Vocation vs Job

Over the summer I took a class called Servant Leadership and I loved it!! Anyone in a leadership role of any kind needs to take a course in servant leadership or at least do some reading about it. Robert Greenleaf first coined that phrase in the 70’s and it is fully discussed in his many books.

For the class I took over the summer, one of the books we had to read was called The Congruent Life. In a section of the book, the author, C. Michael Thompson, discusses the difference between a vocation and a job. He describes vocation as our passion/God's calling in our life, while a job is what we do to simply pay the bills.

Thompson also includes a section of Frederick Buechner's writing and within it is one of my favorite quotes where Buechner is talking about a vocation as “the place God calls you.” Buechner says, "The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet" (p. 41). What a beautiful description, right?

Ultimately, wherever we are in life, our primary call is to love, seek & worship God while sharing His love and glory with others. However, when it comes to working, how nice to be able to work in your vocation (as Buechner describes it) as opposed to simply working at a job.

Personally, I am still searching for my vocation. I have never been someone who knew from a young age what she wanted to do, nor have I been motivated to seek a job that will bring lots of monetary gain. Rather, I've always wanted to do something that aligns with my faith and something that I believe brings good/help to others. I don't really know what that is for me yet - maybe missions, maybe charity work? I must admit I am really enjoying teaching this semester - so maybe that will be my calling - we'll see.

I don't feel stress about this because I know that the LORD will guide me down the paths He wishes during the times that He chooses. So there is no need for me to stress or rush anything. In the meantime, I'll just keep seeking the LORD while reflecting on Buechner's quote -- "the place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet."