Why do congregations nurture vocation? The two most common answers to this question are: (1) to nurture individuals to live lives of meaning and purpose in their relationship with God, and (2) to nurture individuals to discern a call to ministry and to become pastors. These two reasons for nurturing vocation often overlap in that when individuals are nurtured to live lives of meaning and purpose, using their gifts and passions to meet needs in the world, those individuals are more likely to discern God’s calling in their lives, whether that calling is to full-time, professional ministry or to what is recognized as a secular vocation and participating in society as a person of faith. As a congregation nurtures the gifts and talents of its individual members, the congregation will see individuals who present a healthy acceptance of who they are and who they are becoming in relation to the individual’s vocational journey. The congregation will also see individuals who will struggle with who they are because of never having been invited to embrace who God is creating and inviting them to be.

At the Center for Congregational Health, we work with a definition of vocation as being the intersection of four areas of who we are: our gifts/talents—what we naturally do well; God’s invitation—how and who God is inviting us to be, become, and do; recognizing the world’s needs—what is happening in the world around us; and our passions—what brings us great joy and are essential for us to do. Vocation is the place where these four areas intersect.

Vocational journey is a faith journey. This ongoing process allows for the individual’s openness to God working in his/her life. Vocational formation helps to strengthen the individual church member’s role and participation in the local church.  When congregations are nurturing the vocational journey for their members, families, and friends, the entire congregation will become healthier—both as individuals and as a system.

Vocational Journey:  Resources for Congregations Nurturing Youth, is a resource available from the Center for Congregational Health, providing activities and discussion material for churches nurturing the vocational journey.