Secure in My Calling-- What IS It?!

I've been pondering this phrase for a few weeks now.  "Secure in my calling..."  Lysa Terkuerst uses it in her book and study (of the same name) "Becoming More than A Good Bible Study Girl" and it has begged me to answer the obvious questions that come to mind when I hear it: "Am I really secure in my calling?"  and the next one, "what exactly IS 'my calling'"?

We have to know first what our calling is.  For those of us who are Christ-followers, we can find part of our answer in His Word, our foundation for anything True.  We know that Christ actually gives many commandments for us to follow-- commandments such as caring for the orphans and widows, not getting angry, not getting drunk, not judging others, not wanting things that are not ours, rejoicing in all circumstances, giving thanks, praising His name, and on and on and on.  When one sits and just reads through Matthew chapters 5-7 it can seem to get a little heavy and wearisome at times.  NO ONE could do all that!  (That is, actually, the point-- without Christ we can do no good.  There is nothing good in us. Ecc. 7:20 and others) But, then, thankfully Jesus boils it all down for us to two simple terms.  In Matthew Chapter 22 verses 37-40 He says,

1)  “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
2)  "Love your neighbor as yourself."

Christ says, "All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

In John Chapter 15, we read that if we love God we will obey His commands and remain in His love.  Obeying His commands will mean that we will show love to others because we will consider them better than our own selves.  We will be more concerned with their needs than our own and we will naturally not do all of the commands that talk about not judging or gossiping or stealing, etc. because those actions are not loving.  I am, of course, making it sound so simple, and yet it is not.  We MUST abide in Christ if we are to live a life consistent with this because only HE can produce in us the love for others.  We just can not conjure it up in and of ourselves.

Okay-- so first we must learn to LOVE GOD and the LOVE OTHERS

There is a second part to being a follower of Christ that should flow out of everything we do daily.  This is found a little later in Matthew when Jesus gives some of His final words to His disciples after rising from the dead and before heading back to His heavenly home.  (This is part of the "love others" that He has already told us to do.)

"All authoriy in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."  (Oh yeah, and let's not forget that Jesus promises to be with us through all of this!)

Our calling then, as human Christ-followers is to: love God / love others, and the second, MAKE DISCIPLES!

So the question we should be asking ourselves is , whatever earthy place God has put us in, are we making disciples there?  That is our number one calling as true followers of Christ.   We'll  look later this week as some more particulars and how this might look on and everyday level.


For more on this, PLEASE watch this video!  Francis Chan is a regular man, human like the rest of us, but he is choosing daily to walk a life that screams JESUS! to those around him.  If you don't have an hour-- cuz' it's a long one(!)-- come back and visit this video when you do.  (I cleaned my school room while I listened=)