The Ever Changing Call

A month ago a church up the road dared to ask me to preach.  Preaching invites do not come too often so I dusted off the brain and had another go at sermon writing.  I am going to have an opportunity this upcoming Sunday to have another go at preaching.  A few weeks ago a District Superintendent hinted at an interim preaching assignment, but I discouraged any further thinking in that direction as writing this blog is where my continued awareness of calling has taken me.  Before retiring I wondered how people who were called to preach could ever retire and justify not preaching, but then I realized that God sometimes lifts the urgency of one calling for another.   

There is some Biblical basis for such.  For example, Ezekiel trained and prepared to be a priest in the Temple only to be called to become a prophet in exile.  The gospel writer, Luke, was a doctor who wrote a gospel noted for its evangelistic thrust.  I remember, too, the many ways Bruce Wilkinson, the author of "The Prayer of Jabez" has responded to the ever changing call of God on his life.  He started as a college professor, created a much used Bible Study, authored scores of books, and started mission initiatives in South Africa.   

A popular saying which has a way of resurfacing ever so often is the one which reads, "God is not through with me yet."  God's call on our lives to be faithful servants never changes.  What may change is the means through which we flesh out that call to serve Him.  None of us are today as we were yesterday and the person we have become may be more suited for the unfolding plan of God than the person we were when the journey of faith began.  We should never be afraid of change for it is the way God is working to make His Kingdom more apparent among us.