The Healthy Church Staff Podcast
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The Healthy Church Staff Podcast
The Exhausting Chase for a _Clear Calling_
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A lot of pastors and church staff wrestle with this kind of silent fear. It goes something like this. What if I get it wrong? What if this isn't what God called me to do? In today's episode, we're going to unpack the myth of the perfectly clear calling and offer hopefully a healthier, more freeing way to think about ministry direction. You don't have to be stuck, and God isn't as fragile as you think. We're going to talk about that today, right here on the podcast. Hi there, my name's Todd Rhodes. I'm one of the co-founders over at chemistrystaffing.com, and I'm your host right here on the Healthy Church Staff Podcast every Monday through Friday or 24-7, wherever you listen or watch your favorite podcasts. Do you ever feel like you're just that mouse in the maze? You're trying to figure out exactly what God wants you to do. I own a staffing company and I talk with candidates all day that are trying, they're right smack dab in the middle of trying to figure out where God want me. And you know what? Sometimes it's a confusing mess. But this is a big butt. I like big butts, and I cannot lie. I don't know why I always say that. But anyway, here's a big but. What if we've made calling way more complicated than it actually is? And that's what we're diving into today. It's the myth of the perfect calling and how it might actually be slowing you down or keeping you stuck. Should actually go back and edit that out of there, but just so you guys know, I'm too lazy. So you get the big butt comment today. Enjoy it. Send me a line podcast at chemistry staffing.com and chide me about that comment. I would enjoy your chiding today. All right, let's talk about calling. And call I love to talk about calling because everybody describes calling differently. My generation had a very clear understanding of what we thought calling was. A couple generations, the young people coming into ministry now, have a totally different idea of calling. Matter of fact, they don't even use the word calling much anymore. They still, it's just still the same thing, but they're just using different language. So let's talk about the myth, I think, of a singular, unmistakable calling. Now, some people have that, absolutely. But many pastors were raised with the belief that's the only way it could be. That's the only way you could be called. It's one exact thing, one exact role, one exact, very specific location, and one very specific outcome. And the problem is that creates pressure to hear perfectly from God every time, or else you live in fear that you missed it. Have you ever been there? Man, I've been there. You know, when you're making the decision, God, do you want me to go here? You're constantly thinking, does he want me to go here? Does he want me to stay where I'm at? And then once you do make the decision and you feel like God has said, Yep, Todd, it's okay for you and Dawn to go here, and we go there, then guess what? You're thinking, didn't do everything. Should I have done that? That creates pressure again to hear perfectly from God, or else just live in the fear that you missed it. And the truth is scripture shows calling as maybe a little bit broader. Okay? Serving people, leading with integrity, using your gifts for the kingdom. And that's not just one role in one zip code. Okay, God can totally call you to a certain place in a certain zip code, but I think he's got bigger plans for you. That's my personal opinion. Calling grows with you as well. You understand, your understanding of your calling matures as you do. Here's an example. What you felt, you know this to be true. Unless you're 22, then you're still learning it. What you felt called to at 22 years of age might look totally different than what you feel called to at 42. I wish I was 42. And that doesn't mean you missed it. It means that you're growing and that God is doing his work in you. Calling isn't always discovered. It's often built day by day, decision by decision, month by month, year by year. And you're not off track, you're just in the process. Here's a better filter. Is this a great question? And I want to pose this more to candidates. If you're looking to God, are you wanting me to go to a different place? Here's a question to ask. Is this role that you're considering? Is this role worthy of my obedience? That's a totally different question. Then is this the jobs call God has for me? What if you ask, can I serve God well in this place with these people right now? Obed make obedience the filter, not perfection. I tell you, when I started out when I was young, I felt like God had called me to a specific church and a specific zip code for a specific role. My second role, I continue to feel that way. My third role, I had probably 10 years of experience under my belt, and all of a sudden I felt like God was saying, Todd, it's okay, be obedient. You can be obedient here, you can be obedient here, you can be obedient here. But I just want your heart, I want you to be obedient. God isn't trying to trap you into some divine guessing game. Give yourself a little bit of rope here, give yourself a little bit of room. God invites you to trust Him and move forward in faith. Here's my final thought. Here's the big idea for today. The search for clarity can become a spiritual smokescreen for fear. You don't need a sign, you do need surrender. I'd love to hear from you. Maybe you just want to make a crack about my earlier comment in the podcast. That's fine. Podcast at chemistry staffing.com. But I'd love to hear what you think about calling. Did you ever feel like you overcomplicated it? Did you ever go someplace where you, man, you thought God had told you to go there and it just was a mess? And you're still trying to figure it out. I've got one of those as well. I might tell that story sometime here on the podcast. But I'd love to hear what's one way you've overcomplicated your sense of calling. Reach out to me, podcast at chemistry staffing.com. I'd love to start a conversation. Read every email that you send. So I do appreciate it when you write podcast at chemistrystaffing.com. All right, that's it for today. We're here every Monday through Friday, almost 24 or 7. As I said, wherever you listen or watch your favorite podcast. Thanks so much. We'll talk to you soon.
