How did you know you were called?

im just wondering, we are all the body and the body have different calls , some do this some do another thing and so on, now im still a "baby" in christ so i dont belive ive recived any calling yet exept the one to tell people about jesus, i think we all have that calling, but some get a call for street pretching, some get a call to go to africa or somewere else, how did you know? was it a feeling or just did you know?
im just curios

gods peace
christian

I know for everyone its different, but for me, whenever God is leading or calling me do to something, I always just "knew." Like when I met my wife for the first time, something in me just knew that she was the one.

However, I haven't always hit things on the money. Flesh gets involved sometimes and I magically feel called to do something I have always dreamed of doing. Also, for me, guilt has motivated me to do many things instead of the Lord. The cool thing about heavenly Dad is that when I "miss it," He's still right there. When I try to read his mind and jump the gun, he's always there with love waiting for me.

-Sean
_______________
www.SeanDietrich.com
"All my music is free for download."

well i know what you meen, but i know ive been at a meeting it was a witnessing meeting, but on this meeting they said averyone new can come witness, but since i knew i had given my testimony last time i was thinking to myself i dont have to this time, and most people here already heard my testimony, So we were praying and for some reason i looked up and i saw this man come in, he was a drugaddict i can tell becuse i used to be one, and i suddenly from nowere feelt this enormus feeling go tell!!! You go give your testimony now on what jesus did in your life, I started praying and my heart started beating faster my mouth got dry, i started to think is this from god? should i do it? then i started to think what people might think? maybe they would think something why is he going when they had said that the ones that havent testified should do it... so i got in a dilema, but i prayed and i came to the conclusion its better to go up and regret that i did it, then regret that i dident do it. so i did go up again,i shared my testimony about how jesus saved me how i was born again of god and everything was new in my life. and glory to god and the next meeting he and his wife came back and gave their life to jesus.

but i dont "feel" that so often, that feeling i got that time, but i dont belive that i should only do things when i feel like that? or should i ?

gods peace to you
christian

That's an awesome story man! I love God for directing you and using you that way, its amazing.

The way I see it, God is training you and me how to hear his voice daily. Just like it says in John 10. We are his sheep, and we know his voice. There might be times when we make a mistake or two and move on our emotions, but its not the end of the world.

As long as you and I stay humble enough we can always react to God's lessons in the right way. But within you and I is the ability from God to know our shepherds voice, and that is amazing!

The beautiful thing to me about this real Christian life is that we can know God and really recognize his voice without any assistance from man.

-Sean
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www.SeanDietrich.com
"All music on my site is available for free download."

"The beautiful thing to me about this real Christian life is that we can know God and really recognize his voice without any assistance from man."

amen!

1 John 2:27

27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will[a] abide in Him.

John 15:3-5

3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 ABIDE IN ME, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it ABIDES in the vine, neither can you, unless you ABIDE IN ME.
5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who ABIDES IN ME, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do NOTHING.

hmmhmm wrote:

im just wondering, we are all the body and the body have different calls

The questiopn is, What is your burden?
True ministery comes from a burden that our father has given you or me.

HE gives it to us that we might share in His sufferings with HIM.
[b]Philippians 3:10[/b] [color=990000]That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;[/color]

[b]1Peter 4:13[/b] [color=990000] But rejoice, inasmuch as you are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.[/color]

good word, logic.

I totally agree.
We are all called to holiness in Christ, and he gives us each our seperate urgings, passions and directions. Very well said.

-Sean
______________
www.SeanDietrich.com
"All my music is free to download."

well that clears some thoughts ive had, then i think about my burdens... what are they and for what and after thinking about i think i have a burden for everything that is not of christ.... first i was thinking of some people that i belive are decived...then on my family and then on drug addicts... but the sum is i have a burden for people who dont know christ...
but shouldent we all have that burden?

Yes we should have a burden for people who are not followers, this is Jesus' burden too. However, I became so consumed with my plastic evangelism that I forgot that God wanted me focusing on my friendship with him.

PERSONAL STORY:
When I was a bit younger,I used to feel pressure from certain folks in my church who kept insisting that I evangelize more. I was spending 3 days out of the week on the beaches handing out tracts and sharing Jesus with people, but the more I did, the more I beat myself up for not doing more. It was a endless cycle of guilt that just kept feeding itself. Not of Jesus.

Jesus has helped me out here now, I now see that he is very interested in me living the truth first. Also, when you live it, every day is an adventure, you'll meet someone new that you can share the Father's life with without even trying. God will set things up for you many occasions.

Anyway, I don't know much about anything at all, but I do know that church often times puts more pressure on gathering people into a pretty room, rather than letting God instigate real life evangelism for Jesus. Just follow God's burden.

"I wanna take your Word and shine it all around but first help me just to live it Lord."
-Keith Green

-Sean
________
www.SeanDietrich.com
"All my music is free for download."

I believe this was from God, you be the judge.

I was sitting in my living room one day watching some kids walk down the street. Suddenly two of them spun thier heads 180 degrees to the rear. Someone seemed to have called them. It then hit me, if someone is called, they will turn their head.

Likewise I believe when one is called of God (and yes, I believe we are all called to repentance, faith, evangelism, holiness, etc), their life and focus will turn. They then have a different direction they travel in, and a different outlook. Just as one is, no doubt, not born of the Spirit if nothing ever changed in their life, one who has not answered their call in their Christian life has surely had nothing change in their walk with Jesus.

It sounds like you might do well to teach us about answering our call after hearing about that experience.

That's an amazing illustration about the turning of the head. I love it! It perfectly describes the spiritual reality of things.

-Sean
____________
www.SeanDietrich.com
"All of my music is free for download."

its a good one... atleast in my life it would fit in.... following sin and then jesus called and i just turned..

Sometimes understanding one's particular calling is very direct. For example, Jeremiah's calling from God was pretty straight forward:

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; [b]I have appointed you a prophet to the nations;[/b]

On the other hand, there are individuals like Esther whose calling wasn't so direct, and sort of just unfolded as she went along.

Esther 4:13 Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Do not imagine that you in the king’s palace can escape any more than all the Jews. 14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father’s house will perish. [b]And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?"[/b]

I think most people fall into Esther's category. Her purpose and calling was revealed to her as she simply went about her days, attempting to be faithful to God. And as circumstances changed, she simply remained faithful to God to do the good thing she knew to do in each circumstance.

Likewise, our individual callings from God are often just revealed to us as we go about simply living our lives in devotion to God, and doing the good we know to do in every circumstance. In the process, as you grow in the Lord, you'll probably begin to discern in what specific area God has gifted you in.

Just keep being faithful to God, and seek the leading of His Spirit. Perhaps God might have you to go share a word to somebody on the street, or perhaps He'll prompt you to say something during a church service, or perhaps He'll put a burning desire to go to another country and share the gospel. Or perhaps you'll feel moved on by God to help out in a soup kitchen at a homeless shelter. The possibilities are as vast as God. Simply be open to doing faithfully whatever you find yourself able to do.

Hi everyone.

Christian, I'm glad you brought this up as I'd like the opportunity to share with the Lord's people here what I took to be the answer to my seeking God about this. I welcome any discernement and wisdom you all might have to share in Christ.

I do not intend to put this here as an example for anyone; I see us all here sharing our thoughts in seeking to know and do God's will in our lives, though not for comparison.

A few years ago I began seeking after God for His will for my life. Sometime after this, as the thought was on my mind, I 'heard' or was impressed with the words 'libation specialist'.

If that sounds funny to you, it sounded funny to me too! In fact my wife thought it sounded a bit funny also, but not in a demeaning or trivial way(this was not the first time I had 'heard' some obscure sounding word in regards to seeking after God). I kept thinking...'libation specialist???' what is that!!

Well, eventually I put the thought on the 'back burner' so to speak, though I did look into the meaning of the word and found that it did have some correspondence with the Bible.

Some time later we moved here and I began seeking God again in earnest concering His will for my life, especially now since at the time I was unemployed! During this time I felt led to begin reading the Bible again from the beginning. I would read between one and three chapters every morning, going very slowly through each chapter, even underlining many passages as I read through.

This went on for some time.

One night as I remember it, I had stayed up late seeking after God in much distress and anguish of soul. In the morning I got up and read the chapters as usuall and the thought of 'libation specialist' was on my mind. I was reading through untill I came to this passage, I'll use the RSV to qoute....

and wine for the drink offering, a fourth of a hin, you shall prepare with the burnt offering, or for the sacrifice, for each lamb.

Now, I mentioned earlier that libationist does have some correspondence to the Bible, and this is that. According the the American Heritage Dictionary, a libation is...

1.a. The pouring of a liquid offering as a religious ritual.

So, having paused to ponder this, my wife having gotten up came out of the room and said 'Chris, God want's you to be a libationist.'

I was .....amazed.

She went on to tell me how all night long she kept hearing 'libationist...libationist..' in her sleep. Later she told me how she had been dreaming of this room wherein were all these lighted candles and that she was taking care of the candles.

Thinking of all the possibilities, the odds of this, I thought this has to be the answer! How on earth could such a coincidence be...so many days of reading the Bible and to come across THAT passage...and then she had THAT dream hearing what she did and to come out and tell me at THAT moment???

I suppose I should share now how I have understood this. Someone before mentioned burden and I thought it was a good expression for our subject. I have, from the time of my conversion, had a burden to share the faith with those who are lost, without Christ and have sought to do it.
And that's how I have understood these events; that I believe God wanted me to offer the people the blood of Christ which was shed for thier sins.

So, I'm a libationist. :-D

Thank you all for sharing this with me,

Love in Christ.

thank you all for your testimonies, it gives me some light i dont ruch in to things i belive god is going to show me the way to what he will have me do, i reading a book just now and i came to a chapter called gods will and i read and the author (r a torrey) wrote that many christians want to know gods will for there entire life, but god often revils his will one step at the time, but i was confused becuse ive listend to sermons by ray comfort and mark cahill, i love their sermons and i was so motivated, go witness i belive we all should do this, but then i listen to a sermon by art katz were he said something that good intentions could be wrong, even when it comes to "do the right thing" if it wasent god who told you to do it, ´so now i just trust the lord to lead me, if i start the day in prayor and ask his spirit to lead me i have to belive that he will.
i rest in that haleluja

gods peace to you
christian

But then, why are few chosen?

The parable of the seed and the sower reminds us that many start out with good intentions but when trials come, they back out. That reminds me of something Richard Owen Roberts said: "It's not how you start that counts, it's how you end."

Only he who endures to the end will be saved.
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life... " James 1:12 Those are the ones who are chosen.

Diane

One day when I was 17 the Lord gave me such a powerful sense of destiny that I wrote it down. From then on I KNEW that I would be used by God to bring souls into the kingdom.

After that day my mind did some foolish recalculating. During those days, the only two “callings” ever mentioned were pastor or missionary. I felt I wouldn’t be a pastor, so that meant I would be a missionary. That stuck in my mind for years.

My husband and I were indeed missionaries some years later. However he decided to leave after a term. I was devastated, because I knew God had called me to be a missionary. It took me a long time to get over the sense of having failed God, even though I had no choice.

Then one day, years later, I discovered the words I had written at 17. To my surprise I had not written the word, “missionary” at all! Over the years I had unwittingly squeezed God’s calling on me into man’s traditions.

Scripture reveals that God does not necessarily put his chosen in traditional roles in traditional missionary boards, or religious institutions. It was that way for the prophets and the apostles. Even Christ did not take a role in the religious system in any way. God hasn’t changed. He often works through people from the “outside” of the system – for very strategic reasons.

God has been shaping my destiny, preparing and leading me. I must be submissive to the voice of his Spirit, and seek his face. Where he leads me, I will follow.

Diane

I meant to post this earlier:

Logic said:

every one has the same call

I have to agree with you, Logic. I once did a word study on “calling”, and to my surprise, I discovered that in the Bible it is used very differently than the way we use it. Really, it refers to God calling on us into the kingdom.

Hmmhmm said:

then i listen to a sermon by art katz were he said something that good intentions could be wrong, even when it comes to "do the right thing" if it wasent god who told you to do it,

Good point! In other words, our senses of “calling” does not determine our choices. Rather it is our ongoing obedience and sensitivity to God’s Spirit.
Diane