Many Christians want to fulfill what they believe to be their calling in God. They want to give their time and money to fulfilling it, and they can't stop thinking about it.

The thing is, although they want to give their time to fulltime ministry in the church, there's something that they feel hinders them; something they feel is like a high wall sandwiched between them and their ministry dreams.

It's their secular jobs.

In this article we'll talk about how we can fulfill our calling if we have a secular job.

Knowing your master

Many Christians make the wrong mistake of considering a "calling" as something that only church leaders and ministers receive.

They think that when a person is "called," he will someday go fulltime in ministry, dedicating himself to serve the Lord in the church.

Some Christians with secular jobs, however, fail to realize that serving God doesn't mean standing on the pulpit, or getting a big church.

It simply means serving God in whatever way possible, but not necessarily through fulltime church ministry. Colossians 3:23-24 tells us,

"And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ."

Knowing your calling

Now that we've got that plainly laid out for us to see, we've got to know our calling.

Did you know that all Christians are called? Yes, all Christians who have responded to the grace of God in Christ are called to be something:

To be His children, fashioned in the likeness of Christ.

"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified."

Dear friends, as Christians our main calling is to follow Christ. We ought to become like Christ because it's God's will for us.

Fulfilling your calling in a secular world

Now that those main points are there, here are some effective ways to fulfill your calling to be Christ-like while in a secular job.

1) Preach the Gospel to your co-workers

First, preach or share the Gospel to your co-workers. They might get surprised, but that doesn't matter: what matters is that they hear the Gospel and receive the opportunity to be saved.

2) Grow in Christ even as you work

If the Christian is called to Christ-likeness, then what better thing to do that to actually grow in Christ-likeness, in an environment that Jesus Himself walked in -- with people who don't know Him?

The workplace can be a really good place to grow and exercise what the Lord taught in the sermon on the mount (see Matthew 5) and also allow the Holy Spirit to bear His fruits listed in Galatians 5:22-23.

3) Recognize that you can serve God anywhere

Lastly, recognize that we can serve God anywhere. Serving God doesn't have to mean going fulltime in ministry; rather it would mean shining for the Lord.

"You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:14-16)