Now I knew my purpose was to serve (help) others. And I knew that ‘HOW’ has changed throughout my life. But I wasn’t aware that purpose is the same for all Christians. And I was clueless about the meaning of calling until recently.
We all have the same purpose. Our purpose is to serve others and glorify God. Purpose is general and calling is a speciality or role. The purpose is the destination and how to get there is through our calling. Our calling includes the use of our unique talents, abilities and spiritual gifts. Our calling is as unique as our fingerprints. The purpose is more important than the calling. But the purpose can’t be achieved without our calling. Our calling is the thing God gives us to fulfill our purpose.
Example of difference between purpose and calling
All utensils serve the same purpose- to serve/cook food. But how they do it is unique to how they are made. Each is needed so the overall goal of a meal is accomplished. We can’t make Thanksgiving dinner with only a spoon.
We all have the same purpose- to serve others and glorify God. How we do that is through our calling. Without everyone contributing via our calling then the purpose of glorifying God’s kingdom won’t happen and others won’t be served.
Each of our callings matter. Our purpose as Christians is to glorify God and serve others. If we don’t do our calling then God’s purpose for our lives won’t be achieved.
11 In Him we were also chosen having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of His glory.
Ephesians 1:11-12 NIV (New International Version)
I am totally confused with the interchanging terms you’re using, calling and purpose and the connection it has to your scripture reference. Neither can I find the biblical mandate for ‘a calling.’ Please clarity your message for me.
From my understanding based on research, purpose is the “what” and calling is the “how”. Our purpose is what God wants us to do (serve others and glorify God) and how we fulfill that is through the calling on our life. Example, you may be called to serve teenagers. There’s a variety of ways to do that either through church, teaching, volunteering, coaching a sport, etc. That’s the “how”. But the purpose is to be the salt and light for them, so they seek to know God for themselves. Meaning how you carry yourself, the character they see of you, your actions/behavior/manner of speech should all exemplify the fruit of the spirit. Hope that explains it simply.
Thank you very much, I know you wrote this a while back but it has definitely given me further clarity on the subject
I’m so glad it did.
Thank you for sharing . As I read that frequently quoted verse, ( Romans 8:28) this question came to mind…what does called according to His purpose means. That’s how I landed on your page.
You shed so much light on that. Your example with the utensils just brought that home and reminded me that I am operating in the area I am called to in God’s kingdom. If I am a Spoon I certainly don’t want to take the place of a knife.
Blessings.
Thank you for your comment Linnette. I’m glad this gave you clarity. And yes be the spoon if you’ve been called to be the spoon, lol.
Hello there. I was searching for the difference or meaning of my purpose/calling in Christ and well your blog in my Google feed stood out to me. Your word’s were very refreshing to my spirit. I read a couple of your blogs and WOW! I just wanted to reach out to you and say thank you for sharing and being a light to this world.
Thank you for those kind words Tamara. I’m so glad my blog was refreshing to your spirit.
Thanks a lot for this eye-opening information.Now I know the difference between calling and purpose.Thanks so much.Now, I know my purpose as well as my calling as a result of this information about calling vs purpose.Thanks so much.
Glad it was helpful to you.
Wow! You just answered my long time question. You are a blessing. Thank you for this. God bless you abundantly.
You’re so welcome.
Wow
Thank you so much for this, demystification.
I actually got a spark from all you shared here– I use to think it’s used interchangeably whereas they’re two different things.
I think many Christians need to read these, just from reading about the first 4-lines I already got it because something resonated in my spirit, this is true!
Thank and may God increase you mightily ma
I’m so glad you were able to take something away you can use in your walk.
This helped alot. Explained it clearly. I didn’t understand the difference at first. This also helped me learn the importance of difference in calling. We all need to contribute in our unique calling in pursuit of one sol purpose
I’m so happy it helped you understand the difference. Hope you are listening to God for your calling.
Good morning! It’s so crazy how I landed here on your page. I have been trying to figure out the difference between purpose and calling. It’s all kind of one in the same. This was so helpful. Now I know how to pray and ask God for what my calling is. Ever since I was a child, I would always pray for my purpose and would forget about the calling. The callings are what leads to the purpose. That makes much more sense. Thank you for this. I am currently now praying more than ever to find out my calling. This was extremely helpful. Maybe you should blog about how to pray for callings, give scriptures, so on and so forth because I really enjoyed reading this. Thank you again and God bless you abundantly.
I’m so glad this was helpful to you. I can definitely do some research on praying for your calling. Please stay tuned on the blog.
Thank you foe this blog. I was trying to understand the difference between purpose and calling. God led me right here and you broke it down so well that even a child would understand. Thank you for your clear and concise words. My God continue to bless you on your blogging journey. This was my first time reading your blog; it definitely won’t be my last. Infinite blessings.
I’m so glad this was helpful to you. Thank you for your kind words. May God reveal your calling to you when it’s time.
This is so wonderful and clear! New fan here!
Thank you.
I thank God for leading me here today and thank you for your calling to bring clarity to hard topics. Keep doing the work of the Lord sister. God is pleased! Keep blogging no matter what!
Thank you for that encouraging word Christina. I truly needed to read that. And I’m glad I was able to bring clarity to you on this topic.
yes i agree with christina im so glad God led me here… Simple & Straight to the point….
Thank you for reading. So glad this blessed you.
So if God says your purpose t is to manage the home does the mean you home personally or does the mean use the gifts you have in the home in the church to serve I’m confused on that
There is but 1 purpose: to glorify God and serve others.
How we do that is dependent on the gifts we were given.
It depends on what God called you to do. If God called you to stay home and take care of your family then use your gifts there to help them. If God called you to work outside the home then use your gifts there.
Now when you serve at church this has nothing to do with staying or not staying at home. It has everything to do with using your gifts to strengthen God’s purpose using the church to be a reflection of Him.
Not all gifts will be used in all places. Some gifts may suit you better at home while others suit you at church or work.
No matter the person, we all have a calling to contribute to our Christian community. All gifting are needed.
This post may be helpful https://vernettarfreeney.com/a-breakdown-of-calling-2021/
Thank you. I’ve been recently thinking that my calling has nothing to do with my happiness. That’s a mistake many seem to make. I understand my purpose. Now I believe I know my calling.
God wants us to be happy, yes. But what we’re called to do plays a bigger role in the grand scheme of His plans. Happiness is a choice. So we can choose to find the happiness within our calling or not.
Thank you so much for this. Its mind opening , was really confusing the two things, this makes it very clear.
Thank you
You’re so welcome.