Has God Prepared You For A Special Calling?
Good Morning Friends,
The Bible is filled with stories about how God prepares people for a purpose. As you contemplate today’s question meditate on how with Mary, God sent an angel to talk with her in person and reassure her and with Daniel, how He used education and relationships. Remember how Esther was prepared through physical attributes and relationships and how Paul was prepared through his family and connections he was born into, as well as the training and positions he received, but also through a time of suffering. Remember then that God can use the evil of others for an ultimate good. For example, Joseph, the son of Jacob, was prepared by family betrayal, being lied about, imprisoned for years, forgotten about, as well as having an ability to hear from God through dreams on how to lead. David was prepared through ordinary tasks of tending and protecting sheep, in what seemed insignificant, but also in musical training. Moses was prepared by being given up at birth, being bilingual and bicultural, having a speech impediment, and through connections. And with Joseph (betrothed to Mary), he was prepared through his character and a clear dream. And so today we look at the lectionary scripture about angels bringing good news of special births that had a purpose. And it is not only about the coming of Jesus but also how God works to set apart people for a special purpose even before they are born. You see, even before the amazing birth of Jesus, which we are preparing to celebrate, we have also had hints of this process in the births of Sampson and of John the Baptist as set forth in today’s scripture. So in this season of getting ready, Has God Prepared You For A Special Calling?
Scripture: There was a certain man of Zorah, of the tribe of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. His wife was barren, having borne no children. And the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Although you are barren, having borne no children, you shall conceive and bear a son. Now be careful not to drink wine or strong drink, or to eat anything unclean, for you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor is to come on his head, for the boy shall be a Nazirite to God from birth. It is he who shall begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” Then the woman came and told her husband, “A man of God came to me, and his appearance was like that of an angel of God, most awe-inspiring; I did not ask him where he came from, and he did not tell me his name; but he said to me, ‘You shall conceive and bear a son. So then drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for the boy shall be a Nazirite to God from birth to the day of his death.'” The woman bore a son, and named him Samson. The boy grew, and the Lord blessed him. The spirit of the Lord began to stir him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
Judges 13:2-7, 24-25a (NRSV)
In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both of them were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were getting on in years. Once when he was serving as priest before God and his section was on duty, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer incense. Now at the time of the incense offering, the whole assembly of the people was praying outside. Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John. You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my wife is getting on in years.” The angel replied, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. But now, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time, you will become mute, unable to speak, until the day these things occur.” Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah, and wondered at his delay in the sanctuary. When he did come out, he could not speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept motioning to them and remained unable to speak. When his time of service was ended, he went to his home. After those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she remained in seclusion. She said, “This is what the Lord has done for me when he looked favorably on me and took away the disgrace I have endured among my people.”
Luke 1:5-25 (NRSV)
For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
Psalm 139:13 (NRSV)
Message: There is a mystery and wonder of the ways God works. Just like Jesus’ engagement in teaching, God comes to us where we are and so trains each of us in unique ways. Still there are things we can learn from the stories in the Bible about how people are prepared for their calling. Here we learn that God often uses multiple streams of training and provision. And not all the preparation is fun or in the moment appears positive. So, some of our formulation only makes sense looking back in how God works all things together for good for those called to a heavenly purpose. Amazingly some of the groundwork is in how we are woven together even before we are born. Before Samson and John were born or even conceived God had a purpose for their lives and their parents. So too God sees us as being designed in our mother’s womb. God knows everything about us and has even planned and thought good thoughts about us which are better than what we can even think about ourselves. The time when we did not have the ability to think for ourselves and about ourselves, God had already thought for us and about us. Here the Spirit and the God of history converge with the fabric of our being to determine our calling even before we are born. When God sees us before our birth, He sees us as His because we are being created in His image. Whatever is His, He wants to pour into us. His ways, His thoughts, His plans, His abundant blessings and the Father’s amazing love. This is what builds us up to facilitate God’s call for us whether short term or whether they last a lifetime. When God does the Supernatural part, and we respond by doing our part by choosing what God has chosen for us, we are positioning ourselves to facilitate that call which God has already put upon our lives before we were born. You see, the call of God has been upon our life before even we could comprehend our left hand from the right. That is the time when God had people in place who would take care to raise us up. Now when we are on our own and think we can be on your own without anyone’s assistance, we fight against what was already decided before we were born. God calls the play. So, we need to practice and respond to this purpose as perfectly as we can.
Pray we realize we are prepared for a purpose. Pray we facilitate our calling and the calling of others. Pray we realize that even those selected to serve can be surprised by the way God does things. Pray we realize that even those who are not insiders can get in on what God is doing if their hearts are hungry. Pray we realize that just being in the know does not mean God will use us if our hearts are not right. Pray we make time for God because we can miss out on our calling if we are too busy with other things.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 