Toward Vocation

So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three-thousand souls. And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. Acts 2:41-42

...each according to the measure of faith which God has assigned him. For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we, though many, are one in body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them... Romans 12:3-5

Often, we think of ourselves first of all in relation to the way that we provide for our and our family’s needs. We might hear some appreciative wife state that her husband “is a good provider.” While, certainly, this is a good thing, is this the starting place for our values? How does our Lord Christ think of us? Does what we do in our professions truly make us who we are?

Father Andrew has some helpful words in this regard.

There are three ways in which we can look at what we do as an occupation, a profession, or a vocation. Roughly speaking, our occupation is that which we do because we think we will or because we have nothing better to do; our profession is that which we are paid to do.  But our vocation is that which we do because we believe the great God, Who gave us our mind and intellect and affections and every part of our being, is calling us to use all that He has given us in harmony with Him, to glorify Him, and to express His beauty in our life.

Our Lord had His times of recreation, when He went to the marriage-feast at Cana, or the house of His friends at Bethany.  But all the while He was doing the will of God.  His occupations were lifted to the level of vocation.  He had His profession.  He was a carpenter, and doubtless a very good carpenter.  But His profession all the while was fulfilled in obedience to, and to the glory of, His Father.  Again, to the Scribes and the Pharisees their religion was their profession, and to many people it is just an occupation, but our Lord’s religion was always a vocation.  He went to His prayer with a sense that He was called to it.  He came from His prayer with a sense that all His life was to be lived in communion with His Father.

Father Andrew’s astute observations coincide with the words of Jesus when he detailed and explained the futility of life associated with mere existence and self-provision in Matthew chapter 6:

For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.

We must pray that our religion may never drop into being occupation or profession, but that the occupation and profession and the whole of life may be lifted to the level of vocation, that God’s Holy Spirit ‘may in all things direct and rule our hearts.’ (Father Andrew, Meditations, pg. 257)

May our prayer and aim be that our Kingdom vocations will saturate and direct how we occupy ourselves in the created order and engage the professions to which we are tasked. When we see everything in our lives as Kingdom energy, our discernment grows.

-Father Tom