The "Calling"

What's a calling? So many people speak of God "calling" them to be or do something. I tend to believe it's more a matter of a particular skill set/personality type matching up with a particular set of circumstances/opportunities. In these situations it's easy to say that a person is living their calling. Paul Coelho's book The Alchemist delivers the mystical message of "following the omens." The way I understand God, "omens" would be a perfectly valid way to describe communications from God. People with harder line views of Christianity would likely reject (I guess, based on my experience) omens as a pagan, mystic explanation of the universe, lacking truth.

Let me explain just a little about my concept of God. If we believe, as I do and as most modern people do, that there is one God, then there must have always been only one God. Whether you name that God Allah (which, incidentally, is the name Arab Christians use for God as well as Muslims), or YHWH, or Zeus, or Thor, or delineate all of the individual qualities by naming and personifying them all (polytheism) we're talking about the same God. If there is indeed only one God, then by recognizing any deism at all, one's only choice is to recognize that one God. Description, naming and understanding are all matters of individual culture and distinctive world views. I would argue that it is not possible to "create" another God that can functionally command a following. Even the ancients needed to see proof of the power in order to be convinced of the need to worship. For instance, the belief in answering prayer must be demonstrable. If there is only one God, then Baal would be incapable of demonstrating the ability to answer prayer. If, then, a prayer is answered, it could only be answered by the one true God, whatever name is used. But, I do not believe that ancient cultures understood this distinction. It is clear from the separation of the 3rd, 4th and 5th commandments. For me, the need to differentiate between putting "other gods" first, making graven images, or worshiping idols demonstrates the fact that mystic satisfaction was gained through any of these actions. If, indeed, there is only one God, then only God could be responsible for said satisfaction. But I digress.

So what then does it mean to be "called" to a mission? I see those around me who have been called or seem to be fulfilling a calling through a career that matches them perfectly, and I grow jealous. I don't see the omens or feel the pull to fulfill a certain niche. I'm told that some people may not realize they've lived their calling until they look back on it. Just the same, I'd really like to feel that I'm making a difference in the world.