More Than a Dent in the Couch
By Jodie Bailey
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5
“If I only had a brain… a heart… the nerve.” Someone just sang out loud with the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion.
Okay, it was me.
We’re all searching for something. If we’re honest, many of us would sing, “If I only had a calling… a place… a purpose.” We all want our lives to have meaning. Few of us want to exist simply to leave a dent in the couch.
And we stress about it. A while back, my high schooler grew frantic about her life’s calling. See, her best friend was born wanting to be a veterinarian and was pursuing that dream. This made my daughter feel defective, because she had no idea what God was calling her to do. She wanted an answer right now. Don’t we all?
Here’s the thing… God already knows what He has called us to do because He knows us. He formed us with our talents and with the foreknowledge of events that would shape us. Look at Jeremiah. God told him in Jeremiah 1:5 that He knew from the start what the prophet would someday be. The Amplified Bible says God “knew and approved” of Jeremiah’s calling before he was conceived. But Jeremiah never saw it coming. In verse 6, he even argued that God was wrong. He might have been an adult, but Jeremiah didn’t know his purpose until God spoke.
In The Wizard of Oz, the characters already possessed what they sought, but they had to go on a journey to realize it. Sometimes, God gives us our calling when we are young. Other times, He leads us on a journey, and our job is simply to follow, step by step. Psalm 23:3b says, “He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.” We simply trust. One day, He will open our eyes and reveal what He’s known all along.
Jodie Bailey is a Carolina girl who believes in the transformational power of story when God holds the pen. As an Army wife, she served other military spouses as a volunteer with Protestant Women of the Chapel, Family Readiness Groups, and Army Family Team Building. She is a multi-published inspirational fiction author who crafts military suspense stories infused with God’s love and freedom. If she’s not behind the keyboard, she has her toes buried in the sand on the Outer Banks. She lives in North Carolina with her husband, her daughter, and two dogs. You can say hi at www.jodiebailey.com.
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Originally published Friday, 08 December 2023.
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