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VOCATION


"The ordinary routine of making a living, going shopping, being a good citizen, and spending time with one's family, are spheres in which God is at work, through human means. Luther described the various occupations - parenthood, farming, laborers, soldiers, judges, retailers, and the like - as all being "masks of God."

...In the Lord's Prayer, we ask that God give us our daily bread, which He does. He does so, not directly as with the manna to the Israelites, but through the work of farmers, truck drivers, bakers, retailers, and many more. In fact, He gives us our daily bread through the functioning of the whole accompanying economic system - employers and employees, banks and investors, the transportation infrastructure and technological means of production - each part of which is interdependent and necessary, if we are going to eat.

Each part of this economic food chain is a vocation, through which God works to distribute His gifts." Veith



What is God's will for my life?

What is the Christian life supposed to be and look like?

Don't most Christian lives look rather ordinary?

Ever ask yourself these, or similar, questions? Ever wonder what life as a Christian is all about?

Are you looking for a comprehensive doctrine of the Christian life?




The Doctrine of Vocation answers these questions.



Steven Hein states that Vocation: "

grants an individual a particular standing and position in relation to others within a community. Moreover, it defines how one meaningfully participates in and contributes to the life of the community. In other words, our vocation tells us who we are within our social structures of life and what kind of duties we are to be about for the welfare of the community. These features of life make demands on us to live lives of faith and faithfulness. We must trust our standing to live securely as a member and our faith is expressed, in part, by faithfully being about the tasks that are associated with our peculiar station in the community.”


Dr. Gene Veith, in his book God at Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life, states:

"It is odd that such a liberating, life-enhancing doctrine has become all but forgotten in our time, passed over in our seminaries, sermons, and Bible classes. But the doctrine of vocation makes up an important part of the spiritual heritage that contemporary Christians have, unfortunately, cut themselves off from and are in such great need of recovering. It is more than an understanding of work, more than the slogan that we should do all things for the glory of God, more than a vague theological platitude.

… the doctrine of vocation amounts to a comprehensive doctrine of the Christian life, having to do with faith and sanctification, grace and good works. It is key to Christian ethics. It shows how Christians can influence their culture. It transfigures ordinary, everyday life with the presence of God.”



ARTICLES

Luther on Vocatio: Ordinary Life for Ordinary Saints


Locus and Focus: God’s Will for Your Daily Life



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