wondering how you came to this, Adam. My reading of the Bible shows story after story of those who are called to do things outside of their skill-sets and comfort zones. In the years since I came to faith I have frequently been compelled by my best discerned sense of the leading of the Holy Spirit to do things that I neither enjoyed nor was equipped to do. In fact, in some areas I have felt compelled to hold back on using certain skills for which I am highly trained and was highly successful in my business life before coming to faith and doors have opened as a result that I would not have dreamed of. All of this to say, I’m not sure I want to rely on the same tests that I used to light my path when I was an atheist to determine my path as a Christian. I know it is less certain, but I am convinced there is more to a fully surrendered life of faith than that.
absolutely. this just helps some people that might not be quite sure. i definitely don’t believe this is a tool to be used instead of prayer and the Bible. Sorry if it came across like that. as for that line that i wrote i made sure to put “usually” in it. i didnt have that word in there before and it made it sound more definite. i didn’t want to do that because I was also reminded of the stories in the Bible that people were called to do things that I know I would never want to do and i’m sure other people wouldn’t want to as well. but, it seems most people i talk to these days that feel they have found their calling, they are also working in their “genius”. maybe i just surround myself with too many “happy” people. 🙂
I wonder if the presumption that strengths, gifts and happiness = calling becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that leads people to spend more time discerning their strengths and pursuing what makes them happy than they do learning to discern the leading of the Holy Spirit. I’ve always found this to be counterintuitive in a faith that preaches strength in weakness and surrender.
Wow. Good thoughts. I believe ultimately God wants his people happy, but I do believe there has to be some surrender along the way. Sure. Maybe there is such thing as situational suffering. Example: A pastor that is called but doesn’t like public speaking. I think he has to ultimately like pastoring. But the situation might be something he doesn’t care for. This example being public speaking. I mean for people to follow someone or even work along someone well, I think people need to enjoy what they do. In the post it was more toward careers. I’ve always been taught to focus on my strengths, but maybe that’s not right either. But now you have me thinking about that whole situation. Maybe another post? Thanks for keeping me thinking Joan. Love this.
I guess its kind of like raising kids. When they are 2 and 3 they only like macaroni and cheese, hot dogs and McDonalds. That’s what-to extend the metaphor-makes them happy. We as parents stretch them to eat things they do not like – that don’t make them happy – and in doing so they learn that their culinary palate for what they do and do not like is far broader than they could have imagined. If we allowed them to live in their desires – we would have adults walking around eating hot dogs with no idea that something richer exists for them. I often wonder if this happens among people of faith as well.
Please indulge me one more comment, as I woke with some thoughts on this that I am compelled to share.
I believe that deep pursuit of God: not what are we supposed to do, or how do we follow, but the deep pursuit of Father, Son and Spirit is the beginning of a journey that redefines “happiness” for Christians. Paul sang joyfully in a cold, wet jail cell not because he was a masochist. It was because his mind and heart had been so transformed that his own desires for traditional comfort had been replaced by contentment in all things that were in service to God and others. It is this transformation that shifts our thinking from “what do I like to do” and “what am I good at” to “I trust you to equip me to do anything and I will go anywhere you send me to do anything with joy and gratitude for the opportunity to know you and serve you.”
I have been meditating on a prayer from Saint Niklaus of late that captures this concept.
My Lord and my God,
take everything from me
that keeps me from you.
My Lord and my God,
give everything to me
that brings me closer to you.
My Lord and my God,
take me away from myself
and give me completely to you.
The implications of a prayer like this are many. What will God take from me? What will he choose to give? What if I do not like this person I am meant to be? Am I willing to put my well-appointed home and my best guess at what it means to pursue the perfect American family life through the gauntlet of this sort of prayer? Am I willing to surrender what I perceive to be “my genius” and wash toilets at Starbucks if that is where God places me? Will I fall into obscurity and serve without recognition? These, I have come to believe, are the questions this faith begs of us and they are questions I rarely hear asked in certain circles. I would love to hear your/your readers thoughts on this, as you all have been at this far longer than I have.
We have some of the same strengths bro.
–Terrace Crawford
http://www.terracecrawford.com
http://www.twitter.com/terracecrawford
We have some of the same strengths bro.
–Terrace Crawford
http://www.terracecrawford.com
http://www.twitter.com/terracecrawford
New results of strengthsfinder test I just completed:
Futuristic Maximizer Relator Significance Competition
New results of strengthsfinder test I just completed:
Futuristic Maximizer Relator Significance Competition