6 Clues to Your Calling

I believe that every believer has a general calling from God that looks the same. This is what we find in Scripture: each is called to follow Jesus, forsake sin, and to fish for souls. This is where every journey begins. However, I also believe that as we walk in the Lord, God begins to reveal a specific and unique assignment that He uniquely designed for each of His children. That specific calling is what I want to help break down.

Here are six clues that can help you discern it.

Clues to Help You Discern Your Specific Calling From God

1. Special Revelation from God

First off, I want to emphasize that sometimes God makes our calling unmistakably clear through a dream, vision, prophecy, or a quiet inner whisper. For instance, we see this happen to people in the Bible like Moses who heard God’s voice from a burning bush. We also see others, like Saul and David, who were anointed into their calling by the prophet Samuel.

In these cases, you may not be actively searching out what your calling may be, but rather, it may seem to find you.

A good way to discern this is to ask yourself, if there is anything you feel God prompting you to do? If so, follow that in obedience.

2. Advice of Others

Secondly, I would encourage you to look at the influence and words of those around you. Your faith community and spiritual leaders around you can often see things in your life and in your spirit that you may not see in yourself.

Often, God uses their counsel to help you understand where you fit in His plan. In these cases, I would encourage you to ask yourself what the most common things that others suggest you do. What do they most often say about you? These can provide valuable insight into your direction.

3. The Needs of the World

Next, when we look at the story of Moses, we see that when Moses saw Israel’s bondage, compassion stirred him to act (Exodus 2:11-12). Another important tell-tale sign about the direction of your call may be things that stir up deep conviction or compassion. Often, the things that break your heart about the world are signals pointing toward your purpose.

Take time to ask yourself what areas this may be for you. What breaks your heart when you see the pain in the world? God placed different compassion points in each of us that can be discerned and often used for His purposes.

4. Your Passion

Additionally, I would encourage you to evaluate what areas you are naturally passionate about. These are the causes, tasks, or topics that energize you instead of draining you. Take some time to make a list about what these may be and don’t discard something immediately just because you may not see how it can be used in the Kingdom just yet.

5. Talents and Gifts

Additionally, understanding the difference between what your talents and your gifts are and how they play a role is important. Talents are natural and they are what we are born with or develop in life, but gifts are given when we are saved.

Now, while both are distinct, it’s also important to understand that they often can work in tandem as they are both given by God to help you fulfill your calling.

Both natural and spiritual abilities are strong indicators of your role in God’s mission, so take time to consider the areas you are naturally good at and what comes naturally. These may be strong indicators.

6. Your Experience

Lastly, I would encourage you to allow God to take any pain of the past you may have and turn it into His purpose.

In the life of Moses, we see that he fled Egypt as a fugitive but with time, God used him to then lead Israel out. While you may not see it in moments of darkness or pain, your testimony can become a tool that God uses to help others.

Consider where the Lord has taken you from and how the Lord could use it to help someone else.

Read: How to Hear God Clearly and Daily