Skye Jethani tells us in his wonderful book, Futureville that every Christian has three callings: The “highest call”,  the “common call”, and the “vocational call.”  It’s an idea that brings welcome clarification to me, especially as we begin the new year. 

Our Highest Call is the calling to Jesus.  Human were specifically designed to function in a living relationship with Him.  “In Him was life, and the life was the light of man.” (John 1:4)  To attempt life apart from Jesus is an empty, dead-end street of frustration no different than trying to drive a car without gas.  The highest call is where everything begins, it’s where we discover our true personality and purpose for getting out of bed in the morning.

The Common Call: Once reconnected with the Source of life the common mission of every disciple is to apprentice himself to Jesus and become like him in every way.  This is our call to love our neighbor, to forgive our enemies, to pray and feed the poor, to serve one another and to bring glory to God in all things.  All believers have these first two callings in common.

But finally we have the Vocational Call:  This is where God reveals and develops His unique gifts and contributions in us to serve the world around us.  I’m a musician and a teacher. But as I write this post there’s a friend across the room who is gifted in business and hospitality.  He manages this little coffeeshop, makes each person feel like the most important person in the world and serves his customers with joy.  Others who come here are nurses, construction workers, truck drivers, artists, policemen, and sanitation workers.  The Kingdom needs every one of these vocations because each one brings order, beauty and abundance to the world around us.  And here is the mind-blowing thing about vocations:  They matter!  Where would we be if the cooks, the truck drivers, the plumbers and the musicians disappeared from among us?  In the Kingdom everyone and everything matters!

May you experience a fresh understanding of God’s calling in your life as we enter 2019. 

PS: Futureville is about the Kingdom.  It’s a great read and covers much more than just calling and vocation.