Calling

 My best friend talks a lot about whether she should go to seminary. Her degree is in political science, but she keeps feeling called to the ministry. My pastor says when she was in college she felt a very strong calling and took up religious studies. It seems that people mostly use the term "calling" to describe being steered toward a position of leadership within the church.

But what about those of us who are not leaders? I love God, I love going to church, I even love talking about faith (at least with people who aren’t going to insult me about it), but I am not made to be a leader. I get nervous talking to more than about 3 people at a time. I am really bad at putting ideas about religion into words. Basically, I would suck at any aspect of the ministry.

Not to mention that not all of us should be called to ministry. There is a need for the rest of us to work in pretty much every industry imaginable (almost…not sure anyone really gets "called" to produce porn or something like that!). So how do I hear my own calling? Do I even get a calling, or is it pretty much that God chooses people to spread the Word, and the rest of us are left to our own devices?

There’s a Bible verse (I can’t seem to find it right now, though) about how we all should use our gifts to serve the Lord or something along those lines. Which makes sense, of course, but how do we know when to make something a career? I can sing pretty well, but that doesn’t mean I should make a career of it!

I’m working on my degree in software development, and I love it. I can really see myself being a computer programmer, and could work the hours around my family’s schedule so that even when I go back to work I can still be there for my kids. But those are all reasons that it works for ME. None of those are really reasons that my career will serve God.

But at the same time, my computer classes feel right to me. Everyone I know says they can totally see me as a programmer. So maybe this IS my calling, and just less obvious?

Can I serve God by typing a bunch of symbols into a computer? Maybe it’s that I’m serving God by being a mom (which I already know) and finding a career that will work best for my family is most important? Or maybe I’m just trying to justify my own selfish desires. Sometimes it’s so hard to tell!