This section of Courage and Calling has been making me think all week. Smith goes through Romans 12:6-8 to describe seven different roles that people embrace in response to the world’s brokenness. I’m just going to share some quotes from it:

1. “Some people are prophets (v.6). Prophets see the profound need for people to live in the truth they already know. Prophets call us to behavior that is congruent with our words.”

- I’ve never really thought of prophecy in this way . . . I always put in light of prophesying the future, but when I think about the OT prophets, this is what they did – call on people to awake up and return to what they know is true.

2. “Some are servants (v.7); it runs in their blood to be attentive to the practical needs around them. They tend to think that there is too much talk and not enough action.”

- I think this is where I bog down so quickly – you get told over and over again to “serve” and what does that actually look like? I think of the people that are so quick to volunteer and just feel so self-centered compared to them. While this doesn’t let me off the hook as far as being willing to serve in general, it does mean that I’m free to “serve” in a different way than what initially comes to mind.

3. “Still others are called to be teachers (v.7). What makes a person the kind of teacher Paul writes about is the conviction that the main problem in the world is that people lack understanding; if they could just understand, they would know and live the truth. Teachers believe that transformation can come through learning.”

4. “Others are inclined to think that the greatest problem in the world is the lack of hope; their fundamental orientation is one of encouragement (v.8) . . . they have a deep-felt conviction that encouragement is precisely what is required if our world is going to experience peace, justice and transformation. Some encouragers use words. Others recognize the significance of place, and know that the spaces in which we live and work can either undercut or enhance our courage and sense of well-being; they know how to design spaces of nurture, light and life.”

- I love this idea that encouragement is more than words, this is something I’ve never thought about before, but I know how much I love being in place that are peaceful and quiet and it does do something for my soul.

5. “There are yet others who are active ‘contributing to the needs of others’(v.8). These are usually those among us who recognize that without funding much that is important does not happen. Often they are people who know how to make money, but they are also people who know how to give generously. Without the generosity of those who have the means to give, our lives would be significantly impoverished.”

6.”Then there are those called to leadership (v.8). There is so much talk of leadership in our day that sometimes we think that everyone is called to leadership. But some people have a unique passion for enabling others through administration and management, so that organization flourish, and so that everyone else can fulfill their giftedness.”

7.”Finally, Paul speaks of those who are called to demonstrate mercy (v.8). While all of us are called to show mercy, some people deeply understand that those around them have a central need for someone to stand with them. They mourn with those who mourn and weep with those who weep. While others may wonder how this solves problems or brings resolution to the issues before us, people who are called to show mercy recognize the transforming power of empathetic identification. They know that the demonstration of mercy is itself life and strength to another person.”

Smith concludes this section of the book with this: “My point is that your vocation will in some fundamental way be aligned with how you see the brokenness of the world. It is imperative therefore that you respond according to your own perception of the world’s brokenness. It is equally imperative that you not judge others if they do not see or feel the brokenness of the world as you do.“

This is equally convicting and reassuring to me. There have already been plenty of times in my life that people have approached me with things they think I should do because it’s such a good cause. I’ve wondered sometimes why I don’t have the same passionate heart for the various causes, and now I understand that we can see the brokenness of the world differently. And convicting in that I have often wondered why people can’t see what I see. They were made differently, gifted differently and have a different role to fulfill in this world.

And the final question is – how do I see the brokenness of the world? I’m not sure yet.