Editorial: Following God’s Call – A Review
Growing up, I heard a lot of chatter about “Following God’s Call.” At some point, I figured I had to try it for myself. After all, I learned that God knows everything and desires to be in a relationship with us. Surely following the call He made would make a lot of sense.
Boy, was I wrong on that front! The first part of God’s call was easy enough to follow – He called me, very simply, to follow Him. That made so much sense that I could do it as a preschooler. Now, the part that required me to actually follow Him was a little more tricky, but as God worked to conform me more to His image, He was with me every step of the way.
In the early part of my experience of Following God’s Call, the positive results were obvious. It sure didn’t help me win popularity contests, but I started to grow what they call “the fruit of the Spirit.” By the grace of God, I learned to love my neighbor (and my enemy), show compassion, and empathize with those experiencing deep hurt and loss. I was discipled to read the Bible and pray. All of this continues to be pretty great, but Following God’s Call got more complicated when I was a teenager.
I was at a youth conference, obeying the call of God to follow Him, just minding my own business. But then, one night, He gave me another call – or added a new dimension to that original call. He asked me to join Him in ministry. What does this mean?? My 13-year-old brain could not comprehend what this would look like.
As I continued to follow the Lord, I gained a deeper appreciation for sports. Within a couple of years, I learned about sports ministry, and that my university of choice offered it as a concentration. This is it, I thought, thank you, Lord, for giving me clarity! Surprise, surprise, it wasn’t that simple. While I greatly enjoyed my sports ministry studies, His call was different than I expected. Rather than calling me right into ministry through athletics, He called me to… seminary.
This was truly unexpected. After some wise counsel and much prayer, I ended up at Asbury Theological Seminary. Surely, time at seminary 9 hours from everything I know will give clarity on God’s call to ministry, I thought. Kind of, but not really. I learned a lot at seminary and gained lifelong friends – I also got more comfortable with not knowing exactly what the Lord was calling me to do.
And so, I have come to this point. After a summer of praying and waiting (and declining a couple job offers), I find myself preparing to pastor a tiny church a little over an hour from where I grew up. There is much of this I wouldn’t have guessed when I first tried Following God’s Call. I still don’t fully know what I’m doing – but I trust Him.
I am happy to give Following God’s Call a five-star review. It isn’t always easy or clear, but walking with Him is always good. I highly recommend Following God’s Call – you’re in for an adventure!
This article is by Julia Hotchkiss, Alumni Link Editor.
Leave a Reply