How do I Know if I'm Called to Go?
Call-ups for causes:
Is God calling me to go?
In 1915, twenty-eight men were alone, trapped in the ice-covered waters of Antarctica’s treacherous seas. “Frozen,” as one man put it, “like an almond in the middle of a chocolate bar.” These were the men of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. They suffered frostbite, gangrene, hysteria, starvation, all for the glory of being the first ones to cross the Antarctic continent from sea to sea. It was the greatest polar journey ever attempted to date.
The leader of the expedition, Sir Ernest Shackleton, had put a startling ad in the newspaper that read: “Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages. Bitter cold. Long months of complete darkness. Constant danger. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success.” And 5000 people applied. Why? People hunger for greater purpose, to be part of something significant that lasts beyond themselves. Yet most settle for much less.
Samuel Zwemer, a missionary to Muslims of about a century ago said, “so many young people’s minds and hearts are occupied by weak things, by inconsequential things. Their eyes have never been illumined by a great vision, their mind has never been gripped by unselfish thoughts, their hearts have never been thrilled with the passion for the lost, their hands have never grown weary and strong in the lifting of a great burden.”
If you desire to be gripped by a cause greater than yourself and the toys you can gather in suburbia, we present you with the cause of the least-reached peoples. To reach those with least-access to the stories of Jesus may well involve leaving home, job, family, and friends. It could well cost a great deal more. Is God calling you to go?
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Questions to know, if I’m to go
The following filter was offered by a blogging missio in the Balkans. He kindly gave us permission to use content for both our front page and the feature article below (www.missiomishmash.blogspot.com). We reckon it provides good fuel for those considering this high calling.
1 You must be surrendered to go.
This answers the question, “Would I go?” All believers ought to say “yes, here am I, send me” but deep down most people are saying “no,” “not yet” or “yes, but.” There is precious little difference between being surrendered to GOD and being surrendered to GO - just one letter in fact.
2 You must have a desire to go.
This answers the question, “Do I want to go?” Paul said, “I am compelled to preach, woe to me if I do not preach the gospel.” (1 Cor. 9:16) One of the evidences of a call of God on a person is what 1 Timothy 3:1 calls a desire for the work. If your heart regularly wants to transport you to be among the poor, needy and least-reached, this is often a divine desire. Why not verify this desire by spending a few months or years serving with a WEC team in some lost context. It really isn’t all that diffi cult to fi nd a shortterm opportunity you know.
3 You must have the qualifications to go.
This answers the question, “Should I go?” You may want to fly fighter jets, but without perfect eyes and tonnes of training you won’t fly F-16s. There is nothing about foreign geography which makes a missionary holy. If you don’t walk faithfully with God now, you won’t in Timbuktu. How would you know if you are qualifi ed? Ask your local church - the organism God ordained to ordain missionaries. Ask themand others where you need to improve and how best to gain the necessary skills.
4 You must have the opportunity to go.
This answers the question, “Could I go?” Avoid things which will stifle your opportunities: large financial debt, an uninterested prospective spouse etc, and then look for opportunities to get involved. If the Red Sea of opportunity parts for you, don’t stand around thinking “Um, is this God? Should I cross?” Of course you should get counsel and confirmation from other sources before seizing an opportunity (sometimes this comes through God-incidences, scripture, prophecy, a rightness in our spirits, the words of significant others etc), but remember that over-analysis can cause paralysis.
They say only one out of every 100 people who felt divinely nudged of God on this actually participate in long-term cross-cultural mission. Jacob and Jenna are just such a couple. We asked them to share some of their story, how
they were called into pioneer mission, and some advice for fellow travellers on the way.
Kiwis on their way to Central Asia
It’s been years now since our original call to missions, and God has taken us on quite a ride. How did we know we were called? There was never any 'writing in the sky' from God for either of us, just as there isn't for most people. There was just a feeling we both had that God was directing us into something, and we followed our noses. For me, I didn't know where or what God wanted, so I did a couple of short term mission trips through my Church. They both happened to go to India, so that's where I went. These left me convinced that God definitely was calling me into cross-cultural mission. So I enrolled at Eastwest College of Intercultural Studies, which was the best thing I ever did. There I learnt more about being an effective missionary and seeking to understand the culture of the people. I also met my wife!
We had each had our own ideas about where we wanted to go. Once we got married we decided to give all that back to God and seek his will for us as a couple. We felt called to join WEC, but had no idea where God wanted us to go. Once again, no fireworks, but we ended up talking to a very small WEC team in Central Asia. It seemed like a really good fit for us, but God hadn't said anything. So we prayed, “God, we'd like to join this team, and we want to pursue this opportunity. If this is your will, open the doors, and if it isn't, close them.” Well, the doors flew open. Everyone we talked to was excited, WEC was excited, our Church was excited, the team was excited, our families were excited. Prayer support came in, financial support came in, (even in the recession!), and miracles of God's provision occurred. Now we're going out!
If there was any advice I could give to someone who was interested in mission but wasn't sure where to start, I would say, (besides prayer), to just start moving. It doesn't matter if you go on a short term mission to a country just because you like the sound of its name. Just pursue mission and let God guide you. Rock On!