How to Determine Your Calling
Today I wanted to share some thoughts on how to determine your calling! I hope it helps simplify the whole “what am I going to do with my life” question! Graduates face that question all the time. Some girls seem to have known from birth what they would pursue, whereas others don’t have a clue. Some marry early in life and have a family, the most wonderful of all stories to me, and others have to figure out something to do with themselves!
I’m in the latter category. It was ages before I realized that, without a sweetheart, my primary objective in life wasn’t to marry and have a family. But that’s okay! God has blessed me with a whole new dimension and vision for life that I wouldn’t have had if things had gone according to my plans!
I simply mention this because I don’t want young mothers or mothers-to-be reading this feeling inferior or thinking that I consider them “just” a mother. On the contrary! You have found your calling! You are living my dream life! And until that dream of mine comes true, I’m discovering other dreams and helping other ladies who might have been caught by surprise in this stage of life also!
To me, determining your calling or what you want to do with your life is not always a clear and concise decision. Many people and resources will encourage you to do what you enjoy, and that is terrific advice, but not always clear direction.
Think about what you dream of in life. Do you have hopes and plans in your heart and in your dreams that you want to pursue? If you don’t, than you need to discover them. To live a life of purpose you must ask God what He has planned for your life. Ask Him to make His plans your dreams!
The most beautiful thing I can imagine is desiring God’s plans and pursuing them with my whole heart!
Perhaps you want to be a nurse and help people who are sick. Perhaps you want to design clothes. Perhaps you want to garden and run a nursery. The sky is the limit! Those plans, those dreams, those words spoken over you by others, even those inklings of ideas that didn’t quite become a thought – they are there for a reason! You were designed for a very specific purpose to pursue a calling made uniquely for you!
First Things First
But where to begin? First and foremost, pray and ask your parents or authorities to consider what they are comfortable with you pursuing. They have lived and experienced so much more of life than you, and God will give them special insight. If you pursue something that is not what that they would approve of, God will not bless your efforts and you will not be happy. But if you will honor their wishes, God will surely bless you!
Employment and a source of income are blessings and a wonderful way to pay for necessities, but be sure to carefully examine where you are and make plans to pursue your dreams. It has been proven time and time again that you will enjoy your work more and give more of yourself if you like what you do.
Now here is a bit of a tricky part. You must choose something to do. Make a conscious decision. Of course, make it something that is ethical and that you have your parent’s blessing for, but choose to do it. Don’t sit around waiting for opportunities, knowledge, capabilities, people, or anything else to fall in your lap before you move forward. Sometimes what we really want in life is not practical or possible at this time. Accept it and move on. Actively choose something that is!
You Must Choose
Living a life of purpose doesn’t mean that you have to build a business or work alone. You simply must do something that you enjoy, that will provide an income, and that gives you purpose. This can be found in being employed, in working with a friend, or in creating your own business! But you must choose to enjoy what you do, every day!
Now tell me, what are you hoping to do with your life? Do you have a plan, an idea? Do you prefer to work outside, or inside at a desk? Are you into designing and creating items? Or perhaps you are more logical so something like bookwork or programming would be a better fit. I’d love to be an encouragement and help you brainstorm what you might like to pursue! Feel free to email me at hope@theamericanlady.com and we will talk about potential ideas!
I’ll be going over a few more thoughts on discovering what to do with your life next week so be sure to check back!
Until Next Time!
Hope.