The Nelson Family Indonesia

Vocation’s a big word with a lot of nuances depending on the context you find it in. Some people equate it with a career, but it traditionally draws in the idea that you have some gifts or abilities in the area being discussed. It’s more than making a buck, it’s doing something you were designed or intended to do.

People have lots of ideas about vocations and which ones are good or bad, which ones are more impressive or less so. But at the end of the day, if you’re drawn to it and gifted for it, those other things don’t matter as much. Like a favorite hat or pair of shoes, it just feels right and natural when you’re doing it.

Some people find a vocation late in life. Or discover additional ones. I haven’t met many people blessed enough to have known exactly what they wanted to do with their lives from a young age and who steered straight down that track through their life. Many people bounce a bit, and I’m no exception! From a corporate flunky to an IT support role to training IT professionals to writing IT curriculum to developing online courses to teaching for a private college to entering the ministry to preparing now to be a theological educator on the other side of the world, I’ve bounced more than some and less than others.

It’s a joy to watch someone fulfilling their vocation, serving where God wants them to, doing what God created them to do. Not out of fear or worry, and not for money or fame but simply because it’s who they’re supposed to be. We were pleased to meet a guy like that today and get to watch him do what he does best. If you haven’t had the chance to watch Gary in action, I hope you take the opportunity to whenever you can. You won’t be bored or disappointed. You might just find out through him that you have a vocation you never really considered before!