Blake left his high-level corporate job at a Fortune 500 company to join Man in the Mirror, thinking a calling to serve God meant he needed to go into ministry. Like Blake (name disguised), many men who ache to pursue something “higher” assume it requires a drastic career change. But that is rarely the case.

At our Bible study, he soon learned an invaluable truth: God makes no distinction between sacred and secular callings. As Francis Schaeffer once said, “A ministry such as teaching the Bible in a college is no higher calling intrinsically than being a businessman or something else.”

Calling is not just about “what” we do but “how” we do it. Blake’s journey reveals a common misconception: that true service to God requires leaving the secular world. But Scripture offers a different perspective. In 1 Corinthians 7:17, Paul says, “Each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them, just as God has called them.” For 99% of men, a calling means staying right where you are—approaching work, relationships, and responsibilities with a new, Christ-centered orientation.

A year later, Blake returned to his role in strategic planning, where he’s thrived ever since. He didn’t need to change his profession to serve God; he needed to change his heart and approach. Calling is not defined by where you work, but by who you are and how you live.

To help discover your own calling, consider these three steps:

1. Identify Your Natural and Spiritual Gifts: Begin by reflecting on your talents and skills. These are clues to the work God designed you for. Understanding your spiritual gifts further clarifies how God has uniquely equipped you to serve Him. Using a spiritual gifts assessment can be a helpful step in identifying this core aspect of your calling. Determining Your Spiritual Gifts Assessment Tool (articles)
2. Follow the Seven Means of Guidance: Discerning God’s will isn’t always easy. The seven means include the Bible, prayer, the Holy Spirit, conscience, circumstances, wise counsel, and fasting. Each provides insight that guides you toward clarity and purpose in your calling.
3. Embrace God’s Equipping Season: Often, our sense of calling comes with a season of waiting and preparation. My own calling is “to take God’s message of love to a broken generation.” But I didn’t really understand it until ten years later. Even the prophet Jeremiah, who felt God’s word as “a burning fire shut up in his bones” that he was weary of holding in (Jeremiah 20:9), faced trials and delays. God uses these seasons to shape us, equipping us for what lies ahead.

Imagine the joy of Eric Liddell, who said in the classic movie, Chariots of Fire, “When I run, I feel His pleasure.” A calling isn’t just a job title; it’s a deeply fulfilling purpose that aligns us with God’s will.

Of all the things I have learned working with men, nothing is more important for a man than to have a reason to get out of bed in the morning. Your calling is what will give you a reason to get out of bed.

So, whatever roles you occupy—as a husband, father, worker, churchman, or citizen—embrace your calling and, each morning, let it be a burning fire shut up in your bones that you are weary of holding in.