Careers: Helping Teens Discover Their God Given Callings. (Part 1)

By Raven 1/14/23

Like a lot of teens, my son found himself not knowing what to do with his life when he grew up. Having many hobbies and ideas, but not narrowing in on that one thing. Later on in his adult years, he may find out, that there is not always *just one thing. For now, we will make it as simple as possible so he will have steady direction. Some may advise not to place pressure on him because he is only 14, but the truth is, had it not been for his own concern and urgency, about what to do when he finishes school....I would have kept the conversation on the backburner until 9th grade. Just a year from now. However, through his desire to know what path he needs to take, it caused me to see from his perspective, just how important it is for any human, to have direction in life and to know their purpose. No one wants to live in such a wretched world, not knowing what to do, how to live, how to be, who to find safety in, and not knowing who they are. In my home, I teach my son that, if he is not following God's will for him, then he is wasting his time. In fact, this is something that has been taught to him since he had baby teeth. Walking in God's calling has become a rite of passage into manhood, for him.....as it was a rite of passage into womanhood, for me. Knowing what God designed me to do, shaped my life as a teen, and still does to this day. I want that for my son. Where there is a knowledge of God's intentional purpose for one's life, there lies the reason for living. This is key to understanding, especially during hardships when no one is there or can be there to pull you out of darkness. That critical knowledge is a matter of life or death, literally. People whom have committed suicide have done so because they lost hope. Not every one of those losses had to do with mental health. More like, spiritual health. However, we know that the mind is connected to the spirit. They did not know the power of purpose in Christ, and how that makes our lives in this world, so important, individually.

The place my son is in right now, I call this, the discovery years. I was slightly older than him when God began to convict me of my calling. I can remember that I felt his presence and calling so strongly, that sometimes I could not sleep. I had an urgency to do what He called me to do. At that point, my plans for the future had changed several times and I hit a brick wall, *until I heard God's calling. Following the path He had laid out before me, gave me all of the direction I needed. It opened up doors. What happened after that, was my mind and heart were focused on ministry. My purpose had been known, and I knew what I had to do. Though this did not mean life was easy nor was it perfect......there was just a peace that I lived with, knowing what my purpose in life was. It made me want to live, and live for Christ. I did not fear going through the pains of life. I did not fear death. I counted every bit of persecution, all joy. That is the peace you have, when you are walking in God's will.

What does any of this have to do with careers? Well, Jesus designed us with gifts and talents to use and to live off of, that coincide with what He purposed our lives for. Those very things you are passionate about and are great at doing; those "hobbies" that bring you the most joy, those talents that you did not have to study in school, you just happen to be good at them; all of these things are imparted into us by the craftmanship of God. When He created us and gave us life on this earth, He did not place us here empty handed. He sent us out with a set of valuable tools to not only live and thrive off of, but to use to glorify His name and lead souls back to Him. Not only that, but He knew how much joy we would have seeing our own gifts and talents at work and in use. He delights in our joy. He loves seeing us move in the things we love, according to His will. Imagine how elated you feel, when your babies do things that they love, they excel at it, and you see their happiness....and how that makes your heart feel. Now, imagine how God feels and thinks towards us.

When you express and explain to your children, exactly how important it is to know their purpose in Christ, and why, you will begin to see their relationship with God grow. It is an amazing and relieving sight. Sometimes I will pass by my son's room and see him reading his Bible, or he will tell me how he prayed and read his Bible. I do not always have to tell him to do these things. We have had so many family Bible studies and discussions about the importance of an individual relationship with Christ. God is simply dealing with his heart. He is still a teen. He still gets in trouble and has a lot of growing up and learning to do....but this is where it starts.

Purpose.

We do not talk about careers, without talking about learning, knowing and understanding God's purpose for our lives as individuals.....which leads us to our careers. What God calls us, our children to do, He equips us with the tools. Even if what we do is generating an income, as it should, even if it takes a while, it should still glorify God and edify and build His Kingdom. God must be their first focus and go-to, in understanding why they are even alive. They are not just our children. They are not even replicas of us, as their parents. They are individual souls with individual callings, and must fulfill God's will in order to enter His Kingdom. That is the most important information that they need to know. Basically, not to live a purposeless life a part from His calling over them, because God will hold us accountable and we will be judged for how we used our time on this earth. Our purpose....their purpose, is to reach the lost.

{James 1:17 } "17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning."

I look forward to sharing Part 2.

Raven