During the past thirty-five years I have heard more than three thousand sermons. Since I have worshiped in Bible-teaching churches all my life, most of those sermons did me some spiritual good. Yet I wonder how many of them helped me as much as they should have. Frankly, I fear that far too many sermons passed through my eardrums without registering in my brain or reaching my heart. –Derek Thomas

It happens over and over again throughout life: As elementary school wraps up, we move on to junior high. Then high school. Then college. Then maybe more college. Then a career. Then maybe a new city. At some point, maybe marriage. Then kids. The list goes on and on…

In our last blog, we defined calling as the inclination and affirmation of the intersection of passion, opportunity, and peace towards a specific place for a specific function under the leadership of the local church. Sorting through your emotions and rationale as you seek out your calling can be difficult, and I’ve written more about that here (insert link to second blog on calling). Central to this whole definition, however, is the involvement of the local church. You’ve probably heard it said, “No man is an island.” The same is true in discerning one’s calling, and it is to our benefit when we submit to the spiritual leadership that God has placed over us in his institution of the local church.

“God has called me to ____________.” If you have been engaged in a church community, chances are you have heard someone say something like this before. But what does it mean? Unfortunately, it seems we often simply attach the word “calling” to whatever it is we plan on doing at a particular moment. This isn’t necessarily because we’re being intentionally dishonest. Instead, without a clearly defined understanding of what “calling” is, we risk doubting our obedience “like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind” (James 1:6).

“What is God calling me to?” For many of us, that question is terrifying and full of uncertainty. What is calling? Does everyone have a single, specific calling from God? If so, how do I figure out what mine is? These are important questions, and they have been at the center of my journey towards moving to New York City.

God is able to use anything and everything to change the very course of your life and accomplish his eternal purpose… even a 22-minute re-run of “How I Met Your Mother.” That’s what happened to us a little over a year ago. My wife, Riley, and I can be a pretty lame couple; we love to unwind at the end of a long day by lying on the couch together and watching a little television right before we go to bed. We’ve always enjoyed the opportunity to turn our minds off and end the day by relaxing with each other. One night at the end of last summer (2013), we were doing just that to an episode of “How I Met Your Mother,” and what we saw has drastically impacted what we believe will be the rest of our lives.

Suppose someone were to randomly give you $10,000. What would you do with it? Obviously, the gift wasn’t something you were expecting or even deserved. They simply wanted to be a blessing to you. Would you invest it? Put it into savings? Maybe make some renovations on your house or pay off some debts that you owe? Perhaps you would just deposit the money in your bank account and go about your day. Regardless of what you would choose to with the money, you would inevitably respond to the gift that was given to you. This is known as “stewardship.”