Calling

Here is something I sent to a young person who asked me what they should do with their life. As your children reach the right age they may find this helpful. When discussing the kind of work people do, most of us understand what is meant by a job, a career and a profession but a calling is something most do not give much thought to. The words themselves are somewhat interchangeable but in my way of thinking they are distinctly different. To me a job is something you get without much preparation and you can change jobs frequently and not suffer any adverse consequences. A career on the other hand requires some commitment beyond being there from 9 to 5. A career is recognizable to others and normally requires some degree of expertise. A profession means you are a professional. This usually means a lot of time and effort directed at a very narrow course of action. Professionals make a career out of their job. Professionals are highly skilled either by formal training or natural ability. Calling is in a class by itself and not many are called or more precisely not many recognize their calling. Biblically Mathew in the New Testament says, “many are called but few are chosen”, which to me means that we may all have a calling but only a few of us recognize it and even fewer follow up on it. A calling sometimes comes from the inside out and that happens early in life. Other times it comes from the outside in and that can happen at any stage in life. Most of us are familiar with people who have a calling from within. Many people miss their calling because they are tied up just with making enough to support their families. Many pass by opportunities because of a fear to take a financial risk. Many do not think they are worthy……no one in our family ever does anything important. A man can have a good life, meaning he has a job that provides for his family, he enjoys going to work and feels like he is making a difference and that satisfies him. Sometimes a man in that position gets to midlife and realizes that something is missing. If he looks into it he might discover a part of himself he did not know existed and upon further study can come to understand that there is something more important in his future. Such a man will seemingly stumble into his calling. Since he has searched and studied, this it is more than a stumble, it is an example of serendipity Money is rarely the clue to someone’s calling….more often it is a desire to share ones talents, experience, and knowledge in ways that can be helpful to others. It has little to do with fame and fortune. In answer to your question, we are all born selfish and as we go through life we should reach the point where we realize that happiness comes from giving. I would say that a man recognizes his calling when he realizes that the secret to happiness, is in giving. It does not matter what method (type of work) he uses to share what he has but it is in the sharing that he begins to use his calling.