The Calling

I have been praying a lot lately about my calling. In talking with my dad, he brought up the point that no one is simply called to study the Word. Not that I have ever thought that studying was going to be enough. In the Book of James, he talks about the concept of "faith without works is dead". Therefore, we can deduce that each of us is called to serve the Lord in some respect.

Some people are called to Shepard a flock in the role of a pastor, some are called into the mission field, and others are called to lead in the community. I am not speaking on any level of doctrine, but just my own thoughts. I think at some point, we have to ask ourselves are we doing enough? There are 168 hours in a week. For most people, they spend one hour of Sunday School and and one hour in a worship service. Even if we up the hours and say 1.5 hours to give 3 hours on Sunday, that is only 1.8% of our week is formally given to the Lord. Given that the time of the week is constant, as is typically the time given to church, one could safely say that less than 2% of the average person's life is provided to God.

I don't think this is enough for me. Sure, I can add a few more hours of studying at the church, and I can also study at home. However, we have now circled back to my first paragraph above. I have already been saved by Grace. For the most part, the people I go to church with have been saved by Grace. God is pleased that we have followed in His will (not sure if that qualifies as His will or His Perfect Will....thinking Perfect except for the timing), but what about the lost? I'm going to bed tonight, and if I pass away, I will be embraced by my Savior. There are people right now that are wrestling with Satan, and those are the people my heart is aching for. However, I want to be there for my brothers and sisters who are trying to continue in their daily walk as well. Which leads me to my next thought.

From what I can gather, there are ultimately three forms of service I can provide to the Lord here on Earth has a servant. 1) Tend to His sheep, 2) Evangelize to those that need to hear His name, or 3) both.

Stepping back for a second, I know I have the calling to go to Seminary. I will be gaining the higher level education that comes from the knowledge of the Bible, the doctrine gained from the study of Systematic Theology and all other related courses, and the ability to deeply study scripture through exegesis in my studies of Hebrew and Greek (probably more interested in the Greek and will ultimately forget the Hebrew). After completion of my studies, I will be prepared to do anything that God has planned for me. Not only because of the education, because I (like every Christian is called to do) have arrived to the point in my life that I am ready to live my life in whatever way God wants me to.

I now sit here confused. I don't have a specific calling to a specific job, because I want to do it all. I am the happiest when I am talking about God and when I am at church. I want to wake up in the morning and tell people about God. I want to talk with people, and help them with the difficult doctrine topics that I will be trained in. I want to comfort my brothers and sisters when they are in need. In the midst of all of this, I want to raise a Christian family. I want every waking moment to be dedicated to my Lord and Savior.

All in all, it was helpful to get my thoughts out, but I have not really accomplished much. God might want me to stay in Corporate America, but then I will be spending 33% of my time sleeping (which is a constant regardless of the scenario), and at time, 30% to 47% of my time doing Earthly work. Which is fine, because even Paul had to make tents during the day to preach at night. So for whoever has found this blog, please pray with me as I continue to search for what God wants me to do.

God Bless