Pursued His Calling: What DID Jesus DO?
It was a Sunday afternoon, and we were headed back from lunch with a few of our best girlfriends. Even though we live across the road from each other, life gets in the way of us spending as much time together as we would like.
I had just agreed to host and facilitate a small group in my living room, and something about that conversation kept needling its way from my subconscious to the forefront of my mind. We were yapping away, and the pressure from that imaginary needle kept growing until I finally blurted it out despite the fact we were talking about something completely different.
“What’s up with Women’s Ministry?”
Jody stopped mid-sentence and gave me that quizzical look before asking me why I was asking.
See, the back story here is that I swore off Women’s Ministry years ago because, well, let’s be honest, it’s a lot, and women can be a lot too. Oh, and did I mention I was smack dab in the middle of writing my manuscript and preparing to launch my book baby into the world in the upcoming year? So, jumping into the women’s ministry I had sworn off years earlier smack in the middle of this very busy season seemed insane to me (and her).
We talked through the current state of the women’s ministry and made a plan for moving forward that involved a boatload of prayer for wisdom and guidance as well as some logistical steps.
When I got home from my lunch date, I looked at Russ and said, “I think I just volunteered to tackle women’s ministry again.” He gave me that same quizzical look Jody had, and just like his always supportive self, said “Okay…why?”
This had not been in my periphery.
I had not been secretly dreaming of women’s ministry.
There was no vision board at my desk with women’s ministry activities on it.
The Holy Spirit quietly started whispering the need to me, though. Then, that whisper became a bit louder, and finally, it morphed into a gentle nudge that ultimately became a shove. That’s how it works with me. I’m not great at jumping to action as soon as I start to hear that still, small voice.
Sometimes, I need a shove.
And, oftentimes, those closest to me look at me with those quizzical expressions–which is how I always know the nudge was from the Spirit and not from me.
And, sometimes, other people can’t quite understand what it is God is nudging in your life.
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Jesus and his “Home” boys
There’s this story that Luke tells about Jesus’s first trip back to Nazareth after he began his ministry that makes me chuckle every time I read it. You might not even know it because I feel like it isn’t exactly the topic of very many sermons.
Jesus had just shown up in his hometown synagogue on the Sabbath and stood and read from Isaiah 58 and 61, explaining that he had come as the fulfillment of those prophecies. Luke tells us what happens after this revelation:
Everyone was impressed by how well Jesus spoke, in awe of the beautiful words of grace that came from his lips. But they said among themselves, “Who does he think he is? Isn’t he Joseph’s son, who grew up here in Nazareth?”
Jesus said to them, “I suppose you’ll quote me the proverb, ‘Doctor, go and heal yourself before you try to heal others.’ And you’ll say, ‘Work the miracles here in your hometown that we heard you did in Capernaum.’ But let me tell you, no prophet is welcomed or honored in his own hometown.
Luke 4:22-23 TPT
I can picture this scene. Here’s 30ish-year-old Jesus who has been over in Capernaum being all miraculous when he decides to return home with his impressive reputation. I’d say he strolled into the synagogue, but I’m not sure Jesus was much of a stroller–you know with the humility and all. He gets up and reads these prophecies, proclaiming he’s the fulfillment. His reputation had preceded him, but, still, he was standing in front of his peers he grew up with, their parents, their families, and his former religious leaders.
I can see them elbowing each other as he’s speaking and whispering to one another, “Hey, isn’t that Joseph’s son?” Or maybe, “I thought he was a carpenter???” And possibly, “I thought I hadn’t seen him around these last few months…that’s Joseph’s oldest, right?”
They were caught between the familiarity of the man in front of them and the beautiful words of grace and truth he spoke to them.
Oh, the humanity of it all.
Jesus responded to the whispers and questions of his hometown crowd by acknowledging their desires for him and pitting them against the truth–that he would not, in fact, be working those miracles in his hometown and that no prophet is welcome in his hometown. He would be going to non-Jewish people, the people his friends, family, and faith community hated–with his miracles and his grace.
I can’t imagine how hard this conversation must have been for Jesus– to stand in front of the friends, family, peers, and teachers he had known his entire life and explain he wasn’t here for them, knowing how they would respond.
He grew up with these people in this community. They knew him. They had grown up with him, and, yet what God was calling him to was something they couldn’t understand and that would provoke a violent response in them.
Luke tells us:
When everyone present heard Jesus’ words, they erupted with furious rage. They mobbed Jesus and threw him out of the city, dragging him to the edge of the cliff on the hill on which the city had been built, ready to hurl him off. But he walked right through the crowd, leaving them all stunned.
Luke 4:28-30 TPT
This wasn’t just a small reaction to Christ’s words. This was a full-on mob.
They threw him out of the city
They dragged him to the edge of a cliff
They wanted to throw him off the cliff
They didn’t understand.
God had a calling for Christ, and his hometown buddies, schoolmates, teachers, and family members couldn’t understand it, and it made them furious.
Even though I’m sure it was hard, and that he hurt some of the people he loved, admired, and even looked up to in the process, Jesus followed his calling anyway.
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When People Don’t Understand our Purpose
I am a recovering people-pleaser. I spent years working tirelessly to keep everyone happy and attempt to never disappoint anyone. Sometimes, that meant sacrificing my purpose and calling for the sake of others’ happiness and contentment.
Here’s what I’ve learned about the nudges of the Holy Spirit and the consistent whispering of that still small voice–sometimes people aren’t going to understand, support, or even acknowledge what it is God is leading you to.
And, that’s okay.
Hopefully, they won’t be like Jesus’s hometown crowd and throw you out of town and drag you to a cliff to try to throw you over, but sometimes it can feel like that is happening to you mentally and emotionally when you faithfully pursue your purpose and your passion.
Our humanity urges us to:
Make ourselves and our purpose/passions seem smaller
Apologize for what we’re being called to do
Pander to other people to keep them happy
Put other people and their passions/purpose above our own
Lessen what God has accomplished and will accomplish through us
Wrestle with imposter syndrome
Placate those around us even when it is contrary to our purpose/passion
I am guilty of all of these.
Every single one.
But, just because we might have struggled with these things in the past or are even struggling with them now, when we turn our eyes to Jesus, we see something completely different modeled.
We see Jesus unashamedly fulfilling his purpose/passion/calling without apology.
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Your Friends aren’t your Fans
One of the very first things I learned as an author is that my friends aren’t my fans.
To be honest, I didn’t like the concept then, and I still don’t like it much now.
It’s in our nature to want our friends to be our fans in all areas of our lives–especially where our purpose/passion/calling is concerned.
The reality, though, is that just might not be in the cards for us.
Our friends might be the closest members of our circles, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to understand what God is calling us to pursue or our passions, and the odds are even less likely that they’re going to be the target audience for your specific calling/purpose/passion.
Real talk–my own dad doesn’t even follow my social media accounts.
This is my life.
We talk every day.
He gives me non-stop crap about getting my manuscript done.
He listens to me rant about religion.
But, he’s not my target audience.
And, that’s okay. I still love him and only sort of give him endless crap about it. At least he’s not trying to throw me out of town or over a cliff for it!
Thankfully, I don’t have to dread my interactions with him like I’m sure Jesus dreaded his interaction in the synagogue that day. I’m sure he would have rathered his hometown crowd patted him on the back, told him they understood his calling, and loved him anyway.
But, they didn’t.
And, he survived it.
I remember when my purpose in life was a complete faith deconstruction. I didn’t turn to my circle or those closest to me. I found like-minded people and experts who understood the fire God was walking me through. I didn’t go to my faith community or my family because they couldn’t understand the crucible God was using to refine me and my faith.
And, I survived it.
I don’t know what it is that God is nudging you toward right now, but I know the odds are likely that not everyone in your family/friend group is going to understand it. I know this, though–if God is calling you to it, and nudging you toward it, you need to move.
Regardless of what your friends say.
Because your friends are not your fans.
Your fans are:
The people God is calling you to minister to
The other survivors deconstructing their faith
The least of these you’re going to serve
The children you’re going to help
The readers whose lives are going to be changed
Our human nature makes us desperate for validation from those we love and those closest to us, but sometimes when we follow what God is calling us toward, we don’t get that validation. Instead, we get the same reaction Jesus received from those in his hometown–anger, questioning, and even disgust.
That doesn’t change the fact that we have to follow God’s leading and the Spirit’s nudges.
That can be really hard and exceptionally lonely, but it will always be worth it in the end.
Friend, I don’t know what it is that God is calling you to pursue today, but I know that if he has taken the time to whisper it to you in that still small voice or to give you some gentle nudges from the Holy Spirit, then you need to listen and to follow.
Because that’s what Jesus not only would do, it’s what Jesus DID do.
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Reflections:
Who are the people in your life that question everything God calls you toward?
What is the Holy Spirit nudging you toward that not everyone seems to understand?
Who are the people in your circle you need to get comfortable upsetting/making angry as you follow God’s leading?
Who are your fans? Who is God calling you to help in this season?
