S1Ep10 - Vocation — Your Calling is Bigger Than Your Career

Greg and Marcus close out Season 1 of Coffee Break Theology by pouring into the biblical meaning of vocation. More than just a job, vocation is God’s calling in every part of life — from family to work to community — where ordinary moments become sacred service. As the season wraps, they remind us that theology isn’t just for study; it’s for the daily grind. So brew a fresh cup, live your calling, and stay ready for what God is brewing next.

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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:01):
You're listening to Coffee Break Theology, a King of
Kings podcast.

SPEAKER_02 (00:12):
Welcome to Coffee Break Theology, where the
coffee's hot, theology'sgrounded, and the gospel is
stirring up in everyday places.

SPEAKER_01 (00:22):
He's Greg.
I'm Marcus.
Today we're talking about a wordthat might sound like something
you might hear from a guidancecounselor, but it's actually
deeply biblical.
Vocation.

SPEAKER_02 (00:32):
Yeah, I love our Lutheran theology of vocation
because it's not just about yourjob.
It's about your God-givencalling in every area of your
life.
It's at your vocation at home,your vocation in work, your
vocation at church, yourvocation in the world.

SPEAKER_01 (00:48):
It's how we serve our neighbor and glorify God.
It's not just on Sunday.
It's not just Sunday learningabout God.
It's not something that's superspiritual.
It's it's every day.
It's it's Tuesday in the pickupline at the grocery store.
It's Thursday in a staffmeeting.
It's how you treat youremployees, it's how you treat
your coworkers.
So what is vocation?

SPEAKER_02 (01:07):
Well, let's start with the word itself, right?
So vocation comes from the Latinvocare, to call.

SPEAKER_01 (01:14):
So vocation is about being called.
It's not just into faith, butinto the places and the
relationships where God puts usto serve.

SPEAKER_02 (01:22):
Yeah, I think this is an important part is a
reminder, our God is sointentional.
Like there is nothing in ourlives that's circumstantial.
And so um we know that in thatintentionality, you're there
with a purpose from God to servehim and to serve others.
Ephesians 2 10 says, You are hisworkmanship created in Christ

(01:45):
Jesus for good works, which Godhas prepared beforehand that you
should walk in them.

SPEAKER_01 (01:52):
Right.
And Martin Luther revolutionizedthis idea, how the church
thought about this.
So in his day, only priests,monks, and nuns they were the
only ones to be considered tohave holy callings.
That was it.
Nobody else.

SPEAKER_02 (02:05):
Yeah.
So so Luther said, and and I'venever met a person uh that had
this vocation in our worldtoday, but he said, the
milkmaid.
And I I don't even like, do theyare they the ones that delivered
milk?
Is that what a milkmaid is?
I don't think so.
I think they're not.
Or they were the ones that theywere getting the milk out of the
udders.
Maybe it's both.

(02:26):
Maybe they're okay.
Maybe I have met a milkmaid.
I don't know.
I yeah, I'm not a dairy farmer.
But anyways, the milkmaid,Luther said, and the pastor both
have sacred work.
Right.
If it's done in faith.

SPEAKER_01 (02:38):
Right.

SPEAKER_02 (02:39):
His famous line ready.
God milks the cows through thevocation of the milkmaid.

SPEAKER_01 (02:46):
So when I think Luther, that's the quote that
comes up automatically, justevery time.

SPEAKER_02 (02:51):
From now I thought I wonder if I wonder if if there
are milkmaids in heaven and thenif Luther is the milkmaid up
there.
That would that would be a riotfor me.

SPEAKER_01 (03:00):
He's gonna be, and he's gonna recruit you when you
get there too.
In in the small catechism,Luther doesn't use the word
vocation necessarily, but hedoes model it, especially in the
table of duties.

SPEAKER_02 (03:11):
So here's what the table of duties are if you've
never heard these.
Luther wrote these, and they'rethey're to give instructions to
parents.
Like we said, parents have theirrole and their vocation, and to
children, and to employers andworkers, and citizens, and
leaders, and they're all basedon scripture.

SPEAKER_01 (03:29):
Right.
And e each one of those roles isa station of service.
It's not about the status, it'sit's about stewardship.

SPEAKER_02 (03:36):
Yeah.
So Luther saw these everydayroles as kind of masks of God.
So they're ways God worksthrough us to bless other
people.
Right.

SPEAKER_01 (03:47):
And so when you teach your kid to tie their
shoes, when you change a diaper,when you type an email, when you
pay a bill, when you hiresomebody, God is present in all
of that.

SPEAKER_02 (03:57):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I've actually uh switched overto these slip-on shoes.
Okay.
The ties are pretty awesome.
Like I don't have to tie just asI get older bending now, it's
not as fun as it used to be.

SPEAKER_01 (04:08):
Anyways, it is still pretty fun for me.

SPEAKER_02 (04:12):
Anyways, so so here's the thing, too.
Like, and we've talked thiswhole season.
I I really hope that everyone'sheard and understood.
Like, our identity reallymatters, and that identity is
found in Jesus.
So please know this.
This is freeing.
Your vocation is not youridentity.
I I don't know if like this is apart for me, but like, um, I

(04:37):
don't want to be critical, butwhen I when I meet pastors, it's
like they say, Hi, you know, I'mGreg, and they go, Hello, I'm
Pastor Bill.
I'm like, no, like, I mean, comeon.
Like, you were not born asPastor Bill.
You were born as and and youwere born and your parents gave
you the name Bill.
Right.
Like, so so I think we confusethat when we make our title into

(05:00):
like even just our everyday, youknow what I mean?
Like, and so so it's a reminderthat it's not your identity, it
is your assignment in thatseason, right?
Because your identity is inChrist.

SPEAKER_01 (05:13):
Yeah, definitely.
And that means vocations canshift.
Yes.
It also means you can havemultiple vocations at the same
time.
Uh, you might be a studenttoday, yeah.
You might be a caregivertomorrow, you might be retired
from work, but you're you'reyou're not retired from serving
ever.
Correct.
Right.

SPEAKER_02 (05:30):
Right.
So Colossians 3 23 says,Whatever you do, work heartily
as for the Lord and not for men.

SPEAKER_01 (05:38):
And that verse that changes how we see things.
The mundane becomes meaningful.
Oh, that's good.
The the overlooked becomessacred.
Come on.
Yeah.
God does, God does workmiracles.
And and we they're amazing, andwe should look for them and we
should seek them out, and weshould pray for them.
Absolutely.
But we also need to realize andappreciate God working through
the nuts and bolts of life.

(05:59):
He does that.
And our part in that isimportant, whatever our vocation
is.

SPEAKER_02 (06:04):
Yeah.
And and that's that's soimportant too, is like, and I
think this is the freedom,right?
You don't my vocation isn'tabout proving my worth, whatever
it may be.
Like, like I can be, like I Iwant to be a good pastor, yeah,
but that doesn't make me worthyof God's love.

(06:25):
Right.
I can be a really bad pastor,and and I'm still loved by God.
Right.
And I'm still worthy of hisgrace.
And that's what's a reminder.
Like I serve in my vocation,whether it's a pastor, whether
it's a a father, whether it's ahusband, whether it's it's a
neighbor, and I respond serve inthat and respond out of the

(06:48):
grace of God.

SPEAKER_01 (06:49):
Right.
And so, like we said before, Goddoesn't need our good works.
Yeah, but the neighbor does.
That's that's classic Luther.
That's actually a quote that Iknow of Luther that comes to
mind immediately.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (06:59):
Yeah.
So when we fail in ourvocations, which we all do, um,
we get to go back to the cross.
Absolutely.
We get to receive forgiveness,we return to our service, and
we're renewed in our callingthat's been given.

SPEAKER_01 (07:13):
Right.
And our calling isn't to beamazing.
We're not supposed to be theseawesome people.
It's to be faithful where Godhas placed you.
He'll do the amazing part.
That's the great thing.
That's that's the best thing.
Nothing I can do is amazinganyway.
I'm filthy rags.
We've said that many times onhere.
But equipped with the Spirit andhaving access to God's power, He

(07:34):
chooses to work through me, andthat's a holy calling.

SPEAKER_02 (07:37):
So here's your coffee break theology takeaway
today.
Your vocation, whatever it iswhere you're called, is God
working through you in theeveryday to love and to serve
others.
It's a holy work in ordinaryclothes.
Right.

SPEAKER_01 (07:56):
You don't have to be a pastor or a missionary to have
a calling.
You already do right where youare.
Whether that is a pastor or amilkmaid, you have a holy
calling.

SPEAKER_02 (08:07):
I think we should bring back the milkmaid career.
I think so too.
Like, let's find a way to getmilkmaids as a new Amazon.
Ooh.
Like, can you imagine?
I can't.
No, neither can I.
I don't know how that works.
So, hey, wow, that's a wrap onseason one.
Thanks so much for brewing withus.

(08:27):
We'll be back really soon withseason two, where we're gonna
dive deeper into the Christianlife, tackle tougher questions,
and keep pointing you to Jesusin the everyday.

SPEAKER_01 (08:38):
Yeah, looking forward to it.
But until next season, brew afresh cup.
Go serve your neighbor.

SPEAKER_00 (08:43):
You're on God's clock.
Thanks for listening to CoffeeBreak Theology.
Be sure to tune in next time andremember to check out our other
podcast series available onevery major podcast listening
service.