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There are a few of those closest to us that have walked beside us during our time of transition into the unknown. Even fewer know the details of our dreams. Maybe this is a good thing. Or maybe we’ve just not taken the time to tell everyone. Or maybe we’re afraid of the pushback we’ll receive from letting people in. Our dream as a family is not small. It’s not easy. It’s not likely. And It’s certainly not safe. I think this may be why it’s called a dream. Nonetheless, this is the calling that we have received. As I’ve studied scripture, there are 5 specific types of calling in the Bible that resonate more so than many of the others. Our calling is that one day our family will create a generational place for people to gather to experience true adventure, authenticity, community, freedom, and expansion. 

The concept of calling has so many variations in the Christian life. If we are to live lives filled with freedom, adventure, community and experience, we have to learn to listen intently to the voice of God. Here are 5 types of calling the Bible mentions that we are to embrace.

5 Types of Calling In The Bible

Love God

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Deuteronomy 6:5

“We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:19

Embracing the calling to love God first and foremost is foundational to the Christian life. This primary calling, emphasized by Jesus Christ as the greatest commandment, serves as the precursor for all other aspects of our calling. When we prioritize the love of God, it deepens our personal relationship with Him, transforming our character to reflect the image of God. The Apostle Paul frequently highlighted this in his letters, urging believers to let their love for God guide their actions and decisions.

Loving God first enriches our spiritual lives, motivating us to use our spiritual gifts in service to others. Whether it’s in a local church, a small group, or even a youth group, our love for God inspires us to share the good news of the Gospel of God in various ways. This kind of call drives our involvement in different roles, whether as a church leader or a small business owner. It’s not just a matter of being active in a particular job but about living out God’s calling in a way that honors the glory of God and aligns with His will.

Moreover, this love provides strength and endurance during trials, offering a sense of peace that surpasses all understanding. I’ve written about this quite a bit. The call of God is often a painful one. The old testament and new testament both shine a light on the struggles that we are most definitely going to encounter when we choose to accept the redemptive work of God in our lives by choosing to love God first.

Love People

Next to loving God, loving people is the next calling we are to embrace. Loving people is not just about ensuring they receive eternal life through salvation. Loving people is about choosing to be kind and revealing God’s grace through your words and actions.

Embracing the calling to love people is a crucial aspect of the Christian life, deeply intertwined with our love for God. Jesus himself emphasized this in the second greatest commandment, urging us to love our neighbors as ourselves. This call to love others is not just an abstract idea but a practical guide for how we interact with those around us. Whether it’s within our extended family, our local church, or the broader community, this calling manifests in various specific ways. One of the ways we choose to love people is through our Curated Conversations experience. Once a month, we host people at our house, cook a 5 course dinner and have an extremely deep and intentional conversation about our lives. This is type of work we are called to as part of our daily life.

The Apostle Paul often wrote about the importance of loving others, describing it as a key aspect of living out the gospel. By loving others, we reflect the grace and compassion of the Son of God, making the love of God tangible in our daily interactions. This call extends to every aspect of life, whether we’re engaging in church planting, participating in a small group, or working with a youth group. It involves recognizing the inherent value of every human being and responding with empathy and respect, regardless of the setting or circumstance.

The Great Commission

Embracing the call to fulfill the Great Commission is one of the most important aspects of our calling as believers. God’s call to spread the gospel to all nations is a clear directive that requires us to share the Word of God in different ways and in various places. Guided by the Holy Spirit, this mission involves more than just church work; it encompasses every aspect of our lives, whether we are engaged in a paid job, unpaid work, or even during our leisure activities. This call, often referred to as the call of the gospel, is not limited to a particular person or specific kind of work. Instead, it is a general call to all believers, urging us to make disciples and teach them to obey everything Christ has commanded.

In order to fulfill The Great Commission, we don’t have to be pastors or missionaries. I think that’s a fallacy that too many Christians seem to believe. Fulfilling the great commission starts with loving God and loving people. This cascades down to how we choose to love our spouses and our children. Further, loving those around us by sacrificially giving of ourselves to that the kingdom of God would be seen on earth is paramount.

Forsake Yourself

The call to forsake ourselves is a fundamental aspect of the Christian life, emphasizing the need to deny our own desires and ambitions in order to fully follow Jesus Christ. This calling involves a deep, personal commitment to prioritize God’s will over our own, embracing a life of humility and self-sacrifice. Jesus himself highlighted this when he said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23, ESV). By forsaking our own interests, we open ourselves to the transformative power of the Holy Spirit, allowing God to shape us into the image of His Son and use us for His divine purposes.

Forsaking ourselves also means relinquishing control and trusting in God’s guidance for every aspect of our lives. This surrender is not a one-time event but a daily decision to live in alignment with the call of the gospel. The Apostle Paul captures this sentiment in Galatians 2:20 (ESV), where he writes, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” By forsaking ourselves, we allow Christ to live through us, enabling us to fulfill the most important work God has for us and to contribute meaningfully to His Kingdom.

Carry Your Cross

The call to carry our own cross is a profound and challenging aspect of the Christian journey, symbolizing our willingness to endure suffering and hardship for the sake of following Jesus Christ. This calling involves a commitment to live sacrificially, embracing the trials and tribulations that come with being a disciple of Christ. Jesus articulated this call clearly: “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:27, ESV). Carrying our cross means accepting the costs of discipleship, including rejection, persecution, and the daily struggles of living out our faith in a world that often opposes it.

Carrying our own cross is also a call to a deeper level of spiritual maturity and dependence on God. It requires us to surrender our own desires, ambitions, and comforts, and to trust fully in God’s plan for our lives. The Apostle Paul understood this well, as he expressed in Philippians 3:10 (ESV), “That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.” By carrying our own cross, we are not only following the example set by Jesus but also participating in His redemptive work, growing in our faith, and becoming more like Him. This path, though difficult, leads to a deeper relationship with God and ultimately to the fulfillment of His purposes in our lives.

Wrapping Up the 5 Types Of Calling

We have seen this play out in a variety of ways in our journey to truly discover the 5 types of calling from the Bible God has for our lives. 

How often do you find yourself saying you’ll pursue that dream when kids are older or when you make more money? Do you ever wonder how you can pursue your dreams, find freedom of time, and live the adventures God has called you to? Have you ever asked yourself what the good life is for you and your family?

When we’re stuck in the monotony of our day to day lives changing diapers, running errands, clocking in, and running around to various events for our kids, we don’t take the time to think about the good life. 

We went through this cycle for almost a decade before we decided to do something about it. Let us walk you through what we did to find freedom, experience the adventures God has called us to, and truly created the good life for our family. We call this the DEED formula.

Dream

The good life starts with dreaming! How easy is that? This is one of the most fun phases of the entire process. No risk, all joy! What are those things that you desire most in life? 

Be specific. Begin thinking about places you want to live/travel, hobbies you want to pursue, work you would love to do, the types of relationships you want to have. Ask yourself what you want your day to day life to look like. How do each of these areas allow you to live in the 5 types of calling we see in the Bible?

What kind of relationship do you want to have with your kids? Ask yourself how much money do you want/need to live the good life? 

What impact do you want to have on other people? What legacy do you want to leave?

There are so many more questions to ask yourself in this phase. I’ve included a tool here to give you a head start on developing the good life and beginning to dream a little. 

This is the exact tool that we used to start this process. Some things changed over time as our priorities changed, but most of what we initially wrote down has stayed the same.

Excavate

Once you have an idea of what the good life looks like for you or your family, some deep work needs to happen. This is when it gets real. Hard questions need to be asked. Conversations with friends and family will occur. You will likely uncover aspects of your mind, heart, and soul that have been masked for years. This process is known as excavation. 

One of my favorite authors, Morgan Snyder, wrote a book called Becoming a King where he walked readers through this process. 

While the full process is a much longer conversation, the nuts and bolts are as follows. 

Ask yourself the hard questions. 

Where do I/we feel stuck?

What’s not working?

When and where did everything go wrong?

Are we behind? (Hint: The answer is no)

Spend some quality time with your spouse, even your kids, a notebook, close friends, etc. and ask these questions. 

Begin to read books about mindset, identity, marriage, adventure, and pursuing your passion. Learn what skills you have. Learn what skills you lack. Further, learn where you lack confidence. Discover what your passions truly are. Get inspired. 

This process never really ends, but you’ll reach a point where you begin to see that the good life is actually possible. It will take work, but it’s possible.

Lastly, you’ll want to get wisdom from different types of people. 

Sages – Those who have gone before you and know much more about life than yourself. 

Kings – Those who are living out their passion and purpose on a daily basis. 

Counselors – Those who will walk with you through this process.

Companions – Those who want to join you on the journey.

Note: Excavation never truly ends. At some point though, you will be ready to dive into living out what you now understand. 

Expansion

In this phase, you will begin to experience the expanding of your mind, body, soul, and spirit. This is where you begin to see things through a different lens. Limiting beliefs you once had will vanish. Confidence will arise. Courage will show up in areas unexpected. You’ll push yourself further than you ever have. You’ll pursue challenges that would have scared you previously. 

Expanding into the person you were created by God to be can be both exhilarating and concerning. You’ll be asked to take on responsibilities you’ve never had before. You’ll pursue hard things. Hard conversations will take place. This is all part of expanding our capabilities into the capabilities that God has empowered us with. When we live in our comfortable homes with comfortable salaries and benefits choosing comfortable food choices and watching comfortable tv shows, we’re limiting God’s design. 

Expanding into what He’s called us to be is not a struggle. It’s simply right. 

Do

Finally, you will reach the point of no return. It’s time to act…for the rest of your life. This is where you see all the fruits of your labor. You will begin to do things you never imagined. 

Maybe you’ll quit your job to start a new business because you know God’s got you. Maybe you embrace your marriage in a way that leads to more love every single day. Or, maybe you see your kids as the gifts they truly are rather than burdens to take care of.  Maybe you run that ultra-marathon that terrified you because of a fixed mindset. 

Maybe, just maybe, you open your hands to what God wants for you rather than gripping your life so tightly because you want all the control.

You won’t ever want to go back to where you started. While there absolutely will be hard times, you will get through it. After all, you have a perfect record of beating the bad days. By embracing these 5 types of calling from the Bible, we can choose to climb the mountains God has called us to climb.

Let’s climb this mountain together!

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