Our battle is not against flesh and blood but against principalities of evil (Ephesians 6:12).
The devil isn’t original; he subverts through counterfeits. There is the love of God and the counterfeit love of lust. The Bible talks about calling while the world discusses career.
Should we seek our calling or plan for our career?
Paul writes about calling:
Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called (Ephesians 4:1).
James warns about planning for a career:
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit…” (James 4:13).
Paul was a prisoner of the Lord in his calling. James warns against the motive of making money in a career. That’s a difference between calling and career – willing to pay the price vs. interest only in the price.
The Bible teaches that you (and I) were created before time for a specific reason – something that we are to do – that is calling. Career looks for personal advancement while calling seeks Kingdom growth.
Through calling we find joy, as our lives are spent in the pocket of God’s will. Often, I’ve heard someone say, “I’m happy; I believe that I was made to do this.”
I’ve also heard many say, “I hate to get up in the morning. I have another 15 years before I can retire.”
I am grateful that I was able to spend decades working in my calling. I didn’t find my calling through personality or gift assessments, but God spoke to me. Finding my calling was simple obedience.
Talking about Jesus and discipling has consumed me for decades. That’s my calling!
Os Guinness in his book, The Call, explains calling:
What do I mean by “calling”? For the moment let me say simply that 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 and dynamism lived out as a response to his summons and service.
It’s never too late to discover the calling in your life.
Calling does come with a price. It’s easy to shrink from this cost and accept a counterfeit career from the evil one. It’s a choice between the narrow and the wide gates.
But those who see God, hear His call, and obey – their lives change, and after finishing their calling, the world isn’t the same.
It’s easy to find God’s calling – ask Him to reveal it to you!