This is my calling?

My brother-in-law, Doug, taught Sunday School for us on Sunday morning. He did such an excellent job teaching out of the first chapter of Jeremiah. God spoke to my heart during this lesson and I just wanted to share a little bit with you this morning. God told Jeremiah in verse 5, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew and approved of you [as My chosen instrument], and before you were born I separated and set you apart, consecrating you; [and] I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." I couldn't help but think how wonderful it would be to have heard those words from the mouth of God - to have that kind of security in your life! No having to deal with a bad self-image, no wondering "am I really called by God?" or "God hasn't chosen me has He?" going on here. Knowing you have God's approval before you were even born - WOW! But I don't think this was an exclusive statement for Jeremiah only. I feel that God has spoken those words for each of us in our own distinct callings and in our general callings to be His witnesses.

God goes on to tell Jeremiah some specifics of his calling and to give him courage in it. Verses 7-12 says, "But the Lord said to me, 'Say not, I am only a youth; for you shall go to all to whoom I shall send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. Be not afraid of them [their faces], for I am with you to deliver you,' says the Lord. Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, 'Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. See, I have this day appointed you to the oversight of the nations and of the kingdoms to root out and pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.' Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 'Jeremiah, what do you see?' And I said, 'I see a branch or shot of an almond tree [the emblem of alertness and activity, blossoming in late winter].' Then said the Lord to me, 'You have seen well, for I am alert and active, watching over My word to perform it.'

God spoke so plainly to me about Darrel's and my calling in Him through this passage. He has called us to root out and pull down strongholds of the enemy, to destroy and to overthrow those principalities, then to build and to plant in God's people. Then He assures us that He is actively watching over His word to perform it. How wonderful and secure! Again, not an exclusive calling - I think we are all called to do this same thing in different ways. But one thing is the same in all circumstances - God is actively and alertly watching over His word to perform it!

When we first feel the call of God on our lives, we are pumped - wired - hyped up! We just know we are going to be the next Billy Graham! We think it will be filled with a holy kind of glamour - excitement around every bend. But what most of us find is every-day monotony. A very un-glamourous life filled with heartache and trouble. I think that by the time God finished telling Jeremiah about his calling, Jeremiah knew his road was not going to be glamourous. I think he was shaking in his shoes! He was going to have to deliver a hard message to the people and then there was going to be major fighting going on - against Jeremiah! If we honestly ask God to show us what our calling is going to be like, we will see that it most likely will be filled with hard things. Jesus tried to warn His disciples about it before His death and resurrection. I think it is because we live in America that we have this "cushy" view of what it means to be "in the ministry". We think we will be jetted across the country or across the world in luxury preaching or singing or ministering to millions or else we have dreams of being televangelists or superstars. Jesus didn't have a place to lay His head. We associate succes in ministering the gospel with material things. I don't think Jesus did that. He was despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows. I don't discredit those who have material things - that's not the point. But those situations are few and far between. I think the majority of Christian men and women are called to the trenches - the battlefields of the everyday existance, getting their hands dirty dressing wounds. Giving every last cent they have and more. A life of sacrifice for others. Overcoming not only physical circumstances, but overcoming the temptation to fall into depression, self-pity, discouragement, frustration - all so that others can go free from the bondages of sin. Rooting out, pulling down, destroying, overthrowing, then building and planting, sowing, tending, watering, then reaping, harvesting.

I'm the same as anyone else - we all find ourselves discouraged because we are on the go every minute teaching, counseling, talking to, encouraging others. Finding no time for ourselves for some fun together as families. Taking the phone calls late into the night and early the next morning of those struggling with things in their lives. Spending the time in prayer and in study to feed those dependent on us. Feeling and carrying the burdens of others as well as our own. It can seem anything but glamourous. In fact we can question the very nature of God if we allow ourselves to wallow in self-pity. We can question whether we are truly called to this life - isn't there something easier I can do? For some of us, we can count the cost of this life and decide we absolutely will not pay it and walk away. Yes, you can find an easier life - a lighter way, but I feel sorry for you if you choose that path. Our lives are hard at times, hectic at times, filled with sorrow, heartache, and trouble. But this life is also filled with joy, satisfaction, happiness, strength, perseverance - the eternal blessings of sacrifice far outweigh the temporal fix of earthly self-indulgence. In the end it's all going to burn - you can't take it with you they say. But the things you gain from living out your calling to it's fullest are things you can and will take with you. They are eternal things. They are treasures laid up in heaven.

I want to encourage you today in your calling. I'll leave you with verses 17-19 which say, "But you [Jeremiah], gird up your loins! Arise and tell them all that I command you. Do not be dismayed and break down at the sight of their faces, lest I confound you before them and permit you to be overcome. For I, behold, I have made you this day a fortified city and an iron pillar and bronze walls against the whole land - against the [successive] kings of Judah, against its priests, and against the people of the land [giving you divine strength which no hostile power can overcome]. And they shall fight against you, but they shall not [finally] prevail against you, for I am with you, says the Lord, to deliver you." I think that is encouragement enough for anyone...