A Different Call

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are a reflection on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/hear-a-message]

There are certain topics I tend to write about more than others—some because of the stage of life I’m in, some because they interest me, and one in particular…because I’m terrible at it. I keep writing about it because I keep being terrible at it, and I suppose I think that if I’m terrible at it, maybe other people are too—so maybe we’re at least in it together.

I’m terrible at comparing myself to other people. Actually, I’m really good comparing myself to other people, which is exactly what makes it terrible. In our social media-saturated world, it’s easier than ever to do. Statuses proclaiming the miles she ran or the complicated dinner he made, photos of pets and vacations and boats and weddings and children, Pinterest boards full of completed crafts and artfully made recipes. And I see it all and think, “Why not me? God, why can’t I have those things and go those places do those things?”

In I Kings 19, Elijah calls Elisha to be the next prophet. I wonder what Elisha thought when this happened. We’re not given much insight into what he thought or felt about it, only that he wanted to be able to say goodbye to his parents. Then he went all in, burning the tools of his former trade and committing to follow Elijah and learn from him. Elisha understood that this call was from God, specifically for him. So he did it.

The Bible doesn’t mention anything about whether Elisha had siblings or cousins or friends around, so we don’t know what they did—but clearly they didn’t get called to become prophets, or we would have heard about it. Maybe they worked with Elisha in the fields or baked bread or built houses. Whatever it was, their call was no less important than Elisha’s; it was just different.

It’s the same way for us today. As Christians, our broad call is the same—to love and serve Jesus and follow him daily. There are a million different ways that can get played out in our everyday lives though--maybe as a teacher, a welder, a photographer, a grandma, a best friend, a husband, a youth leader, a guitar player, a greeter, or any other number of things.

Whatever our calling is, we shouldn’t be distracted by what someone else’s is. We’re free to go all in, fully committing to the unique call God has for us, not comparing ourselves to what he has for others and wondering if their call is “better.” It’s not better, it’s just right for them—and ours is just right for us. Wherever, whatever it is. 

[Brianna DeWitt attends Encounter Church and lives, works, and writes in Grand Rapids, MI. You can see more of her musings on her personal blog at http://awritespot.wordpress.com and on Twitter at @bwitt722.]