Answering the Second Call

Orginally published on Wednesday, December 27, 2006 at 12:50 PM
by Daniel Decker

As you think about how God has called you to be the leader you are, imagine the theme song from “Mission Impossible” playing in the background of your mind. Like a special agent you were called with a specific mission and purpose. You were given a specific set of plans and sent by God at a specific time to a specific location, to accomplish a specific task. You were not given the full details of the overall plan, however, because like all the great “Mission Impossible” and “James Bond” movies or “Charlie’s Angels” shows… you are sent somewhere to accomplish a specific objective and then must wait for the second call that reveals your next objective and more insight into the bigger plan...

Unfortunately where many leaders get stuck is between the first and second call. We get so caught up in the details and challenges associated with the first call that we forget to wait and listen for the second call. God’s like the guy in the Verizon Wireless commercial saying, “can you hear me now, can you hear me now,” but we can’t hear Him because we’re so busy and driven to succeed with our mission that we are unable to connect and learn that God has an entirely new direction and objective for us that not only enhances the success of the first mission but also leads to greater success with future missions. If we heard the phone ringing and picked it up we would know that the roadblocks and challenges we’ve been facing were actually signs of grace pointing us in a new direction and letting us know to answer the second call.

I can just see God with this giant phone receiver trying to get in touch with us but were so busy planning, thinking, listening to our iPods and running from meeting to meeting, that we don’t take His call. And God’s like, “Can you believe this guy? Doesn’t he know who I am? Billions of people call to talk to me every day. Songs have been written about me. I’ve got the biggest best-selling book of all time. I have a hit Hollywood movie with a lot of PASSION and this guy won’t take my call.  What’s it going to take?”

But, as we all know, God doesn’t really get frustrated. He just keeps trying to call us, hoping we’ll take the time to slow down and listen so we can answer the call, hear His voice and receive His new instructions.

As leaders, let’s remember that no matter where we are with the status of our first calling there is always a second call, third call, fourth call, etc. with new instructions coming our way. To hear these calls it is essential to create daily rituals that allow us to be silent enough to hear the phone ring and calm enough to answer it. Follow the path of Jesus. Take a walk in solitude every morning. Or if you are not a morning person, try it after lunch. Turn off the noise and tune in to God. Turn off the cell phone so you can receive the call that matters most. No matter what challenges you are facing or growth plans you are enacting, when you answer the second call no mission is impossible.

TAGS:  Church Leadership, Pastoral Calling

-----
About the Author:
Jon Gordon is an authority on developing positive, engaged people, leaders, schools, businesses and teams. He is the author of The Energy Bus: 10 Rules to Fuel your Work, Life and Team with Positive Energy, The 10-Minute Energy Solution and Energy Addict: 101 Ways to Energize Your Life. Jon and his tips have been featured on CNN, the NBC Today Show, Men’s Health, Forbes, and more. He is also the co-founder of PEP- The Positive Energy Program, which creates and funds programs that develop healthy, positive children around the world. Learn more and sign up for Jon’s free weekly energy tip newsletter at www.JonGordon.com

This post has been viewed 392 times so far.


  1 Person Has Commented:

Hi... I'm Todd Rhoades. I'm a Christ-follower, husband, father and I love to connect leaders with other leaders. Hopefully you'll find something here at MMI you like and will return often. If you want, you can find out more about me or follow my every step on Twitter.

MondayMorningInsight.com | PO Box 446 | Bryan, OH 43506 |