Who you are matters
“God doesn’t call the equipped; God equips the called.”
Can we reflect on this axiom together? From a quick perusal of blogs, it seems that this statement has been a source of great encouragement to a lot of people. There is a truth here – obviously. Scripture gives us two called-and-unequipped examples. Moses and Paul – both adverse to public speaking – were called through a bush and on a road and then equipped by God to be prophet and apostle.
I also believe that those of us who face our ministry or our vocation with an appropriate dose of fear or a sense of inadequacy are actually healthier than those who are convinced they’ve got it all together.
On the other hand, I think we can take this too far. This statement is sometimes used to filter out a much-needed assessment of one’s gifts and talents. One might say, “God is calling me to this task, so it doesn’t matter what my gifts are or what I like to do. It’s not about me.”
Friends, your vocation does happen to be about you. God designed you in such a way that your gifts and talents do matter. Who you are matters and discerning who you are is part of the vocational journey some of you are in the midst of.
Lee Hardy, Calvin College’s 2007 recipient of the Presidential Award for Exemplary Teaching, says the following in his book on the theology of vocation, The Fabric of this World:
That I am who I am is not a result of chance, a mere cosmic accident. Rather it is the result of God’s intention. There is a reason why I am who I am, although that reason may not be immediately apparent to me. I was placed here for a purpose, and that purpose is one which I am, in part, to discover, not invent. (p. 83)
He goes on to say that there are times when God calls particular people to things that they are not gifted for and to things that they are not inclined to do. But these kinds of calls, Hardy says, are the exception to the rule. If you are called in this way, it will be very clear. Crystal clear. Burning bush clear. Damascus road clear. Without this clarity, we are blessed with the task of discovering God’s intention in making us into the kinds of people we are. Who you are matters. To God. To the world.
And what you think matters to me. What do you think?
I think that there is a fine balance between God calling you to something and your gifting. I agree with Heidi that the instances in Scripture where people (e.g. Moses and Paul) are called to something that they are not gifted in whatsoever are few and far between. I think that fear plays a huge role in discerning and listening to what God calls us to. For example, I may be blessed with the gift of public speaking but I fear doing it. So, when God calls me to preach, I ignore His calling because I fear something; it’s not that I’m unequipped to do what He wants, but my fear blinds me from His calling. I agree that we need to evaluate our gifting, after all the Bible does say that only some are blessed with the gift of preaching and absolutely our calling IS about us and who God has created us to be. However, we need to be mindful of our fears (and even ask the Holy Spirit to show them to us) and not let that blind us from the gifts we possess and what God is calling us to use those gifts for.
Hi, Rachel,
Thanks for highlighting the dimension of fear.
Can’t wait to hear you preach someday.
I like the angle of the interplay of God’s work and human work. It reminds me of Eugene Peterson’s analogy (in The Contemplative Pastor — Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction) where he likens the interplay of God’s work and human work to the “middle voice” (…and, yes, I know that using Greek in blogs is probably like Greek in preaching — like underwear in that it’s useful but best when not visible…but here are some quotes that have helped me):
“When I speak in the active voice, I initiate an action that goes someplace else: ‘I counsel my friend.’ When I speak in the passive voice, I receive the action that another initiates: ‘I am counselled by my friend.’ When I speak in the middle voice, I actively participate in the results of an action that another initiates: ‘I take counsel.’
“Most of our speech is divided between active and passive; either I act or I am acted upon. But there are moments, and they are those in which we are most distinctively human, when such a contrast is not satisfactory: two wills operate, neither to the exclusion of the other, neither cancelling out the other, each respecting the other. (p. 103).
“I neither do it, nor have it done to me: I will to participate in what is willed…Prayer and spirituality is the complex participation of God and the human, his will and our wills. We do not abandon ourselves to the stream of grace and drown in the ocean of love, losing identity. We do not pull the strings that activate God’s operation in our lives, subjecting God to our assertive identity. We neither manipulate God (active voice) nor are we manipulated by God (passive voice). We are involved in the action and participate in its results but do not control or define it (middle voice).” (p. 104)
To me, this outlook on ministry generates “fear” in a motivating way — ministry does involve my gifts and talents: deeply, intensely, and sometimes in ways that feel more like tearing than stretching. At the same time (even though I’m really climbing a steep learning curve with getting this to sink in) this outlook also reminds me to keep stepping forward in faith, and keep learning about the confidence and freedom I can enjoy serving in this “middle zone,” since ministry ultimately isn’t all or even primarily “about me.”
So, I try to carry on with my “task of discovering God’s intention in making [me]…” into the kind of person I am, and am in the process of becoming.
I hope this helps!
Ah… the middle voice. Such a delicate and helpful way of articulating the collaboration of wills. Thanks, Doug, for all of the great contributions you make to this blog!