It is important to listen to God’s call in one’s journey of faith. While it is a spiritual issue, the incarnation confirms for us that God works through the practical and the mundane in life in communicating such a call. I recently talked to a missionary who had returned to the states to become a pastor of a church. His decision was not based on a lack of satisfaction with his mission work but rather out of concern for the educational opportunities for his children. I chose to open myself to a call early in my life because of considerations for my children who were about to enter high school.
It may also be appropriate to determine that the relationships in a present situation are not generating a positive outcome. However, here is a caution about such considerations. One needs to be careful not to use the image of responding to a call to cover up a desire to run away from a difficult situation. Generally speaking we are called to rather than from a setting for ministry.
One cannot read the Scriptures and the stories of those who have responded to God’s call without recognizing that sometimes God calls people to difficult situations. In listening for God’s call, in the midst of all the practical considerations, we also need to ask what God wants from us.
That will be part of what we consider in some of the blogs next week.
SMcCutchan