A Life of Significance

I was sitting in a local coffee shop having a great conversation with my dear friend, Aaron.  Aaron and I have been friends for several years and it seems that our conversations always swirl around the idea of significance.

Don’t get me wrong here…we’re not talking about what makes us significant.  We’re talking about what makes a life significant.  What makes you and I look at someone and say, “They are living life!”

As we were having our conversation, this question kept popping into my head, “Who am I becoming?”  Do you ever ask that question?  For those who know me, I think it is THE question of Scripture.  If we never take time to ponder that question, then we never move beyond a life that rolls out of bed, goes to work, comes home, and rolls back into bed.

Jesus’ sermon on the mount begs this question of his followers.  Listen to just two of the verses from that famous sermon:

• “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matt. 6:20-21)
• “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matt. 7:13-14)

What answers this question of who am I becoming?  The answer, your holy calling!  For centuries the great spiritual writers have written on calling.  Calling, in a sense, is what animates the soul.  So, what is holy calling?  Here is how I view it:

• If spiritual gifts answer the WHAT question.  Namely, what should I do for the Lord?
• And if personal style answers the HOW question.  Namely, how should I do whatever I should do for the Lord?
• Then holy calling answers the WHERE question.  Where should I be investing my life?

Calling transforms the drudgery of routine into the daily movements of a significant life.  Scripture is overwhelming on this idea of calling.  God is committed to your life being one marked by significance.  Check out the following passages:

• It is God who works within us to will and to do what pleases Him. Philippians 2:13
• Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.  Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to Him, trust in Him and He will do it. Psalm 37:3-5
• I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11
• For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God has prepared in advance for you to do. Ephesians 2:10
• Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders, and the sin that so easily entangles and let us run with perseverance the race that is marked out for us. Hebrews 12:1

Calling is not a thing to do; it is not a project.  Calling is not easy.  It will require great sacrifice for you to do it.  Furthermore, calling is not an idea that will be easy for you to embrace.  True calling will bring with it a slight overwhelming sensation BUT, and I stress this last part, living in your calling is the only thing that will bring you alive.

You will know when you’re in your calling.  You don’t want to be anywhere else.  You get the sense that you were made for this time and this place.  You will feel a rush of the Spirit.  Where many things in our life are good but take away precious energy and time from us, calling brings new energy to us as we step out into it.  Calling moves a good life to a great one.

So, as I was pondering this signficance/calling idea, a few descriptors came to mind of people who live in their holy calling.  Those individuals whom I feel move their life from good to great:

• People who move their lives from good to great are able to subtract good to pour their limited amounts of time and energy into the great.  It’s easy to remove bad things from our lives.  (I say easy in that it’s simple to identify bad behaviors.)  It’s difficult to take something that is profitable and do away with it.  People who discover their calling are able to subtract good for great.
• People who move their lives from good to great are able to quickly and succinctly tell you the calling God has upon their life.  Calling is in your DNA.  It doesn’t take me 30 minutes of “ums” and “ers” to tell you what I do for a living, who my parents are, where I live, and what I enjoy to do.  Calling, much the same way, is woven deep into our souls.  You should be able, in even one sentence, to tell people what captivates (or consumes) your life.
• People who move their lives from good to great take captive each thought, each word, and each action to make sure it is moving them closer to their life’s passion.  We are all given a finite amount of time and energy.  Great are those who recognize this finitude and get busy to make sure every moment of their life is directed at the greater story of their life, namely, their holy calling!

My challenge to you this day, take time to break away from the busyness of life to be alone with God.  In your conversation take a journal or a scrap piece of paper and begin mentally doodling.  Think to yourself, “If time were not an obstacle in my life, I would…”

Follow the rabbit trails and discover thoughts/feelings that bring life to your spirit.  Listen to God.  Ask yourself a ton of questions regarding where you enjoy spending time, what activities do you look forward to, where are you finding life/fulfillment right now?

Then, begin to try to craft some sort of sentence, or sentences, based on what you’ve discovered.  Take those sentences/thoughts and run them by some people you trust.  Make sure these are people who know you and will be honest with you.

Take their suggestions, and return to the process once again, from the very start, and begin listening to the honing voice of God once more.  Never stop being amazed by the things God has in store for you in this most important area.

In closing, my friends, my prayer for you is summed up by this classic quote by Fredrick Buechner in his classic book, Listening to Your Life:

“Listen to your life.  See it for the fathomless mystery it is, in the boredom and pain of it no less than in the excitement and gladness: touch, taste, smell your way to the holy and hidden heart of it because in the last analysis all moments are key moments, and life itself is grace.”

May your life’s calling be found tucked away in the beautiful grace that is God’s love for you.  And, may your journey be a daily awakening of that grace poured anew upon you!

Tags: Aaron, Christ, Don, God, Jeremiah, Jesus, jesus sermon on the mount, life, Matt

This entry was posted on January 14th, 2010 and is filed under Jason Barnhart. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or Trackback from your own site.