It’s easy for us to be judgmental of others. I have to admit I catch myself having condescending thoughts of people who don’t meet a certain expectation or standard. Until we become the object of judgment then we’re all of a sudden hoping for more understanding and patience to exist in the world. I know I feel this way when I fail.
Sometimes the source of our being judgmental is when we take our own experiences and use it as basis to measure the lives of others. Sometimes we think that just because we did well at sales everyone else should. Or sometimes just because we understand things quicker, those who don’t are dumb or slow.
When I was conceptualizing (or re-conceptualizing) this thought, I began by thinking about people in their work and careers. This led me to realize that I needed to go deeper than just jobs – I needed to address vocation.
Vocation is more than a job. It is a calling, by God, to be a certain person and to accomplish certain activities.
As I looked through the different stories of people in our community that have made a difference in their vocation I noticed some similarities:
1. All of them were different.
Some were young, others old. Some were men, others women. Some were businessmen, some were political leaders, some were soldiers, some were artists, and even others religious servants. Some inherited wealth, others started from nothing, some borrowed, and some had investors. Even as they all fulfilled their calling, they all did it in their own unique way.
The second thing I noticed was:
2. All of them were incomplete (or downright ruined) until God stepped-in.
As each of them traveled their own path, they all faced a wall, a personal dead end. Whether it was a financial challenge, an emotional one, something relational, or whatever, every single one of them hit a point of need that nothing they tried could address.
Until God stepped in. Until He made things beautiful in His time.
So I have decided to avoid making the very common “one size fits all” mistake, which is, to take something and apply to everything without taking into account the differences in people’s experiences, backgrounds, circumstances, and attitudes. We have decided to stay away from the “dos” and “don’ts”, and “step by step guides”, and the “no fail formulas”.
I just want to encourage you that there are many diverse stories of people who have answered their calling in faith, which means to take on responsibility, to take on failure, to take on criticism, to take on challenges, and believe that God’s grace is there working, preparing, creating, redeeming, transforming, correcting, revealing…
…Revealing. It’s that word again. God revealing Himself able to meet us where we’re at, with our own limitations and failures, and able to answer every individuals’ unique need. He knows that there’s more than one size, shape, color, and heart. He knows because He made us that way.
One size doesn’t fit all. But one great God can fill all.
