My Calling Is...

How would you complete that sentence? My calling is...being the pastor of a church.

My calling is...evangelism.

My calling is....teaching the Word.

My calling is...leading a Sunday School class;...directing the choir; ...ministering to the post-abortive....

I can tell you how I would finish that statement. My calling is to educate and equip the body of Christ about abortion so that they can minister to the abortion-wounded in their midst. Wow....sounds impressive, huh?

I guess before we attempt to answer that question for ourselves we should take a look at our example -- Jesus Christ. What was His calling? Was His purpose in coming to live and walk among humanity simply to die for our sins and to be raised again? No, I think not.

Jesus' purpose was to teach the Word, heal the sick, raise the dead, pardon the sinner, make disciples, AND to lay down His life, paying the penalty for our sin so that we might have a personal relationship with the Father, as well as to rise again so that we might have hope. That's a mouthful. If you think about it, Jesus ministered to every person He encountered. If they were sick He healed them. If they were lost without hope He gave them new life. If they were hungry He fed them. He spoke freedom and life to those bound by sin; and to the Pharisees He spoke truth and conviction. It didn't matter what the sin was, what the ailment was, or why they were hungry. His ministry wasn't called "Feed the Hungry" or " Healing for the Physically Ill" or "Hope for the Divorced." His ministry was to be God to them...to show them and us the heart of God.

Too often I think we get caught up in what our "ministry" is, what our calling or purpose is. But aren't we supposed to be like Jesus?

When I examine my own areas of ministry it looks a little like this: My ministry is to my husband, my children, my home, my parents and extended family, my friends, my church, and yes, to In Our Midst Ministries. But my calling goes beyond that. I am to be Christ to the cashier at WalMart, to the woman that styles my hair, to the mailman that occasionally has to bring the packages to the door.

It's true that each one of us in the body of Christ has gifts, talents, and an area of ministry that, mixed together shapes our purpose and ministry. But my encouragement to you (and to me!) is not to get tunnel vision. If you are a pastor, you may not think that abortion recovery should be part of your ministry. Or if you are in abortion recovery, you may not think that serving at your local church should be a part of your ministry. But the bottom line is that if it has to do with people, it is our ministry. Can we do it all? No. Can we do it alone? Certainly not. That's all the more reason we need to work together...Your ministry working with mine and my ministry working with yours and our ministries working with the churches.

We need to be careful about drawing hard lines in the sand where ministry is concerned. If we work together, call on each other for help, apply our gifts and talents wherever they can be used, the work of God will be multiplied. It may mean we have to learn about something new or we may have to step out of our comfort zones more often. But the bottom line is, What would Jesus do and are willing to follow His example?

If there is any way I can serve you, please let me know. That's what I'm here for. :)

Blessings to you in Jesus,
Mary