What Should I Do?

What is both wonderful and frustrating at the same time is how different people in this world are. I was just talking to Madisyn’s dentist the other day and he wanted to find out from me if I would prefer to have the tools opened up in front of me to show that they are clean and sanitized or if I would be ok with them already being open. He said they would be laid out and covered with a sanitized napkin, but by doing that it would save them a lot of prep time. We talked about how people are different. Some people who are worried about germs might panic if the items weren’t opened in front of them while others might be perfectly fine with it. And we agreed that the majority of people were somewhere in the middle.

We could talk about this idea on all different kinds of topics. Picking on my daughters again, sorry girls. We were at the Veterans Day Parade on Monday and the girls were in it for Girl Scouts. Aubreigh rode on the float the majority of the time while Madisyn was walking and handing things out to people most of the time. To be fair, if I had been in the parade I would probably have been up on the float with Aubreigh. So I’m not judging my girls, but they have different personalities depending on the situations they are put in. My younger brother is way more outgoing than I am. So I get it.

And looking at today’s scripture reading I couldn’t help but compare it to last week’s scripture from Jonah. When I read the famous words of Isaiah, he said, “I’m here; send me.” I thought immediately…wow that’s different from what Jonah felt. When the word of the LORD came to Jonah God tells him to get up and go to Nineveh, Jonah does in fact get up and go… but to Tarshish.

So I began to wonder what it was about these two situations, or maybe it was personalities, or maybe something else that caused them to react to God’s call so dramatically differently. Was it the way God presented the call to each of them? Without knowing all the details it seems like Jonah was in his hometown when God just speaks to him and declares he must go to a foreign nation and preach to them. Isaiah is brought into the throne room of God and is confronted with how large God is, then sees seraphim with six wings declaring the holiness and glory of God constantly. The doorframe of the temple is shakes at the seraphim’s shouting and the entire building is filled with smoke.

They are both frightening scenarios. Go into foreign land and being in the actual presence of God while worship is happening all around you. But I wonder if God had maybe brought Jonah into the scenario Isaiah was in, if Jonah might have been more willing from the start to follow God’s call.

On the flip side I wonder if Isaiah would have been as willing as he was if he had been called like Jonah had been with the voice of God calling to him. Would Isaiah have been as eager if he had not had been in God’s temple? Would he have been as humble after seeing the seraphim worshipping God? Would he have been as bold had his lips not been purified by the coal from the seraph?

What these drastically different call stories summon in me is this reinforced notion that I started with and that is that we are all different and we are affected by things in different ways. It also helps me to understand why some people are willing to listen to the call of God while others might take a little more time with poking and prodding along the way.

I remember entering seminary while a friend of mine who had also felt a call into ministry decided to go a different route. What was interesting is that she seemed to always find herself working for the church in one way or another. It almost felt from watching from the outside that while she was avoiding her call from God, she either herself couldn’t quite let go of being a part of the church or God wouldn’t let her go too far. Years later she finally entered seminary and is now a pastor in the church.

What these call stories from Jonah and Isaiah also draw up in me is that we shouldn’t all feel like we have to be Isaiah. It’s not always easy to just jump up and say yes to the things that God is calling us to do. For some people it is and God bless them for their eagerness and willingness to dive right into the midst of things and just go. For others they might be like Jonah. They might not be as eager. It might take more time for them to process what it is that God is asking them to go and do.

The wonderful part of each of these stories is that God doesn’t say that one path is right over the other. God worked through the lives and the situations of these two prophets and understood their personalities. Isaiah the more willing and Jonah the one who needed more convincing. I don’t see anything in either of these stories that God says that Isaiah is any better than Jonah. God works through each of them in the ways that God knows how to help them find the ways they can best serve God in the world.

So whether you are a Jonah or an Isaiah or anywhere in between know these two things: 1. There is nothing wrong with your level of willingness or eagerness to do what God is calling you to do. Figure it out and take your time. Or jump right in if that is what you feel God is really calling you to do. But remember to always listen and discern what God is saying. And 2. Know that God works with you. God isn’t going to see a Jonah personality and treat them like an Isaiah personality and vice versa. God works in and through each of us. With our own unique gifts and personalities God understands how to work in our lives and through our lives so that we can find the best way to serve God. Know that God has given us all gifts with which to serve and that God will be with us every step of the way helping us to discern how to use the gifts we are given for God’s glory.

It’s not about being a Jonah and wishing you were an eager Isaiah, or being an Isaiah and wishing you took your time like a Jonah. Be who God has created you to be and let the Spirit work through you so that you can listen to what God hopes and desires for you in your life. So that when you are ready you can raise your hand and say like Isaiah did, I’m here; send me. God is here for each of us, every step of our lives. Amen.