Responding to Your Call
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON SEPTEMBER 18, 2020
I talk a lot about purpose on both my blog and on my social media, but it’s with reason. I believe that discovering your design in the Kingdom of God is the most exciting and fulfilling part of walking in faith. However, the journey there is not as glamorous as it may appear. Oftentimes when God calls us to greater, it’s not clear/lined out and there will be levels of things we must forsake or turn away from to be elevated. Let’s take it to the Bible to expand on that.
I’m sure many have heard of the whole mess that is Abraham’s story. I say mess because too often Biblical characters are romanticized and stripped of their humanity. Abraham’s journey to the man of faith we know him as now was less than perfect and knowing that may help you identify with him even more. However, Abraham’s story is perfect to use when discussing what a response to a call from God looks like. I don’t plan to touch on Abraham’s whole life with this blog post since it’s a lot to cover. His story extends through Genesis 25 and even then, he is mentioned several times in the New Testament. He is an extremely influential Biblical player who deserves more than a six-minute evaluation. For now, I just want to closely look at Genesis 12, more specifically verses 1-3. In these verses, God speaks to Abram (pre-name change) and asks him— no, COMMANDS him— to leave his native country, his people, and his father’s household to the land that will be shown.
I hope this post will further explain what it means to forsake everything for a calling and what it looks like to be obedient in doing so.
The beginning of Genesis 12 is very straightforward so let’s take a look back at what has led us here:
At the beginning of Genesis 11, we are introduced to a post-flood world where everyone speaks the same language. Unified in this way, the people came to a consensus that they would build a tower to Heaven because they wanted to “make a name for themselves” (Genesis 11:4). Civilization was prideful— using man-made bricks instead of God-provided stone to accomplish their goal.
Let’s stay there for a moment and do some deep reflections.
What God had given them, the stone, is hard to disfigure and stands the test of time. But sometimes, like the people of Babel, we see the vision and try to create it with our bricks which are not as withstanding as God’s stone. We must be conscious of our human tendency to be self-dependent when responding to our call because a call never comes without divine provision. It’s that provision alone that will build something strong enough to stand for centuries to come. Also, as you may conclude from the life of Abraham, our self-dependence hinders our ability to leave behind all God has asked us to and walk on faith alone.
Moving forward, at the end of chapter 11, we are given the genealogy of Abram. It is in this genealogy that we find what Abram was called to shift. I highly recommend going back to this genealogy and diving deep into Abram’s history. It’s always important to look back to the generations leading up to your birth so that you may better understand why you are here and what you’ve been called to shift.
This genealogy is what leads us into chapter 12 with the call. Now God, choosing Abram to create a generational shift, asks him to leave those three things I mentioned earlier. These things can fundamentally be seen as aspects of our culture— our customs or traditions that have led us to waver from Kingdom living. I want to explain what these levels may look like in your life so that you, like Abram, may be able to walk into the land God will show you:
1. Your Native Country
Our country refers to our identity and who we are in spirit. All of the physical identifiers or origins that have profound impacts on us are classified as our country. This may be your nationality or your birth home which you have held to high significance in your life. These identities may also be things we assumed along the way to fit in wherever we have found ourselves. For example, you may see yourself as Haitian first or Black first. Or maybe you pride in your identity as a New Yorker or Californian. However, as followers of Christ, our primary identity should always be children of God.
2. Your People
Your people signify community and culture at large. This includes the accepted views of society that you have played into or any societal norms. The idea of deviance in our world today is almost always dependent on unspoken and man-made guidelines. However, to walk into calling, we must leave behind the notions and restrictions of society. There are no human limitations to spirit therefore as children of God, we must rid of these imposed concepts of right vs. wrong/sound vs. irrational and rely on God’s standard. Also, God’s call for your life may frustrate such patterns. So, if you rely on them, you will be discouraged from moving forward.
3. Your Father’s Household
Your father’s household refers to generational patterns that have been passed down to you. These patterns dictate the way you operate, whether you realize it or not. You may be clinging to past traumas or feel limited by generational curses. However, the Kingdom of God overlooks all of that when assigning you to a calling. As I mentioned before, it’s important to know what you have come from/were born into so that you can better understand what you’ve been called to shift. Breaking away from your father’s household has more to do with leaving behind spiritual attachments rather than turning away from your actual family.
Forsaking all three levels essentially equates to having a funeral for your past self and all you’ve come to know. But this is not expected before the promise. In Genesis 12, Abram was called to “the land,” or the purpose/calling, before his name was changed to Abraham. However, it was through his obedience that he was able to reap the fruits of the promise; the fruit of which we benefit to this day. Obedience is not all about you or about bettering yourself. Rather, we become blessings for others. In that way, God’s name is glorified. It is then that God will make our name great.
God didn’t describe the extent of His promise. He simply says that Abram will be shown this promise. The same can be said about your calling. Maybe you’ve figured it out but don’t know where it’s supposed to take you. Understand that such is not for us to know because it is bigger than we could ever imagine. Too often we focus on the deliverance and skip the process. Focus on being obedient. Focus on forsaking your country, your people, and your father’s household so that you can be led to the land of abundant blessing.
