I have some news: I don’t think your calling is what you think it is.

It’s not what I thought it was.

We were made with a longing for purpose etched into our souls. Our calling, our purpose, our destiny; we call it different names, but the premise remains. We long for meaning and a place in the world. We long to make a difference and be appreciated for what we offer.

I’ve been trying all week to come up with reasons not to write about finding our calling. It can be a complex discussion with a few nuances. However, I know it’s something that I’ve wrestled with for more than a few years, and I’m betting you might have too.

Typically I’d enter a conversation about “my calling” thinking of my own role in the world and more specifically, in the Kingdom of God.

The dictionary defines calling as “a strong urge toward a particular way of life or career; a vocation.” 

As one with many of these “urges,” hobbies, interests, and random whims, this idea of finding my calling can be a busy highway of brain traffic with too few street signs. When we set out to find our calling on our own, we can easily be swept up in the “follow your heart” approach the world takes. As believers, this is not how we are to live. We get to live by a more helpful and Biblical approach.

Let’s look at what the Bible has to say about our calling. I have a feeling it might surprise you as much as it did me.

Romans 11:29 “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”

It’s tempting to read this verse alone and apply our ideas to it, how it’s about our particular purpose that God has branded on our life. But when read in its context, the verse takes on different meaning. Romans 11:29 is not about our individual calling to a vocation or life path. It’s about salvation. In chapter 11, Paul is talking about Gentiles being offered salvation alongside the Israelites. This same word translated as “calling” is found scattered throughout the New Testament and it is the Greek word klesis meaning an invitation to accept His gift of salvation. If you read Romans 11:28-29 together it makes perfect sense.

Romans 11:28-29 (NLT) “Many of the people of Israel are now enemies of the Good News, and this benefits you Gentiles. Yet they are still the people He loves because He chose their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”

The calling isn’t to something, it’s into something. Our calling is into the Kingdom of God to be children of God through salvation in Jesus.

The word gifts in Romans 11:29 is the Greek word charismata, which could also be translated as grace gifts. This is how we are particularly gifted supernaturally by the Holy Spirit.

God calls us into salvation through a relationship with Jesus, and then He gifts us to be able to participate with Him in Kingdom work.

Sometimes this gifting accompanies what we are already good at, and sometimes He supernaturally equips us in a way we are not already gifted. As I wrote earlier this week in a post about speaking at a women’s conference, when I teach I sense the nearness of the Presence of God and know it is in part what He’s gifted me to do.

It brings to mind the quote by runner Eric Liddell, the Olympic Gold Medalist who inspired the movie Chariots of Fire.

“God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure.” ― Eric Liddell

Eric chose to honor and glorify God through that which God gifted him, running. But he didn’t ignore his calling into the Kingdom; He went on to become a missionary in China, while still competing occasionally. He used everything he had for the glory of God. 

Sometimes God invites us to participate in the Kingdom in a way we are not naturally gifted, and He promises to equip us in spite of that. This was the case with Moses. God called him to petition Pharaoh on behalf of the entire Israelite nation. Moses didn’t want to do it; he was not a good speaker and had a stutter. But the Lord told Moses, “I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” (See Exodus 3 and 4 for further reading)

Moses had to hear from the Lord and then walk in obedience. His calling wasn’t about him becoming a proficient and engaging motivational speaker. It was about answering the call to faith and then participate in God’s plan. God’s plan was to rescue the people of God and bring them into the land that He had promised their ancestors and continue His covenant with them for all time. If we make it about Moses becoming a great leader and good speaker, we minimize the grandness of God’s plan. It’s SO huge. Much bigger than even Moses, and certainly bigger than us.

This mindset helps me to take my eyes off of myself and put them back where they belong: on Christ the Rescuer, on God the Promise Keeper, and Holy Spirit the Life Giver. It’s about so much more than me and what I’m good at. And in many ways, this takes the pressure off. You don’t necessarily have to find and discover what you’re good at; you’re supposed to enter into intimate relationship with God, give Him glory, and make Him known in the world. As we walk with Him, He will show us what to do and direct our path.

How do you think about your calling? Does looking at these verse in light of salvation shift your way of thinking about your calling?