on life's vocation...

Saw this at Grace@Work sometime ago... Posting it as a reminder to myself, and also a lil' pearl to share with those at the crossroads...

How do we discover our vocation?
I believe discovering our vocation is a life long journey.
A good starting place is to consider the primary calls on our lives.
We have been called to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and to love our neighbour as ourselves.
With our abilities, burdens and opportunities how do we best love God and neighbour at this point of our life?

And here is Frederick Buechner's oft quoted advice:

"By and large a good rule for finding out (our life calling) is this:
the kind of work God usually calls us to do is the kind of work
(a) that we need most to do and
(b) that the world most needs to have done.

If we really get a kick out of our work, we've presumably met requirement (a), but if our work is writing cigarette ads, the chances are we've missed requirement (b).

On the other hand, if our work is being a doctor in a leper colony, we have probably met requirement (b) but if most of the time we're bored and depressed by it, chances are we have not only bypassed (a), but probably aren't helping our patients much either.

Neither the hair shirt nor the soft berth will do.
The place God calls us to is the place where our deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet.
(Frederick Buechner, Wishful Thinking: A Theological ABC, New York: Harper & Row, 1973, p.95.)

The Lord says, '... I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future.' Jeremiah 29:11