Every time I begin to feel settled in discerning where God is calling me, something happens that starts my questioning all over again. It happened again this past weekend, brought on by a combination of frustration, stress, and physical tiredness. One person after another has caused me to seriously consider my role in God’s world and in the church. One situation after another leads me to reflect on where my life is at this moment and which direction God wants it to take. I was reminded of the story of Abram in Genesis 12:1-6.
God told Abram: “Leave your country, your family, and your father’s home for a land that I will show you.
I’ll make you a great nation
and bless you.
I’ll make you famous;
you’ll be a blessing.
I’ll bless those who bless you;
those who curse you I’ll curse.
All the families of the Earth
will be blessed through you.”
So Abram left just as God said, and Lot left with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. Abram took his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot with him, along with all the possessions and people they had gotten in Haran, and set out for the land of Canaan and arrived safe and sound. (The Message).
Abram is asked to leave everything and everyone he knew to go into a strange place based upon God’s call. Abram is told first and foremost that he must be willing to go, to leave the places in his life that were safe and comfortable, and to question the status quo. He must journey toward a place that is radically different from what he has known. There is little security in these promises, only unknowns. There is no certainty on Abram’s part. He must trust the one who calls him. God does not inform him of his destination in advance, but asks him for trust and a willingness to head toward the unknown. It is hard to imagine a more radical command: give up everything and go toward the place that God will show you.
A Spiritual Director I worked with after General Conference in 2008 asked me to consider a question that has continued to guide my thinking: “Where do you feel you can have the most impact in helping others experience what it means to be a follower of Christ?” I haven't found the complete answer yet. Maybe I never will, but I’ll keep asking and listening for God’s call. We have to look inside our hearts and determine how God through Christ is calling us to serve – to be in ministry. So in light Abram’s story, I'm asking myself three questions and encourage you to do the same.
What is my own sense of call as a follower of Christ? – Abram was 75 years old when this call came. Here he is, an older man, being called to leave everything he knew. Can’t you hear the questions and arguments Abram must have thrown toward God? “God, I’m 75. What do you expect of me?” “I’ve built this house, this farm, and now you tell me I have to leave it all behind?” “I’m too old to do this, call a younger guy.” What is God calling me to do to build God’s kingdom on earth?
What are the unknowns? - We don’t know what tomorrow holds, but our faith tells us that God will see us through whatever happens. The unknowns – while frightening and stressful –open the doors to spiritual growth that we might not otherwise ever experience.
What might I need to leave behind? - God’s call on our lives does not offer a guarantee of security, no promise of ease or convenience. Instead, it asks us to shatter the idols of security and settledness, and to aspire to a different kind of reality. What do I need to leave behind in order to respond to God’s call?
We’re not all called to greatness. Unlike Abram, our names may not be great among the nations, but as children of God we are called to faithfulness. We’re called to be authentic followers of Christ so that others will want to know more about this God we choose to serve. May our words and actions each day and for all time show that we’re listening to that call.
