When I was a high schooler, I had a crazy story where I heard God’s voice. I heard him say, “Phil, you’re going to be a pastor!” Initially, I was elated. I was excited! Yet year after year, life after stage, it never happened. And believe it or not, I’m still not a “pastor.”

Sometimes that left me disappointed. That left me wondering, “Am I following God’s will?” It left me discouraged. It made me think my best years were behind me. It made me question God’s call on my life.

But one day, a truth dawned upon me. I was in a season leading a men’s group and a small group at church. I saw God move in the lives of people around me in powerful ways. I saw them be shepherded, cared for, and move toward God. And then it hit–I was a pastor. While I didn’t work at a church, I certainly did the work such a person would do.

I put my disappointments aside and just focused on the people God put around me. And instead of being fixated upon a date, a time, or a season where “my calling would be fulfilled,” I resolved that I would simply focus and fulfill the season that I was in. And in the process, I felt like I was really actually “living out my calling.”

One of the mistakes we can make when we think about our calling is that it’s somewhere out in the future

One of the mistakes we can make when we think about our calling is that it’s somewhere out in the future. When I talk to people about their God-given dreams, it’s always in the future. And for sure, God is there in the future. I think of the life of Simeon, who waited and prayed to see the Messiah. Or for Hannah, who was desperate for a son.

But I am learning that to “live out my calling” is recognizing that every season is from the Lord. It is recognizing that this one that I’m in right now, whether or not it looks like what he promised me, is part of “my calling.” And I need to not be so fixated on the future that I miss out on what’s immediately in front of me.

I feel that this fixation/disappointment happens with a lot of people. It happens with moms who must take years to care for their children. It happens with people who had God-given dreams as a youth, and somehow their life doesn’t look like what they thought it was. It looks like someone in the waiting, in a hard place, working behind the scenes. It happens for those of us who have non-glamourous jobs and feel unimportant.

If that’s you, can I encourage you with something? Don’t miss out on what’s right in front of you. God is always doing something in you and through you every season. While it may or may not look like the “calling” you’ve always imagined, don’t let it rob you from being fruitful and faithful this season.

Today is part of your calling. Not just tomorrow.

Here are some questions to help you live out this season faithfully:

Who are the people God has uniquely put around you this season to minister to?
In what ways is God trying to grow you this season?
In what ways are you uniquely enjoying God and this season of life?

If you have any questions/struggles, let me know!

You were made for greatness
Phil

Made for Greatness

Your calling is not tomorrow. It’s Today