My Calling Is and Is Not My Calling

In the church, we use the term "calling" slightly differently than the rest of the world does. When we refer to our callings, we're referring to our jobs within the church. For example, a quorum president's calling is to be the quorum president.

To the rest of the world, one's calling means something much more powerful and personal than their job or their position within their church's leadership structure. In that context, a person's calling is their niche in the world. It's what they were born to do. When a person finds their calling, they find out why they exist and what they are going to do with the rest of their lives.

These traits do not necessarily apply to church callings. Though, perhaps they should, to some extent. While church callings are not permanent, and they are certainly not the sole reason, or even the primary reason, for our existence, they certainly are what God wants us to do, at least for the time being.

We may not know why we have certain callings, and they may sometimes feel like they're not a perfect fit for us, but God knows what He's doing, and He knows what He wants us to do. While they may not feel like "callings," in the world's sense, but there are reasons we have them, and God's reasons are usually pretty good.

Being my Ward's Scoutmaster may not be "my calling," but it is my calling, and I should fill that role to the best of my ability. I don't think it's what I was born to do, and I don't think it's what I'm going to do for the rest of my life, but it's certainly what I'm supposed to be doing now. So, in that sense, it is my calling. It is what I am meant to do. And I'm sure that it's a much better fit for my abilities and needs than I currently think it is. It may not be my calling, as the world would define it, but it's the closest thing I've got to knowing what my calling is, so I should definitely take it seriously, put some effort into it, and see what I can learn from the experience.