Specific Calling View
May 22 2025
In the Specific Calling View, vocation is understood as a unique path specifically prepared by God for each individual. The goal of vocational discernment is to discover this unique path and follow it.
Means of discernment: Scripture and prayer help in discerning an individual’s calling. Prayer is a way of connecting with God and seeking personal guidance in your unique situation. Direct supernatural revelation is one tool for vocational discernment, and is somewhat emphasized. Reason can play a role, but in practice tends to be de-emphasized. Community input is helpful but not primary; the focus is on individual discernment. Impact considerations can have a part in discerning your unique calling, but they do not decide it. Impact is whatever a person's unique calling contributes to, and it could be a wide variety of things.
Example: A person following the Specific Calling View might ask themselves, “Is this my calling?” or “Is this what God intends for me?” They may feel a deep sense of personal destiny or purpose when making a career decision, believing that God has a unique and predetermined path for them.
Comparison with the CFI view: The CFI view tends to look at calling more from the perspective of the needs of others than finding a unique path specific to you personally, even though personal fit is considered important. The CFI view is also more flexible about whether there is a “one true calling” or not. In practice, the Specific Calling View also tends to advocate for tools of discernment different from the CFI view: impact considerations play no direct role and analytic thinking may be less emphasized.
Key thinkers: Francis Schaeffer, Rick Warren