Warning: Nerdy Theology Post

I am sitting through presentations on webpages about national parks for physical science. I am slightly bored. And everyone knows that if you are bored, you should blog.

Today in chapel I was reading The Irresistable Revolution by Shane Clainborne (which I was told will change my life). Shane says some really challenging things about living out Christian faith and what that actually looks like (according to Christ). Needless to say, I'm feeling pretty challenged about the way I live. It's good for me.

Anyways...good quote about "calling". Anyone who has heard me rant about people on Dordt's campus view of calling will realize how much I appreciate this:

"I had been doing a Bible study whose central premise was that rather than waiting around for God's special plan for your life, you should just go fine where God is at work and join in."

I love it. So good. And how true is it? I have run across so many people who think that we must live our lives trying to figure out this secret master plan God has for out lives. It's hard to live life that way! I did it for a long time and failed miserably at trying to follow God's "calling" (meaning that I was waiting for God to somehow magically show me what job I'm supposed to do after college). I've come to this realization over time though (and take it as you will...but I'm pretty passionate about this).

We are first and foremost called to be Christians who live the gospel out each and every day in our lives. We seem to think that God calls each individual person to a specific job and if a person doesn't figure out what the specific job is they are in trouble. It's almost as if we expect people to fail if they don't do this exact thing God has "called" them to do. I don't believe this view anymore.

I think it really came to light when my dad was deciding whether to stay at the church in Chicago or move to the church in Sioux Falls. A lot of people would say to us "Well, where do you think God is calling your dad." And I slowly realized that I hated that question. I think the thing that really frustrated me was that people made it sound that if Dad made the wrong decision, he would fail at the one he had picked - as though God wouldn't bless the work he did there.

Following this line of thinking then, if God had been calling my dad to stay in Chicago, but dad had decided to move to Sioux Falls, then God would not be blessing the work Dad is doing there. How is that even possible think?!

So, I believe that first and foremost we are called to be followers of Christ. This means living our life in a way that honors God and realizing that He uses everything we do as his tool to further his kingdom. I don't think many people are called into specific tasks. I think God gifts people in ways that makes them more qualified for a task than others. Look at the situation of pastors. I always hear people say "God is calling me to be a pastor." That is great and I'm not denying that is true. But I've also heard people say that who aren't good pastors (and trust me, they do exist. Pastors are just as human as anyone else....I live with one. I know.). They don't challenge their congregations, they aren't good at preaching, they suck at pastor care (this is broad generalization by the way) and they don't really appreciate their congregations. How can that person say that God called them to be a pastor, yet it seems like they don't have the spiritual gifts needed to be a pastor. [Note: I am not railing against people here....this is just something I've thought a lot about].

Anyways...that was a nice tangent. Back to the topic. I think that too often, we forget that God allows us the freedom to make choices in our life. People always ask me what I plan to do after I graduate with my theology degree (some people ask me with disdain since I am a woman...that always feels super nice...). Honestly, I have no idea. I have so many options! I could open the coffeeshop I've been dreaming about since sophomore year of high school. I could move to Europe, working and traveling. I could go to seminary for mission work or some type of ministry. I could work at a social justice organization (like Luke Society or World Vision). I could get married (haha) and be a stay-at-home mom/wife. Why do I have to pick just one? What if I really want to get married and travel? What if I am interested in working at an organization and going to seminary? Lately, it seems like people have this view that God is only calling us to do ONE SPECIFIC THING in our lives. Basically, I just think that whole idea is crap.

I think this view of calling puts God into this box of "dictator" as well. I mean, if God has every part of our life planned out, and we are just coasting through it, waiting for that magical telegram or email that says "This is my plan for your life" how is God loving? I've always understood that loving our fellow humans means that we let them live. This may be a funny example, but in Finding Nemo Marlin and Dory have a lovely conversation which I think illustrates my point:

MARLIN: No. I promised him I'd never let anything happen to him.
DORY: Huh. That's a funny thing to promise.
MARLIN: What?
DORY: Well, you can't never let anything happen to him. Then nothing would ever happen to him. Not much fun for little Harpo.

How true is that? God gave us choice and freedom. When we live life as if everything is completely planned out, then we are denying these gift from God. I'm not sure I like that picture. Yet, a lot of people live that way.

I think most people don't realize they have this view of "calling" (since it is such a "dordtspeak" word and it gets used way to much and is sort of losing its meaning) but it plays out in their lives simply by the way they function. It's pretty interesting to see. I'm not going to give examples, though, because that would be mean to the people I'm talking about....I think. But come talk to me if you want to know more :-)

Yeah, I get really upset and slightly passionate when I talk about calling. And please don't think I am trying to criticize people here or that I think people are stupid. I don't think this at all! I definitely used to view God and calling this way. My views have changed so much though. And I'm more than willing to talk about it in person...its better that way anyway.

Here is another (again, by Shane..and I promise not to rant this time. I just like the quote):

"The body of Christ was alive, no longer trapped in stain-glass windows or books of systematic theology. The body of Christ was literal, living, hungry, thirsty, bleeding. Church was no longer something we did for an hour on Sunday, and the church was not a building with a steeple. As Don Everts says in his book Jesus with Dirty Feet, "Referring to the church as a building is like referring to people as two-by-fours." She came to life. The church became something we are - an organism, not an organization. Church became so fresh and vibrant, it was like we had brought something dead back to life."


sarahjo