emily p. freeman

Creating space for your soul to breathe so you can discern your next right thing.

Is there a difference between a dream and a calling?

There are things I’m called to do, and then there are things I dream of doing. Sometimes they are the same things, and sometimes they are not. I dream of owning a chocolate shop. I dream of being a real-life Juliette Binoche in Chocolat and wearing 1950s style dresses while I make chocolate in my southern bakery. By the ocean. In perpetual daylight. But this will never happen because I am neither administratively gifted nor am I culinarily inclined. And also, the sun won’t cooperate. I don’t want the benefits of the chocolate shop enough to outweigh the risk and the trouble.

Writing books was a dream once. Actually, I’m not even sure I went as far as books, I just wanted to write stories. When I was younger, I would sit on my bed and make up stories until midnight with characters who had magic or tragedy or convoluted relationships. I filled spiral notebooks with penciled scribbles and wrote a thousand rough drafts all laced with a dream. There wasn’t any pressure, worry, or expectation. I wrote when I wanted and enjoyed the process. It was fun. It was a dream.

I am called to be a mom. Not just any mom, but the mom to three specific people. Ten years ago, that calling was a dream. Sometimes a calling starts out as a dream, but not always. I am called to be a small group leader to a group of 10 girls at my church. I never dreamed of being a small group leader, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to do it. I simply trust that this is where I am to be serving right now.

The word ‘calling’ might have a lot of religious undertones and in a way I’m sorry for that, but I just can’t think of a better word. But if there is a call to something, then someone has to make the call. And someone else has to answer it. I believe my husband was called into ministry to become a pastor, but I also believe a calling to become an accountant or an actress is just as legitimate. But what about those things we dream of doing, those faraway longings we think about when we dare to let ourselves imagine impossible things? Are those things we are to pursue? Or are they simply a bunch of imaginary chocolate shops?

As I’ve been writing about art for the past few months, I have wondered about this. I am strongly compelled to call people out of their hiding places, out from behind the fear. But how can we know the difference between no and not yet? Here’s one thing I know for sure: God calls all people to pursue their unique gifts, to discover the ways He wants to influence the world through them, to leave a trail of beauty.

Maybe a calling is simply a dream with legs. I’ve written more on this topic that I will post tomorrow, but for now I want to ask you: Do you believe there is a difference between a dream and a calling?

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Yes, there is a difference. Sometimes, my dreams are escapes from my crazy reality. But usually, all my dreams carry bits of the foundation for my calling. When I let myself pick apart my dreams, I see the bricks to build my calling. I’m artistically inclined, but incredibly relational (but introverted). Though I dream of a light-filled room cluttered with works in progress, I know that a solitary studio practice would not be wise or healthy. I dream of teaching and sharing what I’ve learned about my specific medium, but I fear that would pull me away from the making too much. Somewhere in between, I think, I hope, is where I need to find my way to.
    Not sure if this makes sense, but thanks for the challenge to think it through.

    Reply

  2. Very thought provoking. Right now I’m in a place of trying to discover what it is I dream of doing and if that is the same as what I’m called to do. I have to first discover my gifts and where my passion lies, I feel we are called to use the talents we’ve been given no matter what dream or occupation that may lead us into, some how there’s a way to incorporate them. I am currently in limbo between the possibility of becoming a Mom and finishing my education and starting a new (dream?) job that awaits me out there some where. For either option I don’t think the answer is no, I think it may just be not yet.

    Reply

  3. Emily! I shout your name – the meaning is how you write…”eager”. You write about being eager to please and your struggle with perfection-seeking in being the good girl – the girl who does what is right, what is good. I think God is “calling” you toward being eager for Him. Isn’t He *calling* all of us toward that, actually?! What the meaning of your name represents speaks more poignantly to your heart in a more personal way, I’m sure. But for some reason, I can’t help but say your name with such gusto and enthusiasm today, for God is calling you by name in a very personal way.

    To your point…I once read a quote by Steven Curtis Chapman – that if it’s on your heart, you’ll be a part of it. A *part*. Only God casts the parts. Only we can step up and say yes to our role. I think the more we recognize our dreams – God makes sense of them through specific “callings” that make our dreams become real, colorful, images – not just visions. Sometimes what we dream in our hearts – all wildish and crazy – really are callings, at least in a symbolic way.

    You notion to call people out…I think it’s a God-given notion – an “eagerness” that He gives you, as you’ve seen how stepping out and taking a risk with what is on your heart brings such freedom to your own life, and as you said – “to leave a trail of beauty.”

    I’ve always written like you described – freely and independently in my journal, without any pressure. I’m afraid of the pressure now as I explore this *calling* I feel. This prompting that is so real I cannot deny it. But…I am *seeing* the “trail of beauty” that is made, as I see words God has given me to write, sprawled across other people’s writing – words I’ve written that has inspired them to take a risk and seize their calling. I think we’re better people when we have encouragement and other wise folks who have gone before us in risk-taking to call us out.

    Amen and AMEN, sister!

    Reply

  4. What a great post. And I love your line….Maybe a calling is simply a dream with legs……I have never really thought about it, but I guess I do feel like there is a difference. Pretty much along the same lines you were walking….I feel like a dream is that small whisper you feel about something that will maybe happen in the future…but you don’t know how it will all fall into place, and your heart flutters a bit when you think of it. A call seems more urgent….more now. It seems like more than a whisper, and instead of not knowing how it will all fall into place, the steps are laid out before you (however difficult they may be) and it is your job to take each step in faith.

    Reply

  5. I’m re-learning, as a stay-at-home-mom who was formerly a business owner and high school art teacher, that it’s ok to dream…that in fact, God plants dreams and is glorified in the fulfilling of them. I had some “mommy guilt” about pursuing creative endeavors, but the Lord’s peeling away the layers of misunderstanding I have had and revealing how His creativity is glorified in our own acts of creating and dream-chasing. The thing I love about what you are saying is that it’s important to distinguish the difference between the dreams we do chase down and the dreams that are “not yet.” Timing is so important, and the Lord’s so faithful to guide us.

    Right now my dream is to be more actively involved in orphan-care, and I’m asking the Lord for more opportunities to be involved in this with missions trips and work locally. My big (sort of secret) dream is to write about the Lord – I’m asking Him to show me how, when and what and to bless the work and to show me how to make much of Him!

    It’s inspiring to read your blog and hear your thoughts about art and ministry and to see your book become a reality. God’s hand in your life is inspiring to see. Thank you for inviting us in!

    Reply

  6. I don’t know if this will make sense, but I think a calling is something that becomes confirmed from outside ourselves. It might begin as an inner dream, that might be the seed, but a calling speaks to us through others, through the desire to answer a need, perhaps where need meets gifts.

    I like what Jill said, that sometimes a dream can just be an escape, but taken in pieces, can be the ingredients for calling.

    Something else I am turning over in my mind is how long a dream has been with us. These are good questions.

    Reply

    • This is exactly how I feel! I think of a calling as coming from outside us, or being in some way outside of our will and control. It might involve the kinds of giftings we have and the way we’re made, or it might involve our response to a need. But often dreams and callings are related or have the same building blocks, to borrow Jill’s image. The desires of our hearts come from within us, but we do not make them.

      If I look at my dreams, really dig deep into them, I think they often get back to the same basic elements of what I would consider to be my callings. I love to bake and have always harbored a dream of being a pastry chef, but when I think about why that might, I can see that my love of baking is an extension of my love of precision and detail, and that my desire to share it is part of the way I’m made, the way I love people and give – the kind of person God has called me to be.

      Some dreams may seem more frivolous than others, and many are wildly unrealistic (I’ll probably, in all likelihood, never get to star in a movie with Humphrey Bogart), but I think they contain seeds of who we are.

      Reply

  7. Hmmm, I imagine a dream like a desire of the heart. And a “calling” is like a force which compels us to it. We can still say “no” to the calling…but I think we miss great blessing if we do. And our giftings are those God-given skills we’ve received. And I do love you’re drawing people {me} out of hiding from their art. The “no”s and “not yet”s are for everything really. Not just art. 🙂

    Reply

  8. Somehow, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that you wrote this at precisely the same time I have been asking God some very hard questions about this very topic. I, too, filled notebook after notebook with stories as a child, and I even spent a whole summer writing The Novel (which still sits as a first draft in a box in a drawer somewhere). I have lost the desire to be published, maybe for a season, maybe forever — God only knows. I still love to write, but at this particular time in my life, I don’t feel that it’s my calling. I very clearly feel called to be a wife to my husband, a mother to my three children, and a teacher to my students. Being a wife, mother, and teacher were childhood dreams, as was being a writer, and God has allowed almost all of those dreams so far to come to fruition, in much greater ways than I ever imagined. He has also quieted other dreams, such as being a published writer; I don’t know if He ever intends to stir them up again. I also dreamed of going to Space Camp and eventually becoming a shuttle commander, and of owning a resort out west, and, of course, living by the beach in one of those light-filled places you talk about — but, as God always does, He brought me back to center and gave me the true desires of my heart. If writing for audiences ever is part of His plan for my life, I know He will guide me to that path, but for now, I sit in awe that He has allowed my biggest, most enduring dreams to be my callings. Well, the reasonable ones, anyway. I still wish He’d reconsider on the house by the beach! You bless me so much, Emily. What a gift you are!

    Reply

  9. Thank you for this post. I’m not sure I’ve commented on your blog before, but this touched me this morning. There are so many things I want to do in life. When I get interested in a subject, my imagination gets ahead of me. I still dream of becoming an astronaut one day…and then I remind myself it’s only a dream. Also, as exciting as it sounds to own a chocolate shops or be an astronaut, the more life experience I get, the more I realize that there is a deep peace AND a heady rush of excitement in following God’s call: In being the mom, doing the service project, or taking whatever step sounds difficult but which I know God chose me and only me to do.

    But at the same time, I think dreams sustain us because they give us hope. And I think they keep us open-minded and ready for God’s next calling. Because, although I can’t be an astronaut, I could one day get a PhD in physics. Or I could do something else that sounds as wild as this non-science girl studying science. Because as long as I’m imagining the impossible, then I’m ready to be God’s hands and feet to make the impossible into something possible…and help shape God’s kingdom on earth.

    Reply

  10. Yes, I believe there is a difference and therein lies the struggle of my heart. I am unable to decide if my dream is a calling so it holds me back from pursuing it. If it isn’t what I am called to do, should I go forward? If it is, then how can I go forward?
    This trying to decide between dream and calling keeps me from letting the thoughts in my head come out on paper. It keeps me from being able to ask out loud “can I?”
    I just wish I knew.

    Reply

    • I am in the same place as you right now. I feel like a dream is a calling and opportunities and people will arise to fill those dreams if you stay in faith. I am moving forward with my dream, even tho I still feel scared too but I know in the end it is Gods calling! Good luck! go for it

      Reply

  12. I couldn’t agree with you more. The word Calling can be a bit overused, just like the words “burnt out.” In my opinion. But I definitely believe in being called to something. My husband is a Student Pastor and has been for over 10 years. We have been married almost 8, and some of the time working in a church has been difficult. There have been moments where he has entertained the notion of being a car salesman, because it would just be easier. But, the calling he has been givin’ had always trumped the “easy” card. And you can see the obvious call when you watch him doing what he does. But it’s funny, as for me being called to be a mom, I have never really thought of it that way. Struggling with infertility, I often wondered if I wouldn’t be a good mom and thats why I couldn’t get pregnant. But then God blessed us with Brennan 20 months ago, and life is better than we could have ever imagined.

    Reply

  13. Here are my rambling thoughts on this subject… I think there is a difference in the two. But I also think that a calling can begin as a dream and then become your calling. How else would God entrench it so deeply within us? I think a difference is that if it is a calling, you feel compelled to do it. It’s almost as if you can’t NOT do it. If you did try to quell it, you would become miserable (think of people who run from their calling as a pastor).
    I also think that a dream can take time to develop into a calling. And sometimes a calling is there, but it is *not yet*. In due time. Many moms, especially, are in places of extreme importance. Our calling as moms are first and foremost, yet during our time at home (if that is where we are) God may be preparing us for the calling. Doing little things to get us ready. Ready for the bigger step.
    I am so preaching to myself right here as well. I feel called to speak to women about my story, but I don’t feel ready yet. I believe and trust that God is taking me there, but I have to be patient and learn what I am supposed to in THIS season.
    This was a great post, Emily! And I have to tell you that MY *dream* is to own a coffee/chocolate/cheese/wine/ bookstore where people can gather in a town square somewhere! Don’t really think that is ever gonna happen, but I can dream!
    Bernice

    Reply

  14. I also agree that there is a difference and it’s something I’ve wrestled with as of late.

    I think if the dream has been confirmed from outsiders, if it’s somewhat based in reality (if I dreamed to be a supermodel, that certainly ain’t coming true!), and if it’s been handed over time and time again to the Lord (I’ll stop pursuing this if you don’t want me to. It’s always in your hands), and if the dream is following you around persistently and urgently…..it’s a calling.

    Reply

  15. I think you’ve done a really good job of discerning the difference between a dream and a calling. And that’s not to say one can’t grow into the other. Perhaps the dream is sometimes the seed planted by God. Maybe the seed blossoms and flourishes, maybe it stays firmly embedded in the earth.

    I believe to write is my calling. I never dreamed of being a writer. It never even crossed my mind. I didn’t ever ponder it. One day, without even thinking about it, I simply started writing, in my basement, with a blanket wrapped around my shoulders. I had no idea what I was doing. I believe in my heart that God himself walked me down into that chilly basement and set my fingers on the keyboard. Why else would I have begun such a crazy endeavor, without ever having really thought about it myself? It’s just too weird.

    On the other hand, I dream of becoming a real writer — and that dream looks like a pretty adobe house in New Mexico, with flowering cactus outside my “study” window, and a bike with a basket parked outside the front door, which I use to pedal into town each morning to pick up fresh vegetables and baked goods at the town shops. And I write for a few hours every day, in between walking and admiring birds. My dream does not look like my current reality, which entails writing in short bursts, squeezed between my paying job and my mothering and stirring noodles on the stove. Or in the pre-dawn hours, bleary and incoherent.

    As you can see, my dream in no way matches my reality!

    Reply

  16. Thank you for this post!! A distinct call is what enables me to persevere, knowing that my current position was not created by me but appointed by God. A call is what provides clarity rather than confusion when the journey becomes difficult. Meaning, when I question what I’m doing God will reveal to me whether or not He asked me to do what I am doing. It is in this time that my precious Lord reveals His call for this season of my life, and in doing so I can rest knowing I am where He desires me to be. Or He may reveal to me that I stepped out on my own, an invitation to me to return to His direction.

    Reply

  17. I am exactly at that point. Wondering, waiting if the dreams I have are actually a calling, or just what I WANT. As I read your post, my first thought was, “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” -Proverbs 16:9

    Discerning what is God’s will and what is ours is always a good question. At this point, I’m being patient and prayerful, that He will make the decision, leading me in His direction, which in the end, is always the right choice. 🙂

    Reply

  18. Is there a difference? That’s a good question. I don’t know. I think it’s simply the dreams we have the wherewithal to pursue and fulfill that then become a “calling” or purpose. And most of that, I think, comes from knowing ourselves. Maybe.

    Reply

  20. I love your ramble here…

    I know there’s a difference between dreams and calling. Our dreams speak of our desires, our calling can stem from desires God gives to us. You can let dreams go, but you can’t help living a calling – it doesn’t let you go. I know.

    Photography is like that for me. I thought it was just a dream, but every time I’ve tried to put it down, I can’t help picking it back up. Playing the piano – I could put that down. The thing that calls me back to it? Worship. That part won’t let me go. Sometimes our calling is found in our dreams.

    Have you ever read John Eldredge’s “Journey of Desire?” THAT is a good one that speaks to dreams and desires and callings…

    Ducking out now. 😉

    Reply

  21. Yes, I do believe there is a difference between a dream and a calling. And rather than repeating the same thoughts of those before me, I’ll just say I resonate with the way Kelly articulates that difference. I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on how you tell the difference between no and no yet…

    Reply

  22. I think they are related. Vision, dreams, seeing – they all speak to us being made in the image of the Creator (He creates). But somewhere along the way, I’m sure our dreams take on different lives of their own. Our call by Him is to surrender those dreams to Him – and allow Him to do more than we can ask for or imagine with them.

    Take for instance your “Chocoalt” dream. I’m guessing, if you really got down to it, the appeal there is the Story…well, maybe the heavy smell of chocolate helps to push the dream along, but still – it is the story that attracts you more than the actual shop keeping. And He is the One who put the Story in your heart years ago.

    Great stuff Emily!

    Reply

  23. Thought provoking.

    Yes, I believe there is a difference. And as I think about the difference I wonder… Maybe our calling is God’s dream for us.

    Reply

  24. I think this is such a tricky thing! I think that there are certainly dreams that we have that God turns into a call, writing, becoming a parent, owning a business, etc…. but then there are so many calling’s in the Bible that are not on the “dream”list. I don’t think that Moses would say that his call was anywhere near what he dreamed of doing, and Paul certainly would not say that his call was a dream of his……I think that maybe the only difference is that dreams are something that you can go after on your own…they are attainable by you. A calling (whether it starts out as a dream or not) is something that only God can do. He is the one doing the calling, it is His….you are the one he asking to do it…but it is his. Every now and then the things he calls us to are things we have always dreamed of, but I think that just as often, our calling is something we would never even dare dream of! ….well that was plenty of blabbering…..I definitely think they can be the same, but don’t think that they are always the same!…loved hearing your thoughts!

    Reply

  26. Wow, you have my head spinning with this one. I agree with Melissa that a ‘calling’ pursues us more urgently than a ‘dream’. At least that has been true for me. I can’t get away from it and it is often confirmed in ways I could not have imagined.

    But the dreams…I think there are a lot of things that we think would be fun or that we would like to do, but there is not enough time to do them all. Yet, there are certain dreams that continue beyond the ‘trend’ or the here and now. Those, I believe, may someday become a calling…or an unexpected blessing.

    Can hardly wait to read tomorrow’s post.

    Reply

  27. Dear emily,

    You drew me in with the title…this is what I’ve been pouring out these past few days coming back from a conference where I looked harder at writing and what next steps would look like, but also it was a conference to stir women to live in this world as each called. Called to seek His kingdom and to fight for the oppressed…

    So much that I’ve been sifting through and your words are a great encouragement–especially the calling others out of fear…what a tension between fear, faith, seeking to build our own kingdom, not His, and yet in our heart of hearts truly wanting to honor Him in this ONE LIFE…

    Well, I asked of Him a project {could be a book??} that would drive me deep in His word and lead me forward in my own calling…he’s been clarifying it and using things like your post and the March 8 ‘Jesus Calling’ {I think you read this} that I could hang up as a daily meditation…well, bless you in the journey…the BEST IS EVER YET TO COME!

    Reply

  28. Love, love, love this!

    I do believe that there is a difference between a dream and a calling.

    For me, things that I dream of doing all contain pieces or parts of who I am. For a long time, I dreamed of being a children’s author. I dreamed of being a concert clarinetist. I dreamed of being the perfect elementary teacher. Those dreams all include different bits of things I enjoy and talents that God has given me. Any one of them COULD have been a calling—but as of now, they are still fun dreams.

    I used to dream of hiking the Appalachian Trail, start to finish, in six months. But we had jobs. Then we had kids. Now I have issues with my neck that would make such a trek impossible. So while that was a great dream—it was like your chocolate shop—not so practical.

    A calling is a different beast in and of itself. I believe that God gives us talents and abilities that we are to share with others. And as others have said, if God calls you to something, he will put in place the right people and circumstances to involve you in His greater plan.

    The other thing I have learned about the things I’m called to is that sometimes they take what seems to be literally a lifetime to develop. Months, years, and decades go by in developing the parts of us that God wants to use. A lifetime to us. A blink of an eye to our Maker.

    Thanks for writing on this!

    Reply

  29. I believe that God wants to give us the desires of our hearts. When our hearts are open to His will, His calling becomes a dream we may or may not have known we had. Psalm 37:4

    If we’re willing, He molds and shapes our desires to fit with His plans for us. I have experienced this countless times. My dreams and the desires of my heart have changed over the years. Some have been deep inside me for as long as I can remember, too, like being a mom and a wife, and yes, writing. And then some callings on my life (like homeschooling my kids) are newer dreams, and ones I never thought I’d have!

    God is so good!

    Reply

    • I love this comment.. I can’t tell you how right you are. A Dream is something you do when your eyes are close, but oh boy.. a calling is something you definitely do eyes wide open, or should I say your eyes have been opened.

      Reply

  31. I wonder what Webster’s says about them…i the meantime, I think that I hear a calling to vacation at the beach this year.

    Vacay!!!

    Reply

  32. Emily, the Lord has used you to help lead me from a few hiding places of my own. Thank you!

    I have often thought the Lord puts a calling on your heart in the form of a dream…something you want that turns into something you do. I can’t wait to read your thoughts on this tomorrow!

    Reply

    • God calls us to bring glory to his name which he is due; to help or inspire others, and to fulfill our inner spirit which thrives to be who we really are; how God designed our own personal “blue prints”.

      Reply

  33. Yeees… there is a difference. But often the call comes to us first as a dream. And there are dreams that are just meant to be dreams. And there are callings that are sure, but nothing like we dreamt. I think that it takes a lot of discernment to distinguish between them. And it is an important distinction to make, because it is so easy to get caught up in the “since I dream about this so much, then OBVIOUSLY God must be calling me to do this”, or to fall for the “this can’t be my calling because it’s such hard work, and I don’t really enjoy it.”
    I do think that God has written our calling into the makeup of our being – our calling will resonate with who we are. But there is also sin in our hearts that can lead us to be selfish, to turn away from anything that is difficult, or costly, or requires that we put the wishes of other’s first.
    RIght now, I have the sense that God is calling me in a new direction. My calling has always been to teach – I was the one that organized “classes” for little kids during vacations, the one that was dying to teach Sunday School by age 12 – and I have now been a teacher for almost 15 years. I was always so sure of that calling, and now that I’m not so sure about what comes next, I feel quite uncomfortable. But I know that this is a necessary process, and that I need to wait patiently on the Lord with much prayer and discernment, and I can trust that he will show me the way to go.

    Reply

  34. Very insightful – as usual 🙂

    What happens when there’s a calling that ISN’T your dream?
    When Moses says, er, have you MET my brother? Now, HE’s a leader!

    I can tell you what happens. At least in me…
    Frustration. Confusion. God told me to cook. I responded, perhaps you have me confused with someone else. He said cook. I said, “I bring the paper products to the party. I don’t cook.” God, patiently said, ok. And, he filled my head with colors and ideas, and flavor combinations until I had no choice.

    So, I cooked. And, volunteered. And, was hired.
    And through it all I wondered, should I go back to school? Culinary school. At 40? It was fine for Julia Child, but it wasn’t in my cards.

    So, I waited. And listened.

    It all makes sense now. Years later I’m married with a step son who – LOVED making pizza in the church kitchen where I worked. He grew. We grew. He learned and blossomed…and loved – and everyone around him did, too.

    What if I had refused?
    What if I just went about my day.
    I was perfectly happy with Betty Crocker.

    But, God had other plans.
    Thanks for the inspiring post today.

    Reply

  35. Have you been reading my diary again? : ) I have been thinking and writing a lot, A LOT, about this stuff. I think all of this chat about art is making me ponder on the proper balance and legitimacy of it all. There are days when my calling(s) seem to trample all over my dreams and it makes me cranky. I realize that I can become very selfish and “hoardish” with my time when it comes to this whole issue of art. I don’t have an answer to your question…but finding “balance” between the callings and duties and dream-chasing is really hard for me right now. Often it’s tough to discern what belongings in the proper category.

    Oh, and I love that line “trail of beauty.” It’s perfect. And inspiring. Also? I want to be your business partner when you open the oceanside chocolate shop.

    Reply

  36. Hi Emily!

    I’ve never actually commented on your blog, but I lurke daily. I really enjoy your writing and seem to find exactly what I need to hear each time. Like today. This post resonated with me on a level I wasn’t expecting. Just this morning, I launched a blog for the company I’ve finally decided to step out on the ledge and start. And I was scared to death. Your post today helped calm my nerves and make me hit publish. Thank you so much for your words.

    Reply

  37. A dream is usually at least a little selfish and comes from within….a calling always requires putting aside self and comes from without. They both have great rewards though – much like the difference between happiness and joy.

    Reply

  38. I wish I knew if there was a difference, and where does the reality lie in our dreams? Are some of our dreams meant simply to remain as dreams, or does God plant them for His greater purpose? How do I know if my dreams are meant to become what I do everyday in life? Should I leave my job to pursue my dreams? What if things fall apart as I step out of dream and into reality, or even calling? How do I know if my dreams are my calling? What if I get it all wrong? Perhaps I could sum up all I am saying in one word. FEAR. How do I get through life without messing up my life? (I know, impossible to not mess some of it up) How do I know that what I choose to do is the right thing to do? All summed up in one little four lettered word, but it is there, and it is haunting.

    Oh, to know the answers to these questions!

    Reply

  39. Dreams are things we want to do. Our own little hearts just yearn to fulfill dreams.

    Callings? Well, that isn’t always true, at least not at first. Sometimes God calls us to do things that are completely out of our comfort zones, things that we resist, flee from. Look at Jonah, for instance.

    When we stop running, and get on board with God’s plans, those things we ran from often turn out to be the thing that brings us the most joy of all. More than we ever dreamed of, perhaps?

    Reply

  40. A calling for me is far more exciting than the things I dream of. 🙂 A calling is deeper and wider and is pregnant with purpose. A dream is fun and frilly and exciting for a while. I dream of writing a book one day, but my calling to write a book has so much more meaning. I dream of travelling, but my calling to travel (missions) means there is impact involved. I dream of having a family, but my calling to raise a child up to love the Lord means there’s effort involved on my part. I have a dream to custom build (design) my own home but my calling to create a home no matter where I am begs for me to utilize tools the Master Carpenter provides me. I dream of being a photographer, but I am called to capture souls.

    Dreams are the finite things my mind conjurs up. A calling captures everything I never dreamed could ever happen.

    🙂 Good stuff!

    Reply

  41. I think dreams are the same as callings. If it’s not a calling, it’s simply wishy washy daydreaming, not a realistic long term dream. I mean, things like wishing we were all more beautiful, or have more money – that’s just daydreaming. But goals like dreaming to be a writer, or having a dream to start a business, those are valid callings

    Reply

  42. There are so many things in my life I’ve dreamed of doing. For some reason, they either never happened, or when it did happen it’s wasn’t what I expected. But when I did what was in my heart….I knew it was a calling. I had been artistic since I was a child, but I never thought of it as something special. This year I finally realized I needed to stop swimming upstream and embrace that part of myself. Suddenly I found myself… happy. It had been in my heart all along; but I think God knew I needed to go through what I did to get there. It was fighting for some of those dreams, sometimes broken, that made me realize the dream was found in my calling.

    Reply

  43. I have to believe that a calling is a dream with legs, but only because we dare to stand up. Sometimes, like you pointed out, you find things that you’re doing were meant for you to be doing and you never realized it (like being a youth leader) and sometimes you do what you feel like you’re meant to do and because you have that feeling, you believe and you succeed (like writing a book).
    Standing at the edge of graduating college, it’s hard to reconcile the two; in fact, I imagine at any point in life (first job, retirement, marriage, divorce, kids, etc.) it’s hard to reconcile dreams, callings and reality.
    Thank you for posting on the art of art, lately. You’ve helped wake up a few dreams of my own.

    Reply

  44. it has almost been a year since He awakened me to my “calling”…which was firmly rooted, dare i say, established in my dreams. does that make sense? i had spent the last almost twenty years believing that my talent/gift had no eternal purpose…i.e. believing a had a secular vs. a sacred vocation, yet God absolutely revealed Himself right in the middle of prepping for a wedding (i am a florist) and showed my how to use what He has given me to “leave a trail of beauty” (as you so perfectly describe) for His glory. i stand amazed, humbled, and thankful to have had my eyes opened.

    Reply

  45. I totally love this one today. It is so true, and there is a difference. I think a dream is something that many people never really try to reach for. It is there in the background. A calling is something that you feel inspired to stretch and reach for. I think you might even put more effort into it.

    Reply

  46. Wow…now this is something that I have spent many hours thinking about. I believe that “a calling” is the dream that our Lord has for us…and dreaming is what we do for ourselves. Sometimes our dream is our calling…that is when we are blessed enough to find out what Gods dream is for us. So many go to the grave without ever reaching the dream the Lord had for them. Where faith is concerned I believe that “a calling” is so big that it would never be possible for us to walk in it without having the Lord go ahead of us…and Him actually doing it with us just being in the right position.

    Reply

  47. I adore this post. I like the idea that a calling is a dream with legs. But I might offer that a different anatomy could also be used. A calling is also a dream with ears. Because you must hear the faint whispers (and sometimes obscene shouts) of that which is calling in order to follow it. Maybe we dream with our mind, heart and eyes, but it’s when our ears are open that the calling can come if that is the intention.

    Reply

  48. Emily, I can’t tell you how much I needed to hear this. God is taking my dreams and making into callings in my life. I was just praying about the dreams in my heart and reading this helped confirm what God has been calling me to do. It’s a little scary when dreams become callings. I almost wish they would live in my heart as dreams. A calling brings so much responsiblity. And yet, I know that He who started this work in me will be faithful to complete it and to give me the strength to do it in Him.

    This was a beautiful post. Thank you.

    Reply

  49. “Maybe a calling is simply a dream with legs.” that’s the ticket. When reading my Lent Passage for today it talks about your “will” versus God’s “will” and says that I should ask for forgiveness when I cling to my will instead of God’s. I have a bad habit of creating my own will and imposing that on others instead of listening to God’s will. So where does the Dream and Calling come into all this? I don’t dream. I mean when I sleep… never really have and when I do it’s disturbing, makes me restless. So I like “Calling’ and I like to think I’ll be giving it legs. Thanks! ox

    Reply

  50. Again you have touched directly on something I’ve been working through lately. In identifying my dream of writing and realizing that I have not actively used the gift, I’ve thought perhaps social work is no longer my calling. It hasn’t satisfied me in the way it used to, not even now in what I always believed was my “dream job.” I make goals, like being able to write full-time in x years and being able to walk away from my current work. Then I stop to think. Could I really leave behind my training? Has my calling changed, are my dreams leading me in a new direction? Could it be that social work is still my calling but that my job prevents me from realizing it? Maybe I need to practice social work in a whole new way. Maybe there’s a way to integrate my love of writing and my love of helping people. I’m not sure the intersection exists, whether it should be one of the other. For now, I’m doing the thing I must do (my job) so I can do the thing I MUST do (write.)

    Reply

  51. I’ve always tried to be careful in separating out dreams and callings because I think it can be a dangerous slope. Does a dream only become a calling when it’s externally validated? Does it only “count” if it moves from dream to calling? How can you tell if and when a dream becomes a calling?

    I chose for years to pursue my dream, unclear where it would lead. Ultimately, I had to decide to continue to write because I felt compelled to, because I loved playing with language and craved the place my stories created, regardless of publication or not. At the same time, I vigorously continued to treat my passion like an eventual career, even quitting my day job to write full time.

    What if things hadn’t worked out as they have? Did my dream only become a calling once I sold a book? And what if I don’t sell another ever again? I don’t know, honestly. I think if we have a passion, it’s meant for us to explore. It’s meant to have purpose. How “big” that purpose will be isn’t always clear.

    Reply

  52. Emily,
    Is there a difference?

    I’m not sure, but I do know the dreams playing over and over in my mind that I haven’t quite worked up the courage to live out are placed in my heart by God. I think He gave my dreams to me. Sometimes I think He gives us dreams and then whispers to us what we are to do with them. If only I could be quiet to hear what He is saying!

    Reply

  53. I have dreams: write a book, run a retreat center, be a missionary in France…

    I have a calling: wife to my husband, momma to my four kiddos, and those specific ministries that God draws me to.

    Dreams, for me, are for the future. Calling is what I am to do right now. Dreams are callings I hope will happen. Haha!

    Reply

  55. yes! totally agree. difference between a calling and a dream. I can totally relate…..feel i’m called to be a mom and it was once a dream. so cool! never thought of it that way. loved this post! thank you!

    Reply

  56. I believe we’ve made it too hard… this whole idea of calling, especially in Christian circles. Too much talk of it can leave a soul diminished, hungering for the “holding” of something he/she doesn’t perceive he/she possesses. For me (speaking as one who has a tendency to feel diminished in these type of conversations… especially when I fall into the comparison trap), I’ve narrowed down the definition a bit. Simply put, I believe my calling is “to know God and then out of that knowing lead other to know the same.”

    God can and does use a myriad of “giftings” in each one of us to accomplish that goal, and I joy in watching the divine collision when it happens in me and in others–when the passions, dreams, talents, obedience all come together to make a difference for the kingdom, whether big or small.

    I think dreams are a bit different from calling. I have a certain few of those mingling around in my heart and brain. And while I’d like to live in Montana one day or have a house in the mts. for writing retreats, I don’t imagine those will come to pass. So I have to make peace with it all… my calling and my dreams, and if one is dependent on the other. I have a feeling that one is more important than the other.

    Great thoughts, Emily. Glad one of your dreams is now colliding with your calling. I know your writing will continue to touch the hearts of countless readers. As you begin speaking it, may God give you his peace and discernment for the words and an unconditional love for the audience you serve.

    Keep to it.

    peace~elaine

    Reply

  57. So I just wrote this blog post called “When Your Dream is Your Calling” and then stumbled onto your post from years ago and it’s so relevant. I was struggling with this very issue and just didn’t seem to be able to get the words right as I was sharing it. And reading through all these comments leaves me still just confused. For me, they are definitely related but I’m not sure how and it’s probably different for everyone. However, personally, I had this dream years ago of traveling with my family. But in the last two years it weighed so heavily until we decided to take steps towards it. So was it always a calling so many years ago? Or was it a dream that God is partnering with us in and we are taking steps of obedience and doing the work He’s calling us into as we live our dream? I don’t think I know the answer and I think it’s a little silly to get the “right” word at this point in our lives. But some people think it’s selfish to just go after your dream when it doesn’t make sense and yet if it’s a calling they get it more. It’s an interesting issue for sure. But regardless of whether it’s a dream or a calling if God is leading you in it and you’re doing the work He puts in front of you, I don’t think the word itself matters so much. Just my humble thoughts.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *