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Dr. Chase

COMM 494

April 14, 2023

The Christian Vocation to Surrender

Before I began this essay, I was frustrated, realizing I have not gained as many hard skills

as I thought I would through my liberal arts education in Interpersonal Communication and

Christian Formation and Ministry. As I reflected on this more, I was able to name a lot of skills I

have gained in college, regardless of these skills looking different than I expected. These soft

skills have come through consistent intentional choices and constant discipline in my life as a

Christian and a student. I can see how these skills have made me a more versatile and equipped

person for various challenges that arise in life.

Difficulties like burnout, anxiety, and depression occur for so many people as they strive

to fulfill a vocation or calling. It is emphasized often, but still problematic and alarming that

difficulties like these are prevalent and include those who strive for the American Dream ideal.

This “American Dream ideal '' declares: I can be anything or do anything I would like, it will

guarantee success and happiness. As Christians we must remember our ideal is very different

from the American Dream. Our vocation and calling as Christians is a life surrendered to Jesus.

This life surrendered to Jesus, is truly the end goal of my vocation as a Christian, which results in

bringing glory to Him. This lifestyle of surrender can be lived out in the workplace and at home.

It is living a life that depends on Christ, not on ourselves, or our own pride.

I have truly learned how to live this way through the obstacles I have faced in my time as

a student. These obstacles have taught me so much about this vocational call to glorify God.
There have been obstacles of all kinds, such as managing multiple deadlines for extensive large

assignments and four of my very close friends transferring. My pride has been tested. My ideals

for college were not met. God has worked in my weaknesses. My classes have challenged me to

show up in life, when I felt imperfect as a student or an imposter compared to the talent of

others. This has been an act of obedience to God to not rely on myself, or on perfectionism or

pride in my efforts in the classroom.

I feel grateful my college education has trained me to become better at higher order

things like depending on God and not on pride. This has led to real, legitimate training in how to

surrender to Christ, which is my vocational call. These obstacles looked like wrestling with what

I already knew myself as and what I held to as my identity. Coming into college, I was an athlete,

running for Wheaton on the cross country team. I quickly realized being an athlete was one of

the main attributes I felt distinguished me as a person. Through a season-altering injury, I felt

God was saying to leave the team, only one semester in and rebuild beyond the confines of

Chrouser Sports Complex or athletics. I was eager to explore the other ways God had gifted me

beyond a talent in running and how to serve Him in other capacities. I boldly told my coach I

was walking away, and immediately pursued other ways to get involved on campus. So many

doors closed! The first, being a permanent quarantine at home just as we had begun our second

semester.

College soon began to look very different from what we thought it would be. School

from home, friends transferring, virtual learning and social distancing. Life on campus looked so

different! I began to adopt C.S. Lewis’ mentality, from a sermon he gave in 1939 to a group of

students at Oxford. His message to the students was that they needed to take their learning and
studying in school seriously, even in such an uncertain time in the world. In this case his words

are coming from the context of the war that was happening in the world at that time.

He said, “If we let ourselves, we shall always be waiting for some distraction or other to

end before we can really get down to our work. The only people who achieve much are

those who want knowledge so badly they seek it while the conditions are still

unfavorable” (Lewis).

I still became excited about numerous committees and leadership positions on campus

during the pandemic. I felt these positions were partly a reason why I left athletics. I was turned

down from all of them. God provided in this distress when I decided I wasn’t going to rely on my

own understanding, and just be faithful to what He had in front of me. Junior year began, and I

received an unexpected email inviting me to be a guide for a local highschool runner who was

blind. This was incredibly meaningful to me and my own running story. This was an example of

depending on Christ, not on myself, or my pride as an athlete. Truly, it was an experience that

solidified this concept of surrender that I believe is my vocation. I saw in my own life I had

surrendered to what God had for my involvement in college. But beyond that I saw this visually

impaired runner surrender everyday and trust he was physically being led where he needed to go.

Christ’s power is made perfect in us through suffering. I saw that so clearly.

I worked through the obstacles of finding my major as Interpersonal Communication and

minor in CFM. Over time I could see the value of learning how to be a good communicator and

being obedient to God’s promptings of pursuing ministry. In my college years this manifested

into an internship over the summer at Village Seven Presbyterian Church in Children’s Ministry.

I received an additional internship with Joni and Friends, whose mission is to present the hope of
the Gospel to people affected by disability through providing resources and partnership to area

churches.

Through these obstacles, I have been tested and have repeatedly seen the value of relying

on Christ and not on myself. May it result in glory to Him! This institution was not designed for

me and my kingdom. Wheaton College, a private Liberal Arts institution, was founded in 1860

for Christ and His Kingdom. A liberal arts education at Wheaton College is “a distinctive general

education experience marked by academic excellence and grounded in the person of Jesus

Christ” (Wheaton). My prayer is that I would be obedient to Christ and His Kingdom the rest of

my life.
 Work Cited

Daniel, Elise. “C.S. Lewis and The Three Enemies of Work.” Institute For Faith, Work &

Economics, 31 July 2013, https://tifwe.org/c-s-lewis-and-the-three-enemies-of-work/.

Lewis, C.S. “Learning In War Time.” 1939, Oxford, University of Oxford.

Wheaton College. “Christ at the Core: Liberal Arts at Wheaton.” Wheaton College,

https://www.wheaton.edu/academics/the-liberal-arts-at-wheaton-college/christ-at-the-core-liberal

-arts-at-wheaton/.