Prep Time

I am supposed to be a nurse. God has made this calling explicitly and implicitly clear since I was around 7 or 8 years old. The fortunate and unfortunate experiences I've been thrown into have further molded my heart and mind and hands to be those of a nurse. God has not called me to be a nurse for the money or the skills or the happiness found in helping people feel better or even to be someone who saves lives. God has called me to be a nurse to be His hands and His light for His glory.

Dan is supposed to be a teacher. God has made this calling pretty clear in the last couple years. Yet, God has made it very clear that Dan has a testimony to speak and share with those he meets. If you asked him, Dan would probably affirm that God has given him this calling to bring Him glory.

Dan and I are supposed to live in Utah. It is only a matter of time. Thanks to a very flirtatious Mormon in high school, my heart was broken for the LDS. Thanks to Dan's patience, incredible skill in apologetics, my persistence and a trip to Utah, Dan's heart was broken for the LDS.

All this to say, we have been discussing the fact that not all Christians will impact the world for Christ as preachers or street evangelists or foreign missionaries. The harvest is ripe and those serving in the streets with God's call and the Holy Spirit's empowerment are leading people to Christ. I pray that God continues to use these warriors to reach some of the lost.

Yet, I am afraid that there is a common misconception that a Christian is not living up to God's salvation and call on their lives if they do not sell everything they own and preach on the streets or in unreached nations.
(A great reference book on this is Finding Common Ground by Tim Downs.)

"There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men."
1 Corinthians 12:4-6

All around us are people who do not know Christ. Just because people have heard of Christ does not mean that they are saved or that we have fulfilled our duty. Some people will come to know Christ through long-term relationships with Christians. These people might be those who would shut the door on a fierce Gospel message, but they might be open to being loved and befriended by people who follow fiercely after Christ.

God has not called me to go over-seas permanently to preach the Gospel. If He calls me, I will go.
God has not called me to sell all I own and preach on inner-city streets. If He calls me, I will go (though, it would be admittedly tough).

God has called me to be an active member of a theologically sound church.
God has called me to be a loving and supportive wife in juxtaposition with the adultery and despair seen in the culture today.
God has called me to be an oncology nurse and bring hope to those who have none left.
God has called me to begin dialogues and relationships with those in the LDS church through kindness and an open-mind.

At the moment, I am involved in the first two.
As for the second two, I am in the midst of preparation.

I was talking to Dan tonight about whether or not I should feel guilty about not being more active in evangelism. We agreed that we need to be more open, but also that we are doing what God wants us to do. We are where God has called us to be.

As Dan reminded me, even Paul had prep time before he went forth to evangelize the nations.

For now, I feel like God is molding me and preparing me for what is to come.
(To be a nurse, I do need my RN license after all. And I need a job to be able to move to Utah.)
He gives me opportunities even now to speak His word, but I cannot wait for what He has in store for me.