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    Is God Calling Me?: Answering the Question Every Believer Asks
    Is God Calling Me?: Answering the Question Every Believer Asks
    Is God Calling Me?: Answering the Question Every Believer Asks
    Ebook100 pages1 hour

    Is God Calling Me?: Answering the Question Every Believer Asks

    By Jeff Iorg

    4.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Is God calling me? It’s the foundational question that must be answered by anyone considering entry into ministry leadership and then revisited regularly over a lifetime. Writing to a student and young adult audience—although applicable to leaders of all ages—Iorg declares the purpose of his brief, yet powerful book:

    “God is calling out a new generation of kingdom leaders who will accelerate the fulfillment of the Great Commission in this generation. My goal is to cut to the heart of the matter and give you tools to work through the call process.”

    Endorsements

    Jeff Iorg offers a personal, practical, and rich exploration of God’s call to ministry in Is God Calling Me? —Paul Chitwood, President, International Mission Board

    No matter where you are on your faith journey, this book provides an excellent guide as you ask God how He might use you to share the gospel and build strong churches. —Kevin Ezell, President, North American Mission Board 

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBH Publishing Group
    Release dateJun 1, 2008
    ISBN9780805463972
    Is God Calling Me?: Answering the Question Every Believer Asks
    Author

    Jeff Iorg

    Jeff Iorg is president of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. He holds degrees from Hardin-Simmons University, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Iorg and his wife Ann have three children and live in Mill Valley, California.

    Read more from Jeff Iorg

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    Reviews for Is God Calling Me?

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    • 4/5
      MUST READ FOR CHRISTIAN LEADERSFew things can be more confusing than working through the idea of God's calling to ministry. Sadly, men and women that struggle with this call don't have many reliable places to turn. Sometimes family can give less than godly advice. Other ministers can even confuse the situation with advice that is rooted more in their subjective experience than in the Word of God.Jeff Iorg offers sound biblical insight into the issue of "calling." This book should be required reading for anyone struggling with a sense of vocational call on their life. I believe that a careful reading of would help anyone who read it thoughtfully and prayerfully.

    Book preview

    Is God Calling Me? - Jeff Iorg

    Contents

    A Conversation about the Question

    1. Defining the Concept of Call

    2. Three Types of Call Experiences

    3. Three Ways God Calls

    4. Who God Calls

    5. Discerning God's Call

    6. The Effects of God's Call

    7. The Call to Missions

    8. The Call to Pastoral Ministry

    Continuing the Conversation

    "Does God actually call people into ministry? What is the difference between God's calling and a personal desire to minister in a specific arena of need? Just how does a person determine if he or she is being called of God for a specific task? And what happens if you ignore the call of God? Jeff Iorg's book, Is God Calling Me?, is the perfect resource for people asking such questions. Out of a lifetime interest in students and ministry, Jeff offers a practical approach to discerning God's call, an approach hammered out on the twin anvils of Scripture and personal experience."

    — Tom Elliff, President

    International Mission Board

    "Is God Calling Me? is a book I appreciate from a man I greatly respect. Jeff Iorg has helped inspire and equip countless leaders who have answered a call to the world-shaping work of gospel ministry. This is not work for the faint of heart, and it requires wisdom from those who've gone before. Iorg has provided just this type of wisdom in this brief yet profound work."

    — Kevin Ezell, President

    North American Mission Board

    "Reading Is God Calling Me? is the next best thing to sitting on the porch and discussing this pivotal life question with a wise mentor. If you are unable to engage in the latter, I strongly recommend that you read this down-to-earth book. It could change your life!"

    — Ron Ellis, President

    California Baptist University

    "Practical and thought provoking, Is God Calling Me? by Dr. Jeff Iorg is a wonderfully insightful book of benefit for a new generation of Christian leaders. What an excellent tool for collegiate ministry!"

    — Linda H. Osborne

    National Collegiate Ministry Leader

    Life Way Christian Resources

    "Dr. Jeff Iorg is right on! Is God Calling Me? is concise, clear, and inspiring. I recommend it to anyone seeking insight to ministry. My heartfelt thanks to Dr. Iorg's personal illustrations and openness; it was refreshing."

    — Rob Zinn, Senior Pastor

    Immanuel Baptist Church,

    Highland, California

    What an incredible book to help you understand God's calling on your life. Anyone seeking God's will can find significant assistance here.

    — Max Barnett, Christian Challenge Director

    State of Colorado

    © 2008 by Jeff Iorg

    All rights reserved

    978-0-8054-6397-2

    Published by B&H Publishing Group,

    Nashville, Tennessee

    Dewey Decimal Classification: 253.2

    Subject Heading: Leadership \ God-Will \ Pastoral Work

    Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible® Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

    10 11 12 13 14 • 17 16 15 14 13

    For my children—

    Casey, Melody, and Caleb—

    And the generation of young leaders they represent.

    We need your passion.

    Take over.

    page11.png

    You probably selected this book because you are trying—maybe even struggling—to answer the question on the cover: Is God calling me? Considering this question reveals something very positive about your spiritual sensitivity and commitment. Answering it will determine your spiritual destiny.

    Is God calling me? is the essential question you must answer before entering ministry leadership or accepting a specific ministry assignment. Settling the issue of call is foundational to effective Christian leadership. Being called is one characteristic of distinctly Christian leadership. Answering this question, initially, charts a lifelong course of ministry leadership. Knowing how to answer the question subsequently, at key junctures in life, will clarify God's assignment of specific leadership roles or responsibilities. Is God calling me? is a question you must answer now and be able to answer again and again over a lifetime.

    As ministry leaders, we serve in response to God's invitation and at his pleasure, not at our initiative. Throughout the Bible and church history, men and women have responded to God's call and led his people. The demands of ministry leadership are simply too great and the consequences too long lasting to assume these roles capriciously or casually. Ministry leadership is a calling we answer, not a career we pursue.

    You may be struggling to answer this question, confused by the different perspectives you have heard and frustrated by the many ways people describe the concept of call. If so, take heart! You share a common struggle almost every Christian leader experiences. I hope this book will help you solve the problem without adding to your frustration.

    The insights in this book have been hammered out over more than thirty years of personally pursuing God's call and many years of teaching others to do the same. Students and conference participants have heard my messages and presentations on God's call and have freely critiqued me. Sometimes, they changed my mind. Other times, they helped me think more critically and communicate more clearly. Sharpening this message has been a fulfilling, but sometimes painful, quest.

    What you are about to read is not an exhaustive treatment of God's call. It is, however, a collection of field-tested insights that have helped many to clarify their understanding of call. Others have, and will, write longer books on God's call. My first goal is to cut straight to the heart of the matter and give you tools to work through the call process. But detailed analysis and intellectual understanding are not enough. My ultimate goal for you is clarity about God's call so you can answer affirmatively! If God is calling you, obedience is the only desired response.

    My prayer is that God's call will become crystal clear and his grace will empower and motivate you to radical obedience. God is calling out a new generation of passionate leaders—kingdom leaders—who will accelerate the fulfillment of the Great Commission in this generation. Perhaps you are one of them. As you read, ask God for insight and spiritual discernment. Your future and the future leadership of the kingdom of God are in the balance. The stakes are high, but God's power and grace are sufficient to call you and sustain you in ministry leadership.

    May God inspire and direct you as you read!

    page111.png

    Few concepts are talked about more and understood less in Christian circles than God's call. Some believers claim to be called into ministry, to missions, to the pastorate, or to some other church leadership role as a special instruction from God. Others contradict that narrow understanding with the claim that all believers are equally called to serve God. Still others point out phrases in the Bible such as called to be holy or called out of darkness (i.e. 1 Pet. 1:15, 2:9) as evidence that calling is just another word for a common spiritual experience, not a special or specific instruction from God.

    Who is right about all this? Does God call people to serve him in special ways? Are all believers called? If they are, are all callings equal before God? Is the concept of call simply another way to describe the sanctification process? Is it an overspiritualized

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