“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. (Acts 9:5, NIV)
I stand alone some afternoons this time of year, my eyes trained on one of my high school players as he fires balls out onto the range. He’s hitting it left, say, and we’re trying to correct the error.
Sometimes, though, as I am talking, a neighboring golfer will overhear what we’re working on. He’ll come up behind us quietly and say, almost apologetically, “I’m listening in, because that’s the same problem I’m working on.”
The eavesdropping doesn’t bother me, but what this other golfer never knows is what I tell my golfers and their families at our pre-season meeting: “The one area of the game where I am least equipped to help your son is with his swing.” I know many of the remedies, but I’m not so good at diagnostics. If you’re hitting it left, there could be several reasons for your error. A professional with a great eye will recognize the problem immediately and offer a specific solution. The best I can do is say, “OK, let’s try this.” And if that doesn’t take, we move on to another possible remedy. The guy listening in doesn’t know this. He figures that if I give my player a solution and it works, then he can go do the same thing and it will work for him too.
There’s an important principle at work here when it comes to calling. Even though we see God work in the lives of the Bible’s people in myriad ways, we tend to think we’ll find a one-size-fits-all solution for us in the pages of Scripture or in the latest Christian self-help book. Actually, that may be exactly what you find. Then you’ll find it doesn’t fit you!
The calling of God is discerned in more ways than one. Saul had what we’ve ever after called his “Damascus road experience.” Jesus appeared to him and spoke to him. It floored him. Changed his life. Made a whole new man of him.
Now here’s the thing. God may do the same for you. He may take you from one place and land you someplace altogether new and different, all a part of his kingdom plan. But it’s unlikely he’ll knock you to the ground and blind you, as he did with Saul. He’ll get your attention in a whole other way.
Are you ready for the call of God? You will be if you commit to reading his Word, where his voice becomes familiar and plain. You will be if you commit to quiet listening, for in meditation and prayer we meet him (however “mystical” this seems). And you will be if you place yourself within the counsel of proven followers of Christ, those who evidence the fruit of the Spirit in their lives. This threefold commitment will open your ears to the voice of the Shepherd—and as you come to know that voice, you’ll know just how to follow him (John 10:1-5).
—
Jeff Hopper
February 4, 2013
Copyright 2013 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
OTHER DEVOTIONS IN THE CALLING SERIES
Calling, Part 1: Identity First
Calling, Part 2: Response and Readiness
Calling, Part 4: Lacking a Caller
Calling, Part 5: Your Specific Destiny
Calling, Part 6: Sovereignty and Calling
Calling, Part 7: Looking Forward, Looking Back
Calling, Part 8: God’s Confirmation, Our Confidence
Calling, Part 9: Aliens and Ambassadors
Calling, Part 10: Excellence in Our Calling
Calling, Part 11: Balance in Our Calling