What is Personal CALLING… and how is it different from someone “called” into ministry?
Personal Calling is a concise summary statement of a Christ-follower’s “best understanding to date” of his or her unique shaping and personal destiny. It is about life direction and a summation of his or her’s life purpose. It is dynamic. It is DYNAMIC. It unfolds over a lifetime. It continues to be enhanced and adjusts as God reveals his plans and purposes.
The Puritan’s taught and lived out a commitment to calling being imparted to EVERY Christ-follower at the point and moment of conversion. Personal Calling extends to each of us, while vocational calling to ministry applies to a few of us.
Being “CALLED INTO MINISTRY” is about vocation, and the choice one makes to best live out his and her Personal Calling. Decisions related to vocation are (or should be made) as a vehicle to help and individual express one’s Personal Calling.
Re-visiting, and clarifying one’s Personal Calling provides important benefits to every leader. It offers tools for future decision-making, allows for a greater understanding of core values and personal vision, and its helps an individual better understand the role they play on a team.
CALLING is the precursor to CONTRIBUTION. One’s a individual understands their CALLING, they are better able to assess their CONTRIBUTION, and become better equipped to say NO to good things, in order to say YES to best things.
Calling consists of three components:
– Life messages and values (summary of past development.
– Being Statement (summary of Biblical life purpose)
– Doing Statement (summary of personal vision and life direction)
Calling is about living according to Jesus’ early call to his disciples… to “come be with him (BEING), and then go minister for him (DOING).” (Mark 3:13,14)
God has always been at work shaping the life of a Christ-follower. The question is not whether He has a design but rather does a follower have the courage to align himself or herself with God’s forming work. As we each discover God’s shaping in our past, we are better equipped to discern where He is leading us in the future.
