Am I called, I wonder? We tend to use the term (perhaps subconsciously) to separate our secular and sacred lives. We talk about being called to ministry or officership. We may even talk about being called to be a teacher or doctor. Indeed, these are callings—and on Candidates Sunday, 27 May, we have a chance to explore our sacred calling.
But we don’t often talk about the calling to be a check-out operator, or a bank teller or McDonald’s employee (although this is my son’s current dream job). When we talk about calling, we often reflect what our culture deems meaningful, rather than what God deems meaningful.
If you have found a job that is fulfilling and has a sense of purpose, you are blessed. But if you don’t feel that sense of purpose within your job, you are equally called—to be a person that loves justice, encourages others, works honestly, is a caring co-worker, an empowering boss … and a million other shades of light that, like a prism, reflect the colours of the Kingdom of God.
God only asks you to be a shard of light in your sphere of influence—no matter where God has you. I found Malcolm Herring’s reflection (p.20) helpful, when he said that your calling gives you the ‘why’ behind the ‘what’. No matter what you do for a living, God has a purpose for you there—God is your ‘why’. B
Brennan Manning says our deepest calling is always ‘to be fully and deeply human in Christ Jesus’. Am I called? Yes. We are all called. More than being called to be a bank teller or teacher or even a Salvation Army Officer, we are simply called to be.
Ingrid Barratt
Editor
2 Timothy 1:9
[God] has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace.
2 Timoti 1:9
Nāna nei tātou i whakaora, nāna hoki tātou i karanga ki te karangatanga tapu; kihai i rite ki ā tātou mahi, engari ki tāna ake tikanga i whakatakoto ai i mua, ki te aroha noa hoki i hōmai nei ki a tātou i roto i a Karaiti Īhu, i mua atu o te tīmatanga o te ao.