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Sermon Illustrations: Calling
Anecdotes
A man asked his pastor, "If Jesus knew Judas was going to betray Him, why did He call him in the first place?" The pastor answered, "I don't know, but here's a harder question: Why did He call me?"
Gina (not her real name) had a call to go to the mission field. She had it all worked out. She'd train as a nurse and that would put her in a prime position to be able to get into a lot of countries. Then along came Simon (not his real name either). She fell in love and they got engaged. Only problem was that Simon was very clear that he felt no call to go to the mission field. Not long afterwards, a man came to their church to minister. As he was praying for her, God gave him a word: "You are called to the mission field. God wants you to know that the person whom you are planning to marry will lead you away from that calling." What to do? Choose the good thing and marry this guy, or break it off so that she could attain to God's best? I'm sorry to say she married him. Sometimes the choice isn't between good and evil, it's between good and best. But the prophecy was true. Not only did she turn away from her calling, she also turned away from the Lord.
As a young woman, Betty met a man in Bible College and they fell in love. It wasn't long before they were engaged. Then she felt the call to go to Africa as a missionary. He also felt called to be a missionary - but not to Africa. It was a difficult decision, she broke off the engagement. Why? She sacrificed something good so she could attain to God's best.
David the anointed non-professional looked at Goliath and saw the God of Israel as a giant and Goliath as a dwarf. He said, "Thank God he's so big. My stones can't miss him." Whereas Eliab, the unanointed professional saw Goliath as a giant and himself as a dwarf. Reinhard Bonnke
Just like a ship sailing off course, you only need to be 10% off in your calling to miss the mark.
Quotes
God doesn?t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.
God doesn?t call the equipped; He equips the called.
My call is before any of my faults, and my call is greater than any of my faults. Tom Moffatt
The difference between your ability and your calling is the grace of God. Mark Driscoll