Called To Hard Things

Shortly after he turned 40, my friend Jason surrendered his life to Jesus. As he sought the will of the Lord in his life he heard what he believed to be an unmistakable calling from God; he was to pursue ministry. Jason was confused and wondered how this could be since he was not trained to be a pastor, he was an insurance salesman.

He continued to pray for direction. The path forward was not clear but he committed himself to doing whatever he was told. As time passed he became convinced that God wanted him to quit his good job and start a brand new company, an insurance brokerage with the heart of Jesus at the center of it.

Making good on his commitment, Jason left his job and, with the help of a partner, founded that new company. I would love to say that his business was an instant success and that they all lived happily ever after in the will of God, but that would not even be close to true. Their first year was extremely difficult. Income was scarce and his large family was forced to turn to food stamps to afford groceries, and then, in what Jason tells me was his lowest point, his car was repossessed.

You’re probably thinking that Jason likely misunderstood the call of God and acted pretty reckless by jumping straight into the deep end. Honestly, that’s what I thought when he first told me the story. That’s because I typically operate under the assumption that if someone is acting in the will of God, faithfully responding to His call, then everything will be smooth and easy and all the pieces will just miraculously fall into place.

I don’t really know where I got that idealistic view from, but what I do know is that it’s not scriptural. We don’t have to look very hard into the Bible to see that when the Lord calls someone to something, their journey is sure to be filled with challenges and hardship. Actually, it’s nearly impossible to find a single individual in those 66 books who did not encounter serious difficulty.

Consider Moses, who after giving up on what he felt he was destined to do (defend and rescue his people), resigned himself to forty years of obscurity. Then, when Moses was an old man, God showed up and called him to return to face everything he had run away from, to challenge the supreme authority of the pharaoh and then to lead millions of people into the desert without a clear plan except to somehow follow God’s lead.

That sounds hard!

The apostle Paul saw his share of difficulties too. After building a reputation as a merciless persecutor of the early church, Jesus met him on the road to Damascus and confronted his misguided, evil behavior. He then gave Paul an improbable assignment: to preach Jesus to his sworn enemies (Christians), to the Gentiles (non-Jewish people), and to kings. And the Lord didn’t leave any place for doubt that this calling would be hard, saying, “I will show him how much he [Paul] must suffer for my name.” (Acts 9:16) And suffer he did. Writing to the church in Corinth, Paul lists the unimaginable hardships he endured living out the calling that Jesus gave him:

Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches (2 Corinthians 11: 24-28).

Yes, Paul’s calling was hard.

And what about Jesus? Surely the Father would make a way for his own son so that his ministry wouldn’t be too hard, right? No. Scripture tells us that Jesus learned obedience through suffering. We see that he endured loss and rejection, he was misunderstood and undervalued, he was falsely accused and beaten, and ultimately tortured and killed. All this while being in the will of the Father and obediently living out his purpose and holy calling.

So what are we to do in light of this hard truth?

We do like Jason who, in spite of the initial hardship, continued to faithfully follow where the Lord was leading him, and today, ten years on, enjoys the blessings of owning a successful business and can share with you countless stories of miracles and ministry.

We do like Moses who, in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges, faithfully obeyed God and led Israel out of the bondage of Egypt through the wilderness and to the doorstep of the Promised Land.

We do like Paul who, at the end of his life of hardship and suffering for ministry, could boldly proclaim, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:7-8)

And we do like Jesus who, “For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:2b-3)

We lean into God and seek his will and, once we hear his clear instruction, we press on with everything we’ve got, knowing that he’ll see us through. Chances are good that there will be sacrifice and pain and loss and hurt, but in His power and by His grace, we will one day experience the deep joy and lasting satisfaction that comes only from doing that hard thing He has called us to do.

What hard thing is God calling you to today?