God's Economy #18: Vocation, Part 1

People often ask: what is my vocation? How do I find it? Children are asked, "What will you be when you grow up?" High School graduates are asked, "What's next? "Are you going to college?" "What is your major?"

The doctrine of vocation is different. Instead of "what job do I want to do?" The question becomes, "what is God calling me to do?" Vocations are not something we choose for ourselves. It is something to which we are called. Central to the life of the "called ones" is to recognize that, as Os Guinness points out, "there can be no calling without a Caller."

Our calling is rooted in creation. God made man in his image and equipped him with the skills and talents to take dominion in His world. The Lord created woman to help man in this calling. Implicit in Eve's creation is the division of labor. Part of what she is called to is obvious. God has made a female and thereby has called her to be a woman, wife, and mother. She has certain tasks that uniquely belong to her alone.

And by making Eve, God has made a family, which will grow into tribes, and nations. God ordained that we live in a varied, tangle of relationships. And one of his purposes has to do with the division of labor and vocations that we use to serve God and help our neighbor.

The doctrine of creation teaches that all our gifts, talents, opportunities, and situations, are from our Heavenly Father. Everything you have that makes you who you are is from Him. Consequently, we do not choose our vocation. We are called to them by Jesus. And we are called according to our gifts, talents, situation, and interests that God gave us. In other words, the call matches the created, how God made us.