Northumbria Community

One of God’s gifts to us as a Community is that we are all so very different – each of us a wonderfully complex mix of personhood, identity, giftedness, creativity, personality, and temperament. This is expressed in the context of the various roles, responsibilities and relationships that our uniquely ours. ‘One man’s meat is another man’s poison.’ ‘One women’s treasure is another women’s trash.’ In addition, we all live in diverse conditions and different circumstances, with different limitations and opportunities, varied levels of stamina, coping mechanisms, idiosyncrasies and inhibitions, strengths and weaknesses, hopes and fears that we take into each day of our lives. Wow?!

In such diversity, what is it that links it all together? Without doubt, one essential factor is an understanding of our inner spiritual journey in terms of our vocation. Vocation: from the Latin Vocare = to call, was used from earliest times as ‘a calling from God’ to work for Him, often only associated with those in so-called ‘full-time’ Christian service. However, monastic spirituality (from which we draw so much insight), would stress that our vocation, our calling, is simply to be, to be who you are, where God has placed you. So that, vocation is more about identity, personhood and life actually being lived, about you embracing and expressing you; so as to say from the heart in whatever situation or set of circumstances that constitutes everyday ordinariness for us, ‘this is me, this is where I belong, this is home’. So it’s not just your job or work situation but you, as God has uniquely made you. ‘Vocation,’ to paraphrase Dorothy Sayers ‘is not primarily a thing one does to live, but the thing one lives to do.’

 A good example of this is found in the story recorded in John 1:35-39, where two men, Andrew and probably the writer, John, previously disciples of John the Baptist were introduced to Jesus as ‘the Lamb of God’. On the basis of this, they begin to follow Jesus but are stopped in their tracks when Jesus, aware of them following, turns and faces them with the question, ‘What do you want?’ ‘What are you looking for?

 Now that’s a question and a half, especially when it is the Lord who is asking it of us. But it is constantly with us. We ask it everyday of our lives in the form of ‘Who is it that you seek?’ Imagine it – Jesus, aware that you are following - turns, looks you in the eye, and asks ‘what is it that you really want, what is your heart’s desire in following me? What is your vocation?