I never imagined my “calling” looked like THIS

2 Timothy 4:5 – “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

Ephesians 3:20-21 – “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”

I’m finally where I need to be.

This is the first time in my life when I feel like I’m doing what God has called me and created me to do, and it’s nothing like I ever dreamed it would be.

It’s taken me a long time to get here, time that included much frustration, confusion, and heartache.

Infertility, depression, cancer, chronic fatigue, and my eventual colectomy and ileostomy were certainly not in my plan, but they were in God’s plan.

It took many years of heartache and health issues to surrender to God’s vision of what He was calling me to do in the ministry, to fulfill MY ministry (2 Timonty 4:5).

So, what am I doing NOW? What has God called me to do?

God has called me to BE. He’s called me to be His disciple. To be at home. To be a supportive friend. To be a loving wife, a caring mother. God has called me to teach others His Word, to disciple other women, to pursue Him wholeheartedly.

God has called me to serve Him and to do it in the exact location He’s put me in.

You see, I can’t go far from home for long due to the unprecedented issues of my ileostomy, such as high thick output and frequent yet inconsistent prolapses, not to mention dehydration and lack of proper nutrient absorption.

So, I stay at home. I host various groups of women in my house throughout the week. I spend time studying the Word, learning as much as I can from reading the Bible, reading commentaries, listening to podcasts, talking with my husband. I try to communicate these truths to the women who frequent my door, looking for friendships, advice, and encouragement. I share my story, what God has done in my life and what He is doing in my life. I share my emotional, physical, and relational struggles and victories while listening to the women share theirs. I search for answers for their questions, provide exhortation and admonishment when needed, and lean into their lives while they lean in to mine.

I suppose I always knew God had called me to “the ministry”, but I never imagined it would look like this:

• I pictured standing in front of hundreds or thousands of people, sharing God’s Word with women at conferences; now I share His Word with a handful or two of women in my living room.
• I imagined writing Bible studies and publishing books; now I teach the Bible and publish blogs.

Nope, this is not AT ALL what I envisioned when I felt “called to the ministry”.

This is more, ABUNDANTLY more than I could have asked or imagined. (Ephesians 3:20-21) And I love it!

I pray that I will continue to be obedient to the Lord, following His lead daily (Proverbs 16:9), seeking Him, searching His Word (Isaiah 55:8-9), loving Him wholeheartedly regardless of what happens or what may come my way.

Friends, the Lord’s plan for your life is the BEST plan for your life (Proverbs 19:21). Save yourself some heartache, learn from my mistakes, and surrender to Him now. And then just BE.

Proverbs 19:21 – “Many plans are in a man’s heart, but the counsel of the Lord will stand.”

Proverbs 16:9 – “The mind of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.”

Isaiah 55:8-9 – “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.”

• Book Review: “A Special Kind of Love”
• “Worship” in 2022
• I never imagined my “calling” looked like THIS
• Breakfast Pizza
• Praying FOR someone vs praying ABOUT someone