Living for the KingdomSample

God is calling you to fill a unique role in His kingdom. How do you discover that calling? ©2013 Jon Warren/World Vision

The Path to God’s Great Adventure

I believe that God has called his people to a deeply and profoundly fulfilling life of service in His kingdom. And I believe that you will find no greater sense of purpose and no more rewarding path than when you find that place in the kingdom where you are doing exactly what God has created you for.

The key is knowing how to get from where you are to where God wants you to be.

A lot of people feel something is missing. They’ve been going to church and doing Bible studies. They’ve been good Christian parents, friends, students, employees, and ministers, but still they are unsatisfied. There’s no sense of mission; there’s no great calling; there’s no passion.

If this is where you’re at today, be encouraged. I’ve seen that even at our darkest moments, God can do His deepest work in our hearts. And I’ve discovered that it is in trials where God teaches us best.

I’ve also walked the path from those dark moments of confusion to those exhilarating moments of ultimate joy. Here are six steps:

1. Commit: We need to be willing to replace our agendas with God’s, and replace our priorities with His. This first step toward discerning God’s calling is the most difficult because it involves dying to self and putting God first.
2. Pray: Prayer is as much about listening to God as it is about talking to Him. We must take everything to Him in prayer—our questions and concerns, fears and hopes.
3. Prepare: God won’t make you a CEO if you’ve never learned management skills and business operations. He isn’t going to make you a doctor if you haven’t studied medicine. Do your part to start in the direction God may be leading you.
4. Obey: Disciples are known by their obedience. Jesus said that making disciples meant “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded” (Matthew 28:20). Do we think God is going to give a critical kingdom assignment to someone who hasn’t been faithful in day-to-day obedience to his commands?
5. Act: My former pastor used to say, “God can’t steer a parked car.” As you look through the lens of God’s kingdom rescue mission, and in the context of your own gifts and abilities, what needs doing that you can do? If God opens a door, walk through it. If He plants an idea, do what you can to nurture it to fruitfulness.
6. Trust: It is time to trust in the assurance that God is in control. If you have faithfully taken each of the first five steps and still haven’t felt any particular activity or idea ignite for you, relax. God loves you. So trust that what God has for you right now, no matter what it is, is the right thing. And then do the next right thing. Those small steps will eventually become a clear path.