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I definitely identify with a single woman not
worrying about finding her “calling,” but rather preparing to be a
man’s helper in the tasks God will give him. How exactly do I do
that, and what ministry should I pursue now…in case it’s a while before
he arrives?
Many centuries ago, a man named Anselm wrote these words:
“Oh, how miserable man’s lot is when he has lost what he was made
for!” The question of calling, for either a man or a woman, is
really the question of God’s purpose. Why did He make us?
What are we supposed to be doing during our time on earth?
When
God put Adam on this planet, He gave him two jobs: take care of the
natural world, and multiply the human race. This was the man’s
first calling. But he couldn’t do it alone, so God gave him Eve
as a helper. Things were looking good.
But then Adam and
Eve disobeyed God, and the plan fell apart in three specific ways (see
Genesis 3). First, the natural world became filled with thorns
and weeds, and thus much harder to cultivate. Second,
childbearing became painful. And third, the relationship between
Adam and Eve was corrupted, where instead of being his assistant she
would seek to control him, and instead of them together ruling over
creation, he would have to spend his energies ruling over her!
So
much for the first round of calling. Let’s fast forward to the
New Testament, where we see a very different picture of calling.
In
Ephesians 4:1, Paul urges believers to “walk worthy of the
calling with which you were called.” What is that call?
“That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be
strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that
Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted
and grounded in love, may … know the love of Christ which passes
knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God”
(Ephesians 3:16-19).
In case you’re the sort that skims over verses when you’re reading something, I’m going to review a few points.
- Point one - we’re called to become strong through the Spirit
- Point two - we’re called to let Christ live in us by faith, so we can know His love that passes knowledge
- Point three - we’re called to be filled with the fullness of God
Hmm.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t think of a more radical calling
than that! Paul is essentially saying we are called to become
very much like God. You’ll notice, though, that there aren’t any
specific job descriptions attached to this calling. Doesn’t God
particularly care what we do with our lives?
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