Do you consider your work as a job? Or do you consider it a calling or your vocation?  Dr. R. C. Sproul defines vocation as being a divine call, a holy summons to fulfill a task or a responsibility that God has laid on us.  I like to think of what I do Monday through Friday as a calling or vocation.
As Christians consider their vocations, one thing that we want to assure is that our vocations are in God’s will. But how do we know that? A question we might ask could be “How do I know that I am in God’s will for my vocation?” I was recently helped in this area by re-reading R.C. Sproul’s small book Can I Know God’s Will?  (Note: The e-book version of the book, and all of the books in his Crucial Questions series, are available free). It is a very practical thing for us to know what God wants for our lives.
Sproul writes that whatever else we are, we are creatures involved in labor. God Himself is a working God, and from the very moment of creation, He conferred on our original parents the responsibilities of work. He also reminds us that work was given before the fall, and that work was part of the glorious privilege granted to men and women in creation. Sproul tells us that it is impossible to understand our own humanity without understanding the central importance of work.
Ready for a bit of theology? One thing that Sproul points out that we might not be aware of is that there are different aspects of God’s will. He helpfully leads the reader through the different ways in which the will of God is addressed in the Bible. First, he addresses the decretive will of God. That is the will by which God decrees things to come to pass according to His supreme sovereignty.  God said, “Let there be light” and there was light, for example.
He then talks about the preceptive will of God. The precepts, statutes, and commandments that God delivers to His people make up the preceptive will. They express and reveal to us what is right and proper for us to do.  Sproul tells us that the decretive will of God cannot be broken or disobeyed. It will come to pass. On the other hand, there is a will that can be broken, the preceptive will of God. God’s preceptive will can be disobeyed, and indeed it is broken and disobeyed every day by each one of us.
Sproul writes that the top priority of Jesus is that we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. All other things will be added to that.  I would phrase it that if we seek to obey his preceptive will, the will of God as revealed in Scripture, then our field of vocation is wide open to us.
In discerning our vocational calling, he gives us four important questions to consider:

• What can I do?
• What do I like to do?
• What would I like to be able to do?
• What should I do?

Sproul writes that every Christian is gifted of the Lord to fulfill a divine vocation, and that along with the gift, God gives a desire or a motivation to make use of that gift. Any vocation that meets the need of God’s world can be considered a divine calling. A vocation is something that we receive from God. God usually calls us inwardly and by giving us certain gifts, talents, and aspirations, and His invisible sovereign will works in the background to prepare us for useful tasks in His vineyard.
Other thought-providing questions that will be helpful in discerning our vocational calling are:

• What would I most like to do if I didn’t have to please anyone in my family or my circle of friends?
• What would I like to be doing ten years from now?

Sproul concludes with:
“As Christians, we have been called to be spiritual salt in a decaying world, to be spiritual light in the midst of darkness. We are to be wise stewards of God’s gifts and talents. That means striving to be the most honest, patient, hardworking, and committed workers we can be. It means settling for nothing less than excellence. God help us to live up to His high call for each of us.”
So where does that leave us in seeking God’s will for our vocation? I would recommend praying about it and following the helpful questions above. You probably won’t need to worry about being out of God’s will if you choose to live in Illinois vs. Florida or Texas, for example. Also, reflect back on Sproul’s comment that any vocation that meets the need of God’s world can be considered a divine calling. And for our millennial readers, remember that you don’t have to perfectly fulfill your passion and happiness in your choice of work.  Instead remember Jesus’ words:
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  (Matthew 6:33 ESV)
Enjoy this related message from Dr. Sproul’s series Knowing God’s Will, entitled “God’s Will and Your Vocation”.