Do You Know Your Life's Calling?

I have to admit that I don't follow sports very closely. So I know a little bit about Tim Tebow, but not much. But when a reporter recently asked him how he balances his sports career with his charity work, I LOVED his answer.

Have you found your life's calling?

Oliver DeMille and Shanon Brooks have written a fantastic book that details 12 powerful callings that most people's talents and passions fall under. It's a great read and I encourage you to get it. (I'll post a review soon.) In their book Thomas Jefferson Education for Teens, they have listed the following missions:

• Feed the hungry
• Clothe the naked
• Empower the poor
• Educate the ignorant
• Promote freedom
• Heal the sick
• Comfort the lonely
• Liberate the captive
• Preach the truth
• Produce wealth
• Heal families
• Increase beauty

These seem like very solemn and biblical categories-but take a minute and think about them with me. I have a friend who is brilliant at home decorating, refinishing furniture, etc. She increases beauty in the world. It's the same with the lady who cuts my family's hair-I look a lot better coming out then I did going in! LOL! I know of another man who makes money like crazy. It is actually a very noble talent, as he has given so much money to charity and helped so many people, that the world is a better place because he has that talent. What about those who run Alcoholics Anonymous and other addiction recovery groups? Or people who help others who suffer from depression or limiting beliefs? They liberate the captive.

You get the idea.

All of these callings are meant to help others, as we make ourselves happy by spending our lives making our greatest contribution by using our talents. For example, I LOVE finding great movies, books and everything else under the sun to help strengthen families and teach kids to reach their potential. I love it, and hopefully it helps other people, too.

When we live our life's calling, we are happy. We help others and make them happy, too. Our life's calling may or may not be a profession-with Tim Tebow, it's not. But his career does enable him to make a bigger impact with his life's calling than he otherwise might.

I encourage you to give this some serious thought, and talk about it with your family. Maybe you could spend some family time and have everyone write down their talents, write down what they love to do and then compare it with this list. By pinning this down, you will find that your life will take on extra meaning and you will make better decisions. You will enjoy life more and find that you have more to give than you originally thought. But if you struggle to figure this out, just remember: life has it's seasons (and parenting definitely counts!), and you might have more than one calling depending which season of life you are in. Whatever you do, don't stress about this. :) You'll figure it out eventually.

What are your natural talents? What life calling do you find yourself drawn to? Comment below!