What is My Vocation?

What am I called to do and given as a mission from God? 

I asked myself this question this morning as I sat on my porch with a cup of coffee.  "Open your eyes and look," came the answer almost immediately.  As soon as I opened my eyes, I understood.  Adam was given the one command by God:  Tend the garden.  As I looked out at my garden, I saw areas of beauty, but I also saw areas that needed attention:  there were weeds disturbing the harmony of some beds; there was overgrowth coming from places that were invading the beds; there were dry and barren spots where nothing could grow, and there were some plants that were struggling to survive because they were in the wrong spot -- too much water, not enough sun, etc.

Immediately, I knew the answer to my question.  All of us are called to tend the gardens of our lives.  Where there is beauty, we must protect it and nurture it, overseeing the plants that are not yet strong enough to stand on their own.  Where there is damage, we are called to repair it; sometimes it requires transplanting, or moving, people from the danger that threatens their existence.  Whenever we can, we must remove the weeds that threaten to choke out growing souls -- and we must give them room to develop into what they were designed to become.

Jesus called his disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to cure every kind of disease and sickness..."Go to the lost sheep of Israel.  As you go, preach this message: 'The kingdom of heaven is near.' Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons....He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me" (Matt. 10).

Jesus told the Apostles that whatever town they went to, they should search for a worthy person and say, "Peace be to your household."  If that man was a man of God, he would receive peace; if not, the peace would return to the Apostles. 

I cannot think of more clear instructions for all of us:  Tend the garden, wherever you are; protect the tender; drive out the weeds; where there is barrenness, fill it with beauty.  Smooth over the rough spots, and be a man of peace to all around you.  My neighbor and I once had a conversation about what God wanted us to do, and he said, "Maybe what God wants you to do is to tend the garden and be a delightful neighbor."  Words of wisdom!