Children have a way of asking the most interesting questions. Many years ago, I was busy studying when my then eleven-year-old son, Stephen, walked into the office and asked: “Dad, why did you become a minister?”
Great question so I thought a moment and answered: “I received a ‘call’ from God.”
He obviously wasn’t satisfied: “What does that mean? Did God call you on the telephone?”
I paused for dramatic effect, smiled and said, “Yes, God called me on the telephone.”
Stephen said with a trace of a giggle: “What telephone number did God use: 1-800-HEAVEN?”
I mentally counted out the letters and answered, “That’s close, but the actual phone number to God is 1-800-2HEAVEN!” At that, Stephen grinned and left the room while I continued reading.
A few minutes later, my mischievous son came back into the room with a twinkle in his eye and a huge smile on his face: “I called 1-800-2HEAVEN. Do you want to know what happened?”
Quickly putting down my book, I said: “I’ve got to hear this!”
“I called 1-800-2HEAVEN and then a voice said they were closed but please call back between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM Monday through Friday.”
After we finished laughing, we both concluded, God does answer “Calls,” but only Monday through Friday from 8 to 5.
OK. After you finish smiling, the question remains: “Does God really ‘call’ us?”
Yes, of course, but don’t take my word for it. If you do a word search in the Bible you will find that the word, “call” or “called” or “calling” appears in the Bible over 700 times. Here are a few examples:
- Are you looking for answers to tough questions? “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. (Isaiah 55:6)
- Do you wonder if God hears your cry for help? “I call on you, O God, for you will answer me; give ear to me and hear my prayer.” (Ps 17:6)
- Do you need to know God forgives you? “But I call to God, and the Lord saves me.” (Ps 55:16)
- Are you feeling poorly? “Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him.” (James 5:14)
- Do you feel unworthy of hearing God’s call? “Jesus said: ‘It is not the healthy, who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)
- Are you wondering what God has planned for you? “For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.” (1 Thessalonians 4:7)
Are you looking for answers? Seek the Lord. Do you wonder if God hears you? God will answer. Do you need to know God can and will forgive you? God saves you. Are you feeling poorly? God has people who will help you. Do you feel unworthy? You are the one God wants most of all. Are you wondering what God could possibly have planned for you? God wants you to live for God.
In other words, you don’t need to call 1-800-2Heaven. Simply, find your Bible and look through a few of the more than 700 specific instances where God calls you, wants you and specifically seeks you out. God hears you, loves you, forgives you and will answer you. That is a promise from God.
Just out of curiosity as I was rewriting this column I called 1-800-2HEAVEN and received yet another recording. This time a sweet, soft voice replied: “Heavenly Mountain Resorts” and then offered to sell tickets for a theme park which happily promised a heavenly good time.
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“I am truly grateful for all of the Lord’s blessings on our family. I am living with a painful health condition and I am praying for a full recovery soon. My husband is looking for work and his unemployment benefits are about to run out. In the meantime, I am working very hard to keep our bills paid, but I’m becoming very weary. I ask that you pray for me to gather the strength to continue until my husband is back to work and that he will find a job soon.” – Jodee from London, Ontario
Speaking of Calling God: Did you know that Sowing Seeds Ministry has a worldwide prayer ministry where you can ask for and receive prayer requests from all over the world just like the prayer request shown above? Better yet, you can also have the option of sending an email directly to the person requesting prayer and offer words of encouragement. For more information click here: https://www.sowingseedsoffaith.com/sign-up.htm
