Sarah Puryear: Three Myths About God's Call

The passage about Jeremiah’s call to ministry is one of many narratives in the Bible known as “call stories.” If you read a sampling of them – say the call of Abraham, or Moses, Joshua, Samuel, Jonah, Isaiah, Mary, Paul (and the list goes on), you'll notice that each of these stories is incredibly unique. God tailors his call to each person. We may not get quite as dramatic a call story as those recorded in the Bible; we might not come across a burning bush in the desert or have the angel Gabriel appear to us. But each of us in our own way has a unique part to play in God’s story, whether we are laypeople or clergy, long time Christians or new ones, old or young. In talking with people about their sense of call, I’ve come across three common myths about God’s call on our lives – three ways in which we misunderstand the way God’s call works. In contrast to these myths, Jeremiah’s call story reveals a truer, fuller picture of how and why God extends a call to us. Sermon from 8/21/22.