Viagra vs Vocation

“Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”    Romans 10:17   NIV

 

feet

photo: Renae Bowman

 

 

 

It caught me off guard the other day, but I wasn’t overly surprised.   It seems to be the norm now.

 

It was an ad I heard.

 

An ad for Viagra.

 

It was the standard info we’ve all heard—the little blue pill for, well, a man’s problem.

 

But where I heard it, is what caught me off guard.

 

Pandora—A favorite online music “radio” site, where a person sets up their favorite artist and genre library.

 

Specifically, it was in-between my mix of Christian music.

 

Smack dab between MercyMe and Third Day. An unlikely place for such an ad.

 

There it was, a British-accented woman’s voice telling any man listening, to have a conversation with their doctor if things weren’t working right.

 

It happened right after thoughts of Heaven played through my mind, where I could only imagine what it will be like to be with Jesus someday.

 

What a dichotomy it was.

 

One moment I’m lost in the thought of Heaven and the next I’m drawn back into the workings of Earth.

 

Ever happen to you?

 

I wasn’t too happy at that moment.

 

But God reminded me. . .

 

That’s exactly what this Christian “thing” is all about.

 

The two worlds will collide.

They will always collide.

 

The worldly lives we lead will always come up against the heavenly world we seek.

 

In the midst of everything seeming upside down—when things don’t make sense and when bad is good and good is bad, we are called to something else.

 

And there is where Jesus gives us our assignment. The Great Commission.  Our vocation if you will.

 

“He (Jesus) said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.’” Mark 16:15

 

The them…you.

 

The world…your little circle.

 

The message…Jesus Saves.

 

We’re not meant to be locked away behind tall walls spending our days on kneeling benches wearing out the wood, and our knees. We are meant to be in the world, wearing out the soles of our shoes.

 

Go out into all the world.

 

But Renae, you don’t know my life. You don’t know how crazy it is. I don’t have time or the ability to follow the Great Commission. I’m barely breathing for crying out loud. I barely get out of the door in the morning and then back again at night dragging every limb I have. That commission thing is for someone else—God surely doesn’t mean me—after all he gave me these kids, gave me this family, gave me this job, gave me this routine.

 

And that is my point!

 

Sometimes I believe we over think this whole Great Commission thing.

 

Maybe “all the world” is simply the other parent you’re sitting next to at your kid’s sports event. Maybe it’s the person in the cubicle next to yours. Maybe it’s the neighbor next door. Maybe it’s that spouse sitting next to you on the couch.  Your circle.  Your world.

 

Some of us aren’t cut out to be missionaries in the danger spots of the world, but all of us are cut out to be mercenaries for Christ right where we are.

 

Need an example? Some of Jesus’ greatest stories and events happened in the most unlikely of places—along the road, at the watering holes, in the markets, at house parties, on the beach—He never missed an opportunity with the people around him.

 

I obviously don’t know the commission God’s giving you, but I do know you’ve been given one. If you say you are a follower of Christ, then you have a commission, plain and simple. It was THE last command Jesus gave to His followers before He ascended into heaven. He meant it for real. He meant it for us.

 

So when your worlds collide between Heaven and Earth, take heart. That is when your great commission is happening. That is when the time is right to show a Savior to a sinner, a healer for the hurting, or a prayer for a persecutor.

Apostle Paul challenges us with questions for those that don’t know Christ (Romans 10:14):

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in?

And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?

And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?

And how can they preach unless they are sent?

As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’”

 

So, I’ll go on dreaming of heaven, but when I’m harshly reminded about the earthly things in between, I need to remember those times of life will have the greatest impact for His Forever Kingdom. It is the great commission we have been called to. It’s all in how we get the job done.

4 Replies

  1. Lori perez

    All I can say is AMEN sister.

    1. And Lori, back to you sister!! wink, wink.

  2. Chrissy

    Hi Renae! I so look forward to your posts every other week. I only wish that they were EVERY week. This title certainly caught my eye. It was just “edgy” enough to grab you and get you to start reading. Great job Renae! 😀

    1. Thank you Chrissy!! Yeah, a little “edgy” but that’s this world we live in, right? But we’re called to take the edge off—oh I like that, just came to me. Thanks for stopping by and reading.

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