Vocation part 1
I think one of the biggest struggles we have in this life is finding out who we are. Why we're here. That age-old question of "What's this life for?" We spend so much time and energy on it. Trying to fit in. Trying to stand out. Trying to be someone. Trying to do something. That's so much trying. And, listen, I'm not saying you shouldn't give this life your all. I'm a maximum effort guy. Go big or go home. Anything worth doing is worth doing right. Where we get into trouble, where we struggle, is when we let exterior forces define us. We let our past define us. We let our mistakes define us. We let our own dim view of ourselves define us. What we should be doing is letting our heavenly Father define us! Look at Ephesians 4:1-2, "I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love." In other words, "Be who you are. But be quiet about it. And let other people be who they are." And it's that word, "vocation," that I really want to key in on in this Rant series. It is number 2821 in Strong's Greek Concordance and it means, "an invitation." That's what I'm talking about when I say God is too much of a gentleman to force His will on you. He makes things available. He invites us. Revelation 22:17 says, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." It's available to us. It has been given to us. It's not, "Come or else." It's "come and get it!" Now watch this. Watch what happens when you come. Watch what happens when you take of the water of life. Jesus said, "But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:14). And again in Revelation 21:6, "And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely." There's a clear invitation to us from God. Come. If you're hungry, come and eat. If you're thirsty, come and drink. And when you do--when you receive what God has given to you--you will also be able to give. Because you will HAVE something to give. Receiving and releasing. Letting what's inside come out. That's our "job." That's our calling. That's our vocation. It's you being you. Me being me. For me, it's writing. I'm a writer. And writer's write. That's what God invited me to do by equipping and empowering me to do it. For you, it might be something else. Be it teaching. Or playing music. Singing. Dancing. Playing a sport. Whatever it is that sets your soul on fire. That's what you were created to do. And that's what God WANTS you to do. It is the power of God workin in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. He put the want to in your heart. And the ability to do that want to. So stop trying so hard to be someone you're not. Embrace who you are. BE who you are. Who you are in Christ. Which is who Christ is in you. Doing what you do in love. For love. Because of love. It's all about love. Your calling, your invitation, your vocation... is to live. To love!