I want to write a bestselling book.
I want to have a successful music studio.
I want to see my books made into faithful movies.
I want to get married and raise a family.
But what if?
What if I never hit any kind of amazing sales ranking on Amazon?
What if I never get any more music students or have to stop teaching altogether?
What if my books never attract enough attention for anyone even to consider a film adaptation?
What if I never get married?
What if I do get married, but can't have children?
Would my life then be, as Anne would say, "a perfect graveyard of buried hopes"?
It shouldn't be.
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It's not bad to want to be successful as a writer and music teacher. It's not bad to desire to be a wife and mother. I would go so far as to say that in many cases those are all very good desires. But if those are my end goals, I've got a problem. If my goals are ends in themselves, I'll always come up empty.
If I'm going to continue as a writer, I need to do it because that's how God wants me to serve Him.
If I'm going to continue teaching music, I need to do it because that's how God wants me to serve Him.
If I'm going to get married and raise a family, I need to do it because God has no longer called me to serve Him as a single person.
And if He stops calling me to the things He's called me to now, I can't hold onto them. I have to let them go and serve Him in my new calling.
So if you want to be a writer, don't do it because you like to write. Do it because that's how God calls you to serve Him.
If you want to be a lawyer, don't do it because you like the law. Do it because that's how God calls you to serve Him.
If you want to work at Hobby Lobby, don't do it because you love retail and crafts. Do it because that's how God calls you to serve Him.
If you want to be a wife and mother, don't do it because you're in love and can't wait to have kids. Do it because that's how God calls you to serve Him.
God calls us all to different things. God places us all in different circumstances throughout our lives. God calls us to serve Him in different ways in every season of our lives. We can't hold onto our plans because that's what we want to do. We can't sit around waiting for that next season of life because that's the one we want the most. We have to serve God now, in every season, in every circumstance, in every way He places before us.
Sometimes it's hard to know whether God is calling you to a certain job (for example) --- how do we know these things, after all? Some people talk about feeling certain or having some flash of insight, but lots of people never do, though we're all called to something, so that doesn't seem like a very reliable way of telling. It's so much simpler to take a job because it needs doing, and we like doing it, and are good at it, all three.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you're saying, that we should do things not to please ourselves or anyone but God, but the problem of knowledge remains: how do we know this choice is the proper way we're to do so? Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever, but there are lots of different ways to do that, and one person may find several different options, all morally good, and not be able to choose.
And I even speak as one certain, at least most of the time, what her vocation is.
https://ofdreamsandswords.wordpress.com
You’ve got good thoughts. I would say that if God has gifted you in a certain area and placed an opportunity to do it before you, there’s a strong chance that’s what God’s calling you to do right now. It’s often hard to know for sure. But I would think if you prayerfully seek to follow God’s will, He will open the doors He means you to enter and close the ones He means you to pass by. I’m speaking more to your motivation. Are you doing it because it’s what *you* want to do, or are you doing it to serve God? And my second point is this: don’t pass by the opportunities set before you because you have this other idea of what you want your life to look like. For example: If God gives you a great ministry or job opportunity, you shouldn’t pass it by because you just really want to be a stay at home mom...even though there’s no guy in the picture. I hope that clarifies things! Thanks for the comment!
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