Martin Luther, that giant of the Protestant Reformation, confessed, “Next to faith, this is the greatest art: to be content with the calling in which God has placed you.” This raises a few questions to ponder:

• How content are you with your gifts and talents?
• Is it okay to have certain gifts and not others?
• How well do you know and accept your limits?

I know of two businessmen that were each installed as elders at a church. Both of those men resisted the decisions of their pastor strongly and led to the pastor’s resignation and ultimate demise of the church, which is no longer in existence.

Later those two leaders both confessed, independently, that they had felt a call to ministry early on in their lives and felt like they missed God. Either they did not have the gift of pastoring, or they were disobedient to the call. Yet they both felt they had the authority to make pastoral decisions for the church without shouldering the responsibility.

They did not value the calling God gave them, but sought out a calling they desired. And it backfired!

Identify your true calling and stay faithful. And do not step into a calling that is not yours. Doing so can cause great harm to the Body of Christ.

Tags: contentment, gifts, Luther