Embrace the Calling

Scripture

Luke 4:42-43
"Now when it was day, He departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowd sought Him and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from leaving; but He said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent."

Observation

Jesus was baptized and then He was tempted in the wilderness by Satan. After this happened Jesus started His Galilean ministry. During His Galilean ministry Jesus performed many miracles. He even proclaimed that He was the Messiah. This was not taken well and He was cast out of His hometown, this was pretty indicative of how many of the religious leaders treated him. He was in essence treated as a Gentile and cast out. As Jesus left His hometown and continued performing miracles, He started gaining popularity, but as we see in Verse 42-43, Jesus wasn't content to take His popularity and stay put. Jesus knew that He had a calling and that He had to continue to "preach the kingdom of God to the other cities".

Application

This is really hitting home, mainly because I know that I am popular around my church and with my friends. Honestly one of the main reasons I am popular is because of my ability to cook. Now I am not saying that Jesus performing miracles and me cooking are even close to the same thing, but I do know that getting stuck in one place (ministry), because you are good at it, can draw us away from the calling that God has on our lives. For me this verse is important because it is a great reminder that just because I am comfortable and doing something that makes me happy, it doesn't mean that it is the will of God that I continue to do it. It is important that I keep seeking God's will, so that I am able to fully embrace the calling on my life. Maybe I was sent to ALFC to cook, or maybe I was sent to ALFC to learn how to preach the kingdom of God throughout the world.

Prayer

Father God, Only you know why you created me. I pray that you continue to show me my calling and allow me to grow into the man of God that you want me to be. I ask that you show me where you want me to serve and how you want to use me in the kingdom.