Calling and Purpose: A Frame of Mind

For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen. ~ Romans 11:36

My husband and I understand that as Christians we became new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17) and our life purpose could never be like before. Our eternity starts once we put our trust and have a relationship with the eternal God even though our bodily presence is still confined in this sin-laden world.

God loves us and it is such an awesome reality for us to know Him, worship Him, love Him and have a growing relationship with Him.  However, beyond that vertical call towards Him, what are we to do in this fallen and broken world?

For example, as a businessman, my husband knew that profit and bottom line should no longer be his end anymore. To merely profit-seeking or have a simplistic thinking (just be an honest Christian) could lead to frustrations, compromises and hypocrisies. It has been a discovery and sanctification journey to find the new biblical motivation, ambition and objective for his enterprise beyond simply having a godly integrity in his business dealings.

Similarly, as a mother, I knew that my objective is no longer to raise successful kids from the worldly standpoint and that my drive should not be fueled by my fierce selfish love for my kids. Therefore, I also need to replace my motivation, ambition and objective for my daughters with biblical ones, otherwise, I will risk a life of fruitlessness (from God’s standpoint), despair and worries.

We need to understand God’s heart and plan so we can live out His true calling for us, which I believe will also lead us towards a full, flourishing and abundant life that Jesus promised, employing our full unique self and realizing the reason of our creation (John 10:10).

Alternatively, not having the right biblical understanding and frame of mind will lead us to the tragedy of a wasted life, squandered talent, inner frustrations, missed opportunities to glorify God and to experience Him more through doing His bidding.

Ephesians 2:10: For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

The Frame of Mind: Stewarding + Redeeming and Restoring

Throughout the Bible, God’s heart for the poor, the vulnerable, and for the Church (His bride) is evident, signifying the work for us to do. He wants us to use all the things He gives and invests in us to bring glory to Him and blessings to others.

Stewarding

Even before the Fall, God already gave us the charge of a steward. The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it (Genesis 1:27-28, 2:15; Psalm 8:6). God is the owner of everything, we are the stewards of His creation and gifts. This God-ordained responsibility is a privilege because we are created in His image.

A simple example from the Bible of a person stewarding her talents to be fruitful is the story of Dorcas. She was a gifted woman with a knack of sewing and her creations had blessed many widows in her community. Other examples: on many occasions, my spirit is lifted up by my dear friends who are talented cooking aficionados, their creations have blessed me. And friends with the gifts of encouragement always draw us close whenever we need an extra boost of courage to persevere.

There are indeed endless possibilities of how we can steward the creations and the talents to contribute to our local church body and our communities at large. All kinds of different gifts and talents used for God can manifest beautifully, permeating their surrounding with wholesomeness, godliness and loveliness that is heavenly.

We must have the mindset of a steward with all the material resources, the blessings of children, family and relationships, talents, interests, gifts, time and experiences we have on earth. All the things He weaves within us, entrusts to us and puts around us are to be stewarded. They are technically not ours and we will give a reckoning to the rightful Owner when the time comes.

God wants us to be the good and faithful stewards when we cultivate His creation and blessings, so everything will multiply and become fruitful. The well-known parables of stewardship are in Matthew 25:14-30 and Luke 19:12-27.

Mark 13:34: It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

John 15:16: You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last.

1 Peter 4:10: Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

Redeeming and Restoring

After the Fall, there is an additional important task. It is being part of God’s redemption plan for His creation, His people and His institutions, restoring everything back to its original design. That is the mission for all Christians, restoring all the broken relationships between God, men and creation.

We need to capture the full, grand, amazing scope of Jesus’ redemptive work. For Jesus came preaching not just this gospel of personal justification but the gospel of the kingdom. Jesus’ work is not exclusively about our individual salvation, but about the cosmic redemption and renewal of all things. It is not just about our reconciliation to a holy God… it is also about our reconciliation with one another and with the creation itself.¹

Acts 3:21: Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.

1 Chronicles 29:11: for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.

Colossians 1:16-17, 19-20: All things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Sin is not only marring our relationship with Him, but it is also wreaking havoc in every aspect of creation. We can see the trails of brokenness from the core of our hearts dispersing to every human institution and the physical environment.

So if there is any relationship, any principle, any effort, or any area of life, private or public, that is not operating according to the Kingdom’s values and designs, as His servants we are to bring those areas back under the Lordship of Christ with His grace, love, wisdom and saving power.

What It Means for Us…

For my husband, to have the stewarding, redeeming and restoring frame of mind in his business means:

• Direct his business, products and services to solve actual problems in the world and society, as its mission of value creation. Profit is a mere outcome of how much value the business creates by solving the world’s and society’s problems. Profit is used to sustain the enterprise.
• Instill godly values as core conduct of the enterprise so that whoever becomes a member of the enterprise will grow holistically, flourish and be blessed by Christ and the Christian values.
• Use the relationships with employees, business partners, suppliers, customers and government as a platform to reach out and share Kingdom values, love, and the Good News of Christ.

For myself, to have the stewarding, redeeming and restoring frame of mind with my children means:

• Acknowledging my daughters are not mine, their true Owner knows what they are made of and He loves them much more than I ever could.
• I don’t raise them up for my pride and glory but for the glory of their Creator.
• They are entrusted to me to care for a (temporary) time.
• I seek directions and guidance from Him when making decisions concerning them. The best thing I can do as their parent is to pray for them.
• I am faithfully observing how God made them taking in their personalities and the things they gravitate to as clues on how I should prepare them for life (Luke 2:19, 51b).
• I give them knowledge and training on what is true and what is right. I teach and give them access to the Word. I facilitate to bring them into their own relationship with the Lord.
• I entrust them to His sovereign care and protection. Be wary of worries and disappointments that can go out of proportion. I can be content and at peace in all circumstances.

This stewarding, redeeming and restoring mentality should be ingrained in whatever roles, circumstances and professions we are in. Everything we do is ultimately for His glory, not to glorify ourselves or His creation.

Habakkuk 2:14: For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Working Together: A Battlefield Illustration

1 Corinthians 12:5-6: There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

I have this favorite illustration in my mind; the stage is a battlefield scene. In this huge warfare backdrop, Christ is the commander-in-chief and we are His soldiers. Battles are all around: battles in the marriages, in the homes, in the workplace, in the church, in missions, in media, in education, in the marketplace, in the governing bodies, etc. We work and fight to steward, redeem and restore a particular area assigned to us.

Christ might call us to different battles, but we are all in the same big war. It is the different burdens and circumstances He put in our heart and life that put us in different battlefields (mission fields; spheres).

Then within that certain battlefield, He will equip us with the appropriate unique gifts and talents; some in archery, some in cavalry, some use chariots, some manage logistics, some in strategy, etc.

Everyone has their task and assignment in front of them. We are to be faithful in our posts, awaiting and carrying instructions from the Chief. When we see other brothers and sisters in Christ fighting in different spheres (battlefields), we acknowledge, encourage and appreciate their different contributions for the Kingdom.

We steadfastly stewarding, redeeming and restoring with fellow brothers and sisters until our time on earth ends or Christ comes again to win the war definitively and restore everything.

My questions for you are: how does this stewarding, redeeming and restoring frame of mind translate to your current circumstances of life? Does it glorify God and bless others?

Ephesians 4:1: I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.

2 Thessalonians 1:11: With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith.

*A related post is Calling and Purpose: The Sacred Romance.

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¹ Sherman, Amy L. Kingdom Calling. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2011, p. 67.