The Calling for us all…
--Mashaun D Simon
There were about 60 or so congregants sitting in the audience. As I sat there feeling out of place, the other 59 or so people in the congregation were listening intently to the speaker’s words. Her lips would part rhythmically, yet not too much seemed to be coming out. It was then that I realized I had zoned out.
I was attending a Mormon meeting in Decatur as part of a class requirement. I am taking a Society and Religion course at my school, Kennesaw State University. For a month and a half, we are required to attend six religious expressions (services) and write observatory papers on the visits. The Mormon service was my third visit following a Buddhist service and a Muslim prayer observance.
The speaker spoke rather audibly, yet I felt like I was watching episode of a Charlie Brown cartoon. You know the scene, when they are sitting in class and the teacher is talking. It almost sounds like she is talking in a foreign language. However, all of the characters understand what she is saying, repeating her words to show they understand. Yet we, the viewers, have no idea what she is saying at all.
It was just like that. She was talking, and sound was coming out, but I could not understand a word she was saying. I was not there, in reality. Maybe I was physically, but mentally I was someplace else. And then she said, “Each of us has a personal ministry, given to us by the Divine before we are even born.”
I heard it clearly. It was crystal clear. No longer was she speaking in a foreign tongue. She was talking in my language, a language all too familiar to me. And she was reminding me of something I had heard before.
We all are called, in some capacity, to serve a greater purpose. My brother had said the same thing one Sunday morning in one of his sermons. “The garbage man is anointed to pick up the garbage.”
Some of you may not consider picking up garbage twice or three times a week as an anointing, yet someone has to do it. It is their job. If not, there will be trash all over the place. We all are called to do…something!
I remember when I realized that. I remember when I recognized that I was chosen to do something special, great and unique that no one else was chosen to do. I remember when I accepted that my words, my way and my life were my calling. And I remember when I digested the reality that with this great responsibility came great work. That in order for me to do and be and live the way I am destined to, there is a level of work that I am to do. And that is also when I realized that at the same time I am human, and allowed to be human, having human experiences. But how I allow those experiences to affect me will also affect my calling.
Now, you may be wondering where I am going with this. It is simple (and yes, I know I always say things are simple. But this one really is simple). Who you are, what you are, what you do, and what you become are all tied to your destiny. You are great, you are special, and you are anointed and gifted.
You are called. You are called to live and love. Some of you will not be major celebrities and stars, but you are still special; you are a star in the eyes of the Divine. Some of you will not hold the microphone or own the stage, but your role in the cast is just as important as the leading character’s.
We all have a role to play. We all have a calling. We all have a purpose. Embrace what you are called to do. Embrace how great you are and live in your calling.
