My Calling: It’s Not About Me
I felt so little growth and meaning before receiving my calling—it was so frustrating. I’ve learned that as I focus on the thing I am supposed to be doing it becomes less about me. Here are four benefits to a life not about me:
It’s been a couple of years now since my calling and one thing that I’ve come to understand about it is that it has nothing to do with me. NOTHING. It’s not instigated by me, it’s not for me. How it adds to my self-value doesn’t play into it at all. It’s my responsibility to carry out—nothing more.
There are several benefits to living a life “free of me” that following a calling brings:
1- Less Pressure
Sharon Hodde Miller writes in her article:
“Your marriage, your calling, your life here on earth, none of it is about you. It’s all about God, from the first to the last, and that is some of the best news on earth.”
That is good news. It’s a wonderful release of burden.
In a sense, the call that God gave me is ultimately on Him. He is the one who thinks I can do this thing; He is the one who wants it done—He will make sure it gets done! He will do it despite my shortcomings. That takes a load of pressure off me and you.
2- Greater Blessing
Pastor Rick Warren reminds us:
“When we bless others, God takes care of our needs. God promises that if we will concentrate on blessing others, he’ll take care of our needs. There’s almost nothing that God won’t do for the person who really wants to help other people.”
And that’s the way it’s designed—we channel our energy to others and God channels His to us. There is always flow which means there is always life.
Jesus himself said some things about how to view ourselves and priorities. He said, “Whoever loses his life shall find it.” He isn’t talking about physical death here. He is speaking figuratively to dying to self—the ego, our selfish nature, everything that makes life about us. When we do, he promises, we will find life like we’ve never known it. Welcome to the life of supernatural blessing.
3- Fruitful Labor
Now that life has become nothing about me it is much more fruitful. His work is always so much more blessed than my self-focused efforts.
We are designed to live a life of faith (put my trust in things outside of myself) and to put others first. When I do those things my engine begins to sing as opposed to sputter. When we get the fuel just right, our lives run so much better.
God blesses what He ordains as the purpose of my life. (tweet this)
That purpose is His plan and if we are doing it at all we are doing it His way. His plan has to be done with faith and outward focus. And that, my friends, He always blesses.
Just my perception as a father—when your kids finally start doing things the way you tell them to don’t you start to shower them with more approval and assistance? You are excited about it! You want to show them just how successful they can be doing it your way. The way that is based on wisdom.
When we rely on Him our faith begins to work for us. I am finally experiencing the growth in life that I always knew I should be experiencing!
4- Fulfillment
And now that all I do has become nothing about me I am also finally fulfilled. It’s like I had to be emptied of MY stuff so God could give me HIS stuff—and His stuff is so much better than mine.
I’m fulfilled in part because when I am in my calling I’m my truest self. The power comes from above and settles within—I’ve no need to look outside of myself for it.
Best-selling author, Karen Salmansohn, puts it this way:
“When you follow your heart’s calling, you wind up becoming your most powerful self. You don’t need to take power from others if you can tap into your own inner power.”
This means my sufficiency comes from God and the work He has for me to do and has nothing to do with me trying to gather it outside of myself. Period.
Take Away
If you are struggling in life take some time to evaluate the motives behind what you are doing. Are you doing it only to benefit yourself or are your efforts outward focused?
I think you will find that when you begin to empty yourself of your own ways and your own motives you will find a supernatural blessing.
This is counterintuitive, isn’t it? But that is how the spiritual life works. Things are a little backward here from our conventional thinking. But if my life as a design professional has taught me anything, conventional thinking keeps us locked in a box and unable to solve life’s puzzles.
It’s only by disrupting your thinking—thinking outside the box—that you can solve the problems of growth and meaning.
Begin to look at things from a new angle. Think outside the box. Life truly does expand and becoming more fulfilling the less it is about you.
Hello, my name is Aaron Force. I’m a blogger based in Seattle, Washington. I’ve been spiritually-minded for most of my life. Unfortunately, I’ve been carnally-minded for at least as much. I felt a seed of greatness hidden somewhere deep down inside but was blinded from it. That is until I experienced an honest-to-goodness calling and moment of awakening. I would be lying if I told you I had it all figured out. But I’m here to tell my story and maybe, just maybe, help you become aware of an even more amazing universe than the one your rational mind already knows.
Aaron Force is a blogger from Seattle, Washington. He writes to educate others about the nature of an expanded consciousness to evolve humanity. Aaron unexpectedly experienced his own profound awakening and ego transcendence in 2015 and soon understood that the qualities of his own experience (a greater expansion and evolution in his life) could be applied to mankind collectively.