Lord, Is That You? Discerning a Call
Whether you are a missionary candidate weighing a call, a church leader helping in that, or a current missionary considering a major ministry shift, discerning God’s call amidst all the noise is a daunting prospect. This month, Dan Bouchelle provides helpful counsel for doing just that. May the Lord bless your reading - and your listening!
by Dan Bouchelle
MRN President
Growing up the son of a preacher, I wanted to be anything but one - yet eventually spent over 20 years preaching because I felt called. My father always told me, “Don’t preach if you can do anything else.” He wasn’t discouraging me from ministry. Rather, he was advising me not to do something as demanding as ministry if I didn’t have a clear calling. If you can have peace outside of ministry, you likely have not been called. That turned out to be good advice.
What does a call to ministry or missions look like? Does it have to be dramatic? Does it require a vision? Does it take an Elijah laying his mantle on us to know for sure? How do you know a compulsion is from the Lord and not a self-generated obsession?
There are people who have unmet needs for significance who feel called but are not. Some people who are intent on getting to the mission field are really running away from something instead of following a call. In many of our training cohorts of prospective missionaries, we find people whom we believe should either not go or not go now. They may be called to ministry but not to international work. Or, the call may be there, but the timing is wrong. Sometimes they are simply mistaken about receiving a call at all. When we tell people who feel called that we cannot confirm that call, it can be devastating for them. Occasionally they go overseas anyway, and I can’t think of a single time this turned out well. Friends, there is no joy in being proven right when someone to whom we gave a red light implodes on the field.
So how do you discern a call is from God? Here are four criteria we recommend you consider.
Fire in the bones
Jeremiah talked about his calling as a fire in his bones that he could not contain (Jer. 20:9) He didn’t like his commission which came at a hard time with hard words of rebuke, but he couldn’t suppress it. It was bigger than him. He could have no peace if he turned away from his call.
Paul similarly told the Corinthian church “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Cor. 9:16b). He didn’t make a career choice; he submitted to a Spirit-driven call that could not be suppressed. Cross-cultural disciple-making and church planting are grueling and require much sacrifice. If you don’t have a strong call to anchor you when the dark days come, you are likely going to wash back up on American shores battered and bruised.
Push v. Pull test
There is always both push and pull when we make changes in life. If we don’t feel a lack of fit where we are, we won’t typically consider making a change. God often gives us a sense of holy dissatisfaction with our present circumstances before He calls us to something new. This is not a matter of either/or but both/and. We typically feel a push from where we are, along with a pull toward something to which God is drawing us. A question to consider is which is stronger: the push or the pull? Are you primarily moving toward something or away from something?
I know one minister who had a rough first preaching experience (perhaps I know more than one…). It was full of constant conflict with other leaders and push back from his members. After four or five years, he was ready to give up and go plant a new church. God spoke to him through a wise older mentor who helped him realize that what was really driving him was the illusion that if he planted a new church, he would be able to do it his way without conflict. That was a lie. New churches are full of immature and willful people who will challenge you, rebel against you, and break your heart again and again. New starts are not clean, antiseptic environments, something that is doubly true in cross-cultural work. Kingdom work is hard because people are broken and restoration involves lots of clean up. It’s always messy. If you are running away from hard things in the USA, you will not find ministry easier in another country. Far from it.
Sometimes, though, the push isn’t about wanting to get away from hard work in the American church.
Some people run away from pain in their families of origin, getting as far away as possible.
Others are running away from evil impulses in themselves. They think if they do something great for God, He will make their demons go away.
Others are spiritually unhealthy missionaries who are running from accountability.
Many think they’ve made a deal with God for help from Him if they do something great for Him.
Some workers have an unhealthy and usually unacknowledged need for significance. They want to be The Boss and think they can in a missions context.
A few who struggle to fit in where they live think they might fit in somewhere else.
There are lots of things that can create a push to flee, and missions can look alluring. However, because these reasons are always based in illusion and often the result of unresolved emotional problems, they keep people from being fit to go - at least until they are resolved.
Here is a good rule of thumb: the pull must always far outweigh the push. If you believe you are called, my encouragement is to do some soul work to determine if you are moving toward God’s call or away from your problem.
Confirmation of the body
Acts. 13-1-3 is the quintessential missionary calling story. Notice that when the first missionaries were called, the message came from the Spirit to the church. This was not about Paul or Barnabas getting a private sense of calling. The church who knew them recognized and affirmed their calling. This is still an important factor in determining a call. God’s Spirit speaks through the body, not just to individuals. If God is calling you, the church should be able to confirm that calling.
It matters if the people who know you, know the mission, and understand the challenges confirm that the mission fits you now. Your home church and your current spiritual community should be consulted. People who know the reality on the ground and are working in the region, as well as those who have missions experience, should be consulted. Your willingness to submit to evaluation, and to respect the way the Spirit speaks through the church matters. Get the confirmation of the larger body of Christ before you launch out on your own.
Trust in God’s timing
In Galatians 1 - 2, when Paul cites his own calling as an apostle, he chronicles how many steps there were between his conversion and his launch into the mission field. While he started telling people about Jesus soon after his conversion (Acts 9), he had to go through a three-year reorientation and equipping before he was ready to live into his calling as an apostle to the Gentiles. Timing matters. Being called to the mission field does not mean you are called to go now. There is preparation you need to experience. You will need to develop understanding, maturity, skills, and a network of co-workers and support.
Years later, while on mission, Paul was mistaken about the location to which he was called to work. God had to put obstacles in his way and even give him a vision to redirect him to Macedonia (Acts 16). When he finally submitted to God’s timing, the gospel broke into Europe! Paul wanted badly to take the gospel to Rome and to Spain, and he did - but not on his timetable. God’s long-range plan took much longer than Paul imagined it would and actually involved several years in prison. If that was true for an apostle, it is likely true for you. Timing matters.
It is hard for people who feel a call to hear this, but God is never in a hurry. He is always on time. If you are anxious about “now”, it may not be from God.
So, how do you know if you are being called? Well it involves an inner burning that won’t go out, but that is only one component. It means working through your motivations more deeply to make sure you are moving toward something and not running away. It means getting confirmation from the larger body of Christ and waiting on God’s time. If all those things line up, you can be confident that God is calling you and you need to say, “Here I am, send me.”