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Called To Be A Lay Speaker in the United Methodist Church-1 of 2

© Susan Padezanin

Most of us go through each day being called so many times that we become deaf to "The Call." This call is God's call to us. It is the summons of God to respond to the call to serve, to minister, to celebrate, to sacrifice, to answer. God's call is not a one-time event. It is often not a single summons, although it can be that. No, God's call is a repeated command, one that resounds through every moment of our lives. God has made us to be in fellowship and to service to and with God. God never ceases to summon us to fulfill the ministry to which we are called.

Perhaps most significantly, God calls us by our own given name. God knows each of us as intimately as spouses, parents, children, and friends. In Isaiah 43:1 God says to each of us, "I have called you by name, you are mine."

Discerning God's call is not always an easy task, especially among the distractions of other daily calls. Maybe it is more accurate to say that each person becomes aware of God's call in the existing situation and setting. It is not that God has failed to call; rather, the call had finally become obvious, clear, and compelling.

Put most simply, God is calling each of us to be witnesses who proclaim the presence and power of God through all that we are and all that we do. God is calling each of us to tell others about God's love and forgiveness. God is calling us to be his spokesperson on earth. The message may be simple, but the ways we proclaim the message are as varied as the people who hear the call. People hear the call and live it out in many ways including as a lay speaker. That call, like the call to any other ministry, must be followed by preparation, practice and evaluation.

First, each of us responds to God's call out of a sense of humility. God's calls to people are not in any order of importance. The call to lay speaking sets you apart as a lay speaker, but it does not set a status, rank, or privilege that is not shared by every other Christian who responds to God's call, whatever the call may be. Self-importance, self-righteousness, or status have no place today as Christians respond to the call of God to proclaim God's will in the world.