Instruments of Calling
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When there is a need in a person’s life or a need in a community or a need in the world, God calls someone or some group to meet that need. Calling is God’s way of getting good things done in the world without resorting to force. A calling is an invitation to respond to a need in a loving way. Consider these two examples:
1.When a natural disaster strikes a community, God could be calling in any number of the following ways:
2.When someone transitions through an important milestone in life or accomplishes something, God could be calling in any number of the following ways:
1.When a natural disaster strikes a community, God could be calling in any number of the following ways:
- There is a need for emergency care. Through that need, God calls people to courageously sacrifice their own safety for the lives of others.
- There is a need for resources. Through that need, God calls people near and far to a generous spirit of service and giving.
- There is a need for trust in relationships. Through that need, God calls people in the midst of struggle to be honest, trustworthy and caring.
- There is a need for unity. Through that need, God calls all people involved to put relationships above bickering and blaming.
- What are some other needs that prompt a calling in this example?
2.When someone transitions through an important milestone in life or accomplishes something, God could be calling in any number of the following ways:
- There is a need for someone to be thanked. Through that need, God calls the person to gratitude.
- There is a need to capture the significance of the event for the sake of healthy personal development. Through that need, God calls the person to reflect on the meaning of what has happened.
- There is a need for a group or a society to acknowledge and celebrate good things. Through that need, God calls others to celebrate with the person.
- There is a need to let go of what has died to make room to build a better future. Through that need, God calls the person and others to avoid clinging to the past and to be hopeful about the future while carrying forward reinvented essentials.
- What are some other needs that prompt a calling in this example?
Watch Video #1
Your Personal Experience of Calling: A Journaling Exercise
Select one of the following four experiences. Pick the first one that grabs your attention.
Describe the details of what happened. There is no need to interpret the meaning of the experience at this point. Just describe it. Here are some questions that may be helpful to guide your writing:
How do you think God was calling you in and through the experience you described? Ponder the roles love and freedom played in your calling experience and how needs were being met.
Write your responses in your journal. Pay attention to how God may have been calling you in more than one way in and through this experience.
- I helped a person who was suffering in some way.
- I made an important shift in my career.
- I lost someone or something important to me.
- I worked on a relationship and it got better.
Describe the details of what happened. There is no need to interpret the meaning of the experience at this point. Just describe it. Here are some questions that may be helpful to guide your writing:
- What happened?
- What was the sequence of events?
- Who was involved?
- Where did the event(s) happen?
- What do you remember seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, tasting?
How do you think God was calling you in and through the experience you described? Ponder the roles love and freedom played in your calling experience and how needs were being met.
Write your responses in your journal. Pay attention to how God may have been calling you in more than one way in and through this experience.
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The C3 Project and the Thriving Congregations Project are services of Vibrant Faith funded through two grants from the Lilly Endowment Inc.
Vibrant Faith: https://vibrantfaith.org For questions about the Vibrant Faith Projects website contact John Roberto at [email protected]. |