Growing up I wanted to be the best Christian that I could be. In my mind that meant that I would go into full-time Christian ministry, but not just any ministry. I thought I should be a missionary. I went on missions trips, went forward at altar calls, studied Spanish and thought that is what God had for me. When I got to Taylor, I moved in this direction. At Taylor there was definitely a spiritual hierarchy. Bible majors, Christian Ed majors . . . Business majors. As graduation came closer and closer, I felt God providentially moving me away from this. He moved me into working with college students at Christian schools and eventually at private and state institutions. During this time, I struggled with questions about whether I had been wrong about going into Student Development.
Then I got to Calvin College and discovered a Reformed view of vocation, calling and career. While I worked there, I taught a class called Prelude where Freshmen students went through different aspects of a Reformed worldview. We read a text by Neal Plantinga entitled Engaging God's World. This was the beginning of a new understanding of God's providence and my career decisions.
Here's the abridged version. All Christians share a CALLING. This encompasses God's command "to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God," and the rest of scripture. VOCATION is more specificly how one carries out his calling. For instance, my vocation seems to be education or teaching. Amanda's vocation is in caring for children. God reveals this through giftings, talents, dreams and desires. Vocation was the most important one for me. It is the work that God has for you. CAREER is the most specific, but in my mind the less important. The ideal of course would be that someone's career involves their vocation, but that isn't always the case. For instance, I could accomplish my vocation by working with college students at church, while I worked at something completely different.
This idea was life giving and very freeing. It also cleared up the dichotomy of "Christian" and "secular" work. The work that we do is important, but not as important as our calling as Christians and the vocation that God has given us. This is the thinking that allows me to value the work of a pastor and a carpenter the same. It's just work. Are they accomplishing their calling and vocation in their work? We've all known pastors or missionaries who were not and business people who were. What do you think? Is this way of thinking helpful for you? What is your vocation and how do you or do you not work to accomplish it in your career?
3 comments:
We make a living by what we get.
We make a life by what we give.
I think that applies to what you're talking about. We have to "make a living". Bills have to be paid and family must be provided for, but after that it can become something else if we're not careful. We can give to others and serve Christ in any job and that's really our calling as you have so eloquently said. You are also so right in saying that vocation and career often, for many reasons, don't mesh which can be a source of real frustration until one comes to the place where they surrender all of those dreams to the Lord and ask "What do I do now Lord?" I've sure been there, most recently when I retired. I no longer have a career, but He has given other opportunities for me to use the gifts I used in my career to obey His calling. This is starting to sound wordy and complicated!!
This was very helpful for me Andy. I know my calling, vocation and career. I'm a Christian stay home wife and mom.
But I do wonder what it will be 10, 15, 20 years down the road when the kids are older. Will my vocation or "career" (I use that term loosely) change? I will have to wait and see.
Alex and I have had many conversations about this over the last two years. Being in "ministry" sometimes makes things a little fuzzier...for me at least.
It's good to watch you resolve it for yourself.
T
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