There comes a point in all of our lives when we must ask the question: Have I missed my calling?
While I don’t think it’s possible to miss your calling entirely, I do think it’s possible to drift off course from where you have been called. This kind of drifting is usually accompanied by a few key indications.
One indication that you are off course could be a disconnect with your goals and values. You might find yourself spiritually dry or despondent. Maybe you wind up in a season of struggle. Emotionally you might feel drained or aloof. You could be deeply dissatisfied with your work with work that you once loved or distant from those you love the most.
When one or more of the sensations mentioned above crop up in your life it could be an indication that your calling is off course. You can think of these indications as a check engine light on the dashboard of your life. When your relationships are suffering your engine light might be telling your breaks are in lethal condition. The engine light could also be pointing to insufficient fuel or a multitude of other problems.
In order to diagnose the cause of your “check engine light” let’s dig into a few indications and solutions for that pesky yellow glow on the dashboard.
You Feel Spiritually Dry or Disconnected
This is the most important indicator of an off-course calling. It is of the utmost importance when trying to determine if your calling is off course to consider the state of your spirit.
If the work you are doing or the lifestyle you are leading is causing you to feel far from God, you, my friend, are likely off course. God is the giver of our gifts and the orchestrator of our calling. When we are far from Him it is difficult to discern our calling.
Spiritual revival is a major key to getting back on course in your calling. Takes some time to gauge the temperature of your spiritual climate today. Are you in tune with God’s calling?
Things Are Tough…Like Really Tough
Chasing your calling won’t be easy, but it shouldn’t be impossible either. Pay attention to the degree of difficulty you experience when it comes to answering your calling.
It might feel valiant to scale large mountains and overcome obstacles, but valor isn’t necessarily a prize produced by chasing your calling. God is our champion and our way maker. When answering your calling becomes extremely difficult it’s a great time to check in.
Ask God if you’re gritting your teeth and flexing your muscles to be obedient to His calling on your life or if you are pushing a boulder up a mountain that you were never meant to scale. Metaphors aside, sometimes we have to ask God if we are imposing our own will.
It is when our agenda, will, and opinions become more important than God’s that our agenda becomes impossible to maintain.
You Don’t Enjoy the Work you are Doing
It’s one thing to experience opposition and difficulty in your calling. It’s an entirely different scenario when your attitude becomes the indicator of an off course calling.
There are components of any job that will leave a less than savory taste in your mouth but lack of fulfillment in a project, workplace or personal endeavor is a red flag. If the work you are doing leaves you feeling more empty than energized consider alternate routes you could take to walk out your calling.
You might have landed in a position or workplace that uses your gifts but God wasn’t specifically calling you to that type of work or workplace. Your gifts are far too valuable to be implemented in an environment that is outside of God’s will.
If you sense that your calling is off course in this category ask God to reveal His plan. Implore him to provide a position, workplace, or opportunity where you can find enjoyment in your work. Our calling won’t always be what we do for a paycheck but it should be the thing we find fulfillment in.
You’re Experiencing a Strong Negative Emotion in Response to Your Work
Along the same thread as above, if you have gone from not enjoying to experiencing an intense, negative emotion in response to your calling, you might be off course.
Jonah is the Biblical figure that comes to mind when I think about this point. He was called to minister to a wayward nation but he was not happy about it. Sometimes we get in our own way. Think of all the chaos Jonah had to go through before he fulfilled a specific component of his calling.
Not every aspect of God’s call on your life will be daisies and roses, but how you handle those seasons will determine how quickly they pass or how long they drag on. If your negative emotions are insurmountable assess your course. Are you answering God’s call or running toward the belly of a whale?
Your Close Relationships are Suffering
Those negative emotions you’ve been feeling? They are likely affecting your close relationships. Even if you aren’t experiencing an intense negative emotion in reaction to your calling you could be off course if your relationships are suffering.
At times, we aren’t even aware of how our feelings and emotions are being expressed. You might be unintentionally short with a friend. Maybe you are lethargic and unenthusiastic around your significant other. Your anger might be operating on a short fuse. There are dozens of ways that your thoughts, feelings, and emotions can be affected when you aren’t on course in your calling.
Turmoil in close relationships is a great indicator that it might be time to take stock of your calling. Are you investing in your passions? Are you using your gifts? Is there any sort of work you are doing that glorifies God and serves others? Investing in just one of these activities can brighten your spirits and warm up the climate of your chilly interactions with loved ones.
Is Your Calling off Course
We’ve assessed the symptoms and proposed a few solutions to dim the yellow of the “check engine light” in your life. Empowered, enlightened you can safely direct your life back on course with your calling.
Remember, as long as God is your navigation system and your passengers include a neighbor in need, your calling won’t ever be too far off course.
Was there a time in your life when you felt your calling was off course?
2 Comments
Leave your reply.