What Do You Say When Your Friend Claims to be Called By God?

Question: When one of your friend’s, who does not attend church on a regular basis, states that he feels he is being called by God, what do you say?

Why say anything? Just say a prayer and ask God to guide the person. God is running things. We don’t have to be overseeing the movements of God’s grace. The Holy Spirit blows where the Spirit will. God moves in mysterious ways. It is much better to wonder and contemplate God’s mystery than assume we know how people should be acting.
Often those who don’t seem to be following religious practices, as we think they should, are open to God in ways we may not recognize. The “I’m spiritual but not religious” crowd is mostly made up of those who are actually neither. But there are many who find “religion” and “religious practices” alienating. They really are trying to figure out who God is and how to relate to the mystery and challenge of God’s love. With all the complex cultural turmoil of our day, organized religion can sometimes get in a person’s way as they journey to God. We should be very respectful of God’s timetable and God’s grace in a person’s life. If God is really calling the person, God will see that the person gets to where God needs them to be. If they are just kidding themselves, and deluded in their relationship with God, that too will become readily apparent. False spirituality rarely has much long term sticking power in a person’s life.