As the wife of a Pastor, I often get invited to join ministries to which I do not feel called by God to participate. For instance, the choir is one place churches often want their Pastor's wife to take part; however, I do not feel called by God to sing.
Over
the decades of my walk with the Lord, people tell me, "You have to step
outside of your comfort zone and serve anyway, and God will bless you."
This may be true in cases where God is calling, and people are hindered by the
fear of failure.
However,
if God does not give us His grace to serve Him in a particular ministry, we
will have no peace or joy in it. How do we know the will of God for our life?
When
we first start our journey with Him, our walk is full of trial and error. It is
hard for us to distinguish His voice. We gradually learn to hear the voice of
our Shepherd, and we know His ways (John 10:27-30).
The
gifts and callings of God do not depend on our spirituality, but only on our
obedience (Romans 11:29; 2 Timothy 1:9; 1 Corinthians 1:26; 2 Timothy 1:9). He
calls some in His Church to serve as apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors
and teachers (Ephesians 4:8-12).
God
also calls some to work miracles, to pray for healing for people, to live with
deep faith in His faithfulness, to discern good or evil spirits, to speak messages
to His church in His heavenly language, and others to interpret these messages
(1 Corinthians 12:8-11).
He
calls all of us to reconcile others to Himself by sharing with them what God
did for us (2 Corinthians 5:18). He gives us courage to approach friends,
family, acquaintances and even strangers to ask them if they know that God
loves them and has a perfect plan for their life.
Prayer:
Father
God, thank You for enlightening the eyes of our heart so that we will know the
hope of Your calling on our life, and receive the glorious inheritance that You
provide for all of Your Saints (Ephesians 1:18). Help us to walk in obedience
to our calling that we receive from You (Ephesians 4:1), so that You can
fulfill our lives in the work of faith to which You anoint us to serve You (2
Thessalonians 1:11).
As
we focus on Jesus, our Apostle and High Priest, we share in Your heavenly
calling (Hebrews 3:1). As we walk in the gifts and callings You give to each
one of us, we feel Your pleasure in us (1 Corinthians 12:27; 2 Peter 1:10). You
call us to serve You through Your wisdom, understanding, counsel, perseverance,
knowledge and holiness. We desire nothing more than to live each moment of our
life in Your service.
Thought
for the Day:
As
Jesus reminds us, His sheep learn to hear His voice (John 10:27-30), and as the
prophet discovered God does not speak through blaring signs and events,
but in a peaceful, unobtrusive voice (1 Kings 19:11-13); therefore, as we
consult Him during each moment of our day, His calm, quiet guidance from within
our spirit directs our paths (Proverbs 4:5-6).
