Expecting a Call

God has a great purpose for each one of us. There is a call from God on your life and mine.

I've seen many people who were too busy, too tired, too preoccupied, or too in pursuit of riches and fame to hear God calling them. Others were afraid they might be called to insignificance and so they didn't want to know about it. I've known others still who clearly heard the call of God and ran away from it. The direct line from heaven was ringing and turned up the volume on their lives so they wouldn't have to hear God and answer. I've also known people with such a low opinion of themselves that they didn't believe God had them destined for anything great. So when the call came, they thought it must be for somebody else and didn't respond.

The only reason it appears that some people are "more called" by God than others is that they were expecting the call and answered it.

God's line to you is not a party line. You won't hear conflicting opinions. His call is entirely personal and private, and He will speak directly to you.

Do not ever think you have strayed so far away from God that you've forever missed your call. God will find you wherever you are. You can never be in so remote a place that He cannot bring you into all He has planned for you.

God is a Redeemer who redeems all things - even our past. When God issues a call, He doesn't take it back. He only waits for us to move into it. Therefore, we can never be such a lost cause that His call on our lives is no longer applicable.

If you feel called to do something better than what you are doing now, let me assure you that it is probably because you are. If you have never sought God about His plans and purposes for your life, do that now.

This doesn't mean you have to accept everything that comes your way as the will of God. Far from it. Ask Him about it. Say, "Lord, is what I am doing consistent with Your purpose in my life? If it is Your will, I submit to it and embrace You in it. If it isn't, then make me what You created me to be." As long as you are consistently praying about it, God will either take you where you're supposed to be, or give you grace to remain where you are until He says it's time to move on.

Keep in mind that once you hear God's call on your life, it doesn't mean that things will start happening immediately. You will most likely experience a time of waiting until He decided you are ready. So don't let the waiting period turn into a dark time that causes you to doubt whether you've heard God at all. Keep in mind that in this time He wants you to forget any plans you might have for accomplishing your purpose on your own. He wants you to be totally convinced it won't happen without Him.

God's call on all of us is to be a light to those who are in darkness, but sometimes He has to take us through our own darkness so we will learn to depend totally on His light.

Our hearts break when we think we have missed our destiny. We suffer over unfulfilled purpose. But God perfects our hearts when we suffer. He makes us humble and compassionate, and these are two traits we must have for success in the call He has for us.

Don't be afraid of the perfecting process that prepares you to move into God's call on your life. Just stand strong through the fire and you will be purified, molded, humbled, and made ready for what He has for you to do. If you walk step by step with God, you'll come out of that time with a sense of His presence and power that will make it all worthwhile. It will set you on the path to greatness. Let me clarify the meaning of greatness. Greatness is not about us; it's about His greatness in us. A great person is one who obeys God. A great person is one who is a servant.

When we acknowledge God's greatness through our worship of Him, we invite His greatness to dwell in us. When we obey God and serve Him, then He does great things through us. This is the kind of greatness God has called us to in our lives.

Remember that in order to hear God's call, you must be expecting a call. You need faith that He will speak to you, that you can hear Him, and that it will be good news. When an encounter with the living God is your greatest desire, you can be sure you will have it.

God is never through with you. He always has a plan for your life. There is no time limit on His call or what He wants to do in and through you. God will use you for His purposes until the day you go to be with Him. And don't let yourself be convinced otherwise.

What may be true about what you are experiencing is that life as you have known it is changing. What existed before may be over, but what is ahead for you is as great or perhaps much greater. Just when you suspect things may be winding down in your life, God will do someting new. He may call you to rework the details of your present walk, or He might set you out on a completely new path. God will call you to a new time, a new assignment, and a new work of His grace.

Major life changes can be scary. But if we don't cling desperately to the old life, the new experiences can be exciting as well. Trying to keep things from changing only makes the process miserable. It's far less upsetting to just let the old go and walk step by step with God into the new life He has for us.

If the job you've been doing ends, or the provision you've known shuts off, or the fulfillment level of your work and activities ceases, or something major happens to change the status of your life, don't be alarmed. These could be signs of a change God is doing in your life. He may be getting you ready to enter into a new and exciting season.

If life as you have known it and the path that you have walked seems to be ending, draw especially close to God and He will reveal what your next step is to be.

No matter what age you are, God has a path for you. It will undoubtedly take you someplace you've not been before. Be willing to let Him prepare you as He sees fit.