Have you ever wondered what it means to have a calling and vocation from God? Although calling and vocation sometimes are used interchangeably, a calling is more general while vocation is specific. In this resource, we will explore the different aspects of calling and vocation and even how they work together.
Learn more about your calling and vocation from God through this podcast episode and the downloadable resource. Discover how God calls all those who follow Jesus to a certain life and also consider how He may be calling you to something specific along the journey.
Join Lyndi Lee Markus as she explores the topics of calling and vocation in Scripture in this episode, “Receiving Your Vocation from God,” from The Ripple Effect Podcast. The Ripple Effect is a ministry of The Navigators Train-Develop-Care department. This podcast offers micro-retreats of 10 minutes or less and practices you can do almost anywhere to connect right where you are with God.
God Calls You to Himself
First and foremost, God calls us to Himself. In this sense, calling is general and broad. As Os Guinness writes, “everything we are, everything we do, everything we have” is God’s. All of life is based on God’s authoritative call on our lives. He wants all of us, all the time.
God Calls You to Work
Genesis begins with a world that is empty, formless, and dark, and shows how God works to make it full, shaped, and full of light. God’s work is purposeful and specific – He is cultivating something! – and it is this task that He eventually invites us into.
“The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it” Genesis 2:15 (NIV).
God Calls You to Do Good Works
Ephesians 2:8-10 says much about the tie between being made by God, being redeemed by God, and being called to do good work:
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (NIV).
God Calls You to Make Disciples
The Great Commission is a calling for those following Jesus to join God as He pursues all people, calling them to Himself. It’s a call to be a disciplemaker:
“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. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV).
God Invites You to a Vocation
Inside this general calling from God, God invites us to join Him in His work of restoring and rebuilding our world in a specific way, which is known as your vocation. We are called to contribute — through love and service to others — in every aspect of life. This contribution includes work but also other areas: being a good neighbor, volunteering, and other types of formal and informal contributions.
Your Vocation is More Than Your Job
Everybody “works” — it is part of our identity and part of God’s larger call to contribute. For most people this contribution takes place in the workplace. But the Bible teaches that it is not just how we relate to people at work that makes a difference. The work itself also provides a way for us to do good (for example, the health provider who helps people get healthy, or the engineer who helps design safer vehicles). Work is not the only way we contribute, but it can be a significant place for us to do our part to change the world and make it a better place.
How Calling and Vocation Work Together
One way to think about the relationship between calling and vocation is three concentric circles. The outermost circle represents God’s general calling on your life. The second circle is about what God has called you to do. The smallest circle tells you where your work takes place (vocation).
Reflection Questions on Calling and Vocation
- How is this sense of calling and vocation different from the way you have thought about them before?
- How might this way of understanding calling and vocation encourage you in your work?
- How might this way of understanding calling and vocation make your work more difficult?
Share this Navigators Discipleship Tool
Download a print friendly PDF of the Explore Your Calling and Vocation from God resource to pass along. Navigators Discipleship Tools are designed for sharing with your Bible study, church groups, and those you are discipling.
Adapted from A Biblical Perspective on Work, Vocation and Calling, by Ronni Bernardy, Dean Storelli and John Teten. The Navigators.
I was able with aid of the Circle to understand my calling.
The circle helped me the most. Gave me a great visual, and aided my in my understanding of my calling.