My thoughts on God's calling/ the calling of God in my life.

This was an incomplete blog, written on August 8th, 2014.

The summer of 2014 really challenged me in my faith and was where God really stirred up my heart that I am being called into ministry.

Here is what I wrote:

So this evening I want to share what I have on my heart that I feel God wants me to share. I have been thinking of how I have gotten where I am now. What do I mean by this? I mean this in relation to going into ministry, where I as a Christian am led to do what God feels is his plan for my life. The call to ministry is no ordinary call, nor is it really something that can be fully understood or explained. I am here to talk about it from my own experiences with a scripture in 2 Peter 1, sharing my thoughts on the passage and how I received my call.


First, we will start with where I went in the opposite direction from God's call, without actually even realizing it. At 11 years old, I made the commitment to follow him and went through baptism classes. Sure I knew I was Christian, but I was almost too young to know what it meant to actually follow Jesus and not just be his "fan". Growing up through middle and high school, I knew I was a Christian, but I never showed his love. Now, fast forwarding to my senior year of high school. I was not walking or living like Christian. I did not spend much time with him or tell others about him. It came to the point where I was finalizing what I wanted to do for the fall for a career. I thought I had my heart set on University, but that changed when I could not graduate with the 122 English here in NB (a different story, ask me sometime).

Here is where I will continue almost two years later July 30, 2016):

Thankfully, I had graduated high school with a re-evaluation of my English and graduated with 123 so I could attend community college. I stayed at home, entering a two-year Information Technology: Network Administration Program at NBCC Moncton. But there is was two problems. I needed to make my faith my own and I did not like Networking! The not liking networking (along with programming) almost turned me away from IT (Information Technology). But there was one part I loved: the hands on computer repair, so I switched to the one year program of IT: Desktop Support. Meanwhile, I had not realized until this point that God wanted me to make my faith my own.  I started searching for a church that I could call "home" and serve in. In January/ early February of 2011, I started attending Five Points Baptist Church in Colpitts Settlement.

At Five Points, I became a member less than a month later in March 2011. I then started coming out to their youth program (that I once attended), just curious why it had made an impact on my life. I got to see the youth group from a leaders point of view (even though I mostly observed and still felt like a youth). I then started teaching the Middle School group, around the time of my graduation, June 2011. During the summer I started working in the IT Field, with weekends off (but I continued working at my part-time Tims job just in case this field wasn't for me).

Once the fall hit, I wanted to serve more. So I started teaching in the Junior church (children's church program during the service), teaching Grades 5-8 Sunday Schoo, and was a pianist on weekend's the pianist was away. I realized by Thanksgiving Weekend (October 2011) that I was doing too much, and something had to go. So I left Tims and continued serving in the youth group, starting to dive into scripture more because I occasionally had the privilege of teaching the Middle School youth group.

Once early 2012 hit (March ish), I began realizing that I loved teaching the Bible and that my IT work term would soon expire (May 2012). I asked my Pastor at the time something along the lines of "how can I do what you do". He explained part of the process of doing any undergraduate but recommending Biblical Studies. So I applied at Crandall  University (Moncton), Kingswood University (Sussex), and Tyndale (Toronto). I felt it was best to study at Crandall since I was "just getting started" at Five Points and was not ready to move out on my own. I am some glad I chose to stay at Five Points. Pastor Kehoe left in October 2012 as he was being called to another church. What a transition process that was, but another youth leader and I remained faithful to the position we served in, despite her having a wonderful child and her husband stepped in while she was out (if you are reading this, you know who you are, and we know Pastor Kehoe was very active in the youth group)! We were able to keep a ministry going that we both felt were important to our community.

During some of this transition, I started helping out another church in their music ministry (October 2013- apparently there is something significant about this month?) but remained active in Five Points youth ministry. I loved music ministry, but I again was taking on too much and had to step down in March 2014 to focus on my studies. That following summer (2014), which is when I started writing this blog, was one of the best summers of ministry that I had. I was able to work through ABW (Atlantic Baptist Women) doing Vacation Bible School. Leading up to it, I was able to be mentored by Tim Mackinnon to help develop my calling of God's will in my life (who still is my mentor today, God knew I needed a godly man in my life). It was evident that I was called into ministry, but with an uncertainty of what area).

This leads me up to the passage I was going to reflect on. I am not sure what made me choose this passage, except maybe that it was a passage recently preached on during Spring or Summer of 2014? The English Standard version of the passage reads:

3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.10 Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:3-11

It talks about growing in your relationship with Christ and being called to godliness and chosen ("election"). Peter encourages us to make our faith full of qualities such as virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, etc in verses 5-7, where "these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (verse 8). They are qualities every believer should have, especially those called to be preachers, teachers, pastors, missionaries, etc; all for God's word, hope, and purpose. These are qualities I should strive to have as a believer because otherwise, my ministry would be "ineffective" or "unfruitful". Peter says those who do not have those qualities are "so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins"(verse 9). That's all the reason to become more like Christ and have these qualities so that we can see others come to Christ.

Then there is the calling itself, where Peter says "Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall" (verse 10). I fall daily, but I know that God, through Christ will give me the strength to pull through because "there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (Verse 11). That is a reason to be called!

I want to thank Blake Barlett (high school youth pastor at a local church), Shawn Kehoe (Pastor at Five Points when I started coming), Bill Parks (present pastor at Five Points), as well as Tim Mackinnon (another local area pastor who mentors me) for helping me develop my call into ministry! I cannot wait to see what God has in store for the work of his kingdom. I am looking forward to studying in seminary to further challenge my faith and develop the qualities of 1 Peter 2!

Until next time,
Paul

So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to ENABLE you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do.
2 Thessalonians 1:11

So I guess it has been two whole years since I have blogged. I am guessing that during the summer of 2014 that God wanted me to focus on my employment and then my studies. I am back (For now)! I think I have moved most of my blogging to my "you version" Bible App (I post notes when about scripture when I feel God is leading me to).

Just a quick update, I have completed my undergraduate at Crandall University in Biblical Studies (Yipee!). In the fall I am off to do a Masters of Divinity at the Divinity College of Acadia University because I truly believe God is calling me into Full-time ministry. I am thankful for the ways God has been working in my life for the journey that is ahead.

This morning I stumbled across JOHN 8:31-38 again (obviously God is trying to teach me something)

It reads:  "So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." They answered him, "We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, 'You will become free'?" Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father." (English Standard Version)

As I reflect on this passage, I think of the song "I am free" made popular by the Newsboys (Peter Furler days). We must remember how Christ, living in us helps us through the darkest times. Joyce Meyer writes "If the enemy of your mind can convince you that you're too bad or too worthless, he has set up a stronghold in your mind." What we need to do is always fix our minds on Christ and the things of above, not of the world.

Blessings,
Paul

"12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

15 Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. 16 But we must hold on to the progress we have already made."  

Philippians 3:2-16 New Living Translation