Worthy of His Calling: Shepherding Girls to Discern & Discover Their Purpose

To the world, the word “vocation” refers simply to an occupation, but to Christians, vocation is so much more than work— it is the purpose and calling God placed on our hearts from the moment He created us.

In fact, the very word vocation comes from the Latin word vocation, meaning “calling”. But beyond a calling to a specific task, duty, or role, discovering a vocation means finding the fullness of the person God created us to be; it is the truest form of self-discovery.

Each beloved child of God has a vocation as unique as the body, intellect, and personality with which they were bestowed. By developing a strong identity in Christ, adopting a Biblical worldview, and growing in knowledge, today’s American Heritage Girls are being equipped to discern His calling and discover their God-given purpose.

Discerning vs. Deciding

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

It’s the age-old question young kids love to answer, and high-school students loathe. In early youth, discovering our life’s purpose is a world of possibility, often resulting in answers like a fire-fighting teacher or a ballerina-astronaut. In adolescence, this question can feel more like a cage, one huge confining decision that will impact the rest of your life.

But imagine if our girls, often plagued by fear or anxiety around the future, could revel in the majesty of God’s plan for them? Every girl could rest in knowing that God has given her a purpose and He is leading her to it—she need only follow. That is the difference between discernment and deciding. Our faith in Jesus means we get to live in a place of blessed assurance that we are called to something worthwhile. Through our work, our relationships, our daily lives, we can spread the Gospel and make a Kingdom impact. Discerning a vocation is recognizing that each one of us has the ability to minister to others in unique and equally necessary ways.

Our girls, fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of their Creator, have each been given spiritual giftings, physical and intellectual talents, and a deeply rooted purpose. By combining the development of a Biblical worldview, teaching new life skills, and instilling hearts for service, American Heritage Girls disciples girls to recognize their identity in Christ so that they can confidently enter what can be a difficult season of discernment. Or as AHG Founder Patti Garibay puts it, “AHG gives each girl the space to learn who she is and Whose she is in Christ.”

You can support your girl through her season of discernment by encouraging her identity and value in Christ. Start by praying that her vocation will be revealed, encourage service to others, and create a community of Godly men and women who live out their calling— an American Heritage Girls Troop is just the place for this important, spiritually life-giving, nurturing work!

Overcoming Easy Ideals and Striving for the Godly

In the age of information, answers to all of life’s questions and solutions to our problems seem to be a click away. Better yet, the answer or solution you’re looking for, the one that feels comfortable, easy, and perfectly-aligned, is there if you look hard enough. We are plagued

with the pleasure of convenience. Not convinced? One need only scroll through social media to see this instant gratification summed up in one video trend, “can we skip to the good part?”. Here our girls see frizzy hair or homes in disarray disappear with the wave of a hand— no time, no effort, no struggle, no failure. That illusion spills over into reality. Experience enough instant gratification online and our girls come to expect they “skip to the good part” in every scenario, including a right fit in their career

But when it comes to discerning the calling God has placed on your life, there is no video splicing, only trusting the process. Discernment, or “discovery”, comes only through intentional, thoughtful, and focused time spent with the Lord. Without the firm foundation of an identity in Christ, a confidence in prayer, and a trust in the authority of the Word, true discernment isn’t just difficult, it’s impossible. This foundation takes time to build, and ultimately impacts how we view the world.

When a girl’s identity and her worldview lens is rooted in faith, the Gospel message doesn’t stay neatly tucked in her Bible only to be taken off the shelf each Sunday, it impacts every facet of her life! A Biblical worldview shapes the way she understands herself, her purpose in the world, and how she can influence an unholy world for Christ using the God-given gifts bestowed upon her at the moment of her creation.

Confusion, questioning, and doubt— they are all taking center stage in the daily cultural happenings of society. But with a Biblical worldview comes a steady, unwavering, and unchanging understanding of truth. God’s Word is a firm foundation, He is the Rock of ages, the Holy Spirit helps us recognize what is good and what is evil. Scripture provides us with relevant answers to today’s questions. This grounding in truth becomes a refuge from the uncertainty and anxiety of today’s culture where our decisions define us and our emotions control us. This call to live out the Gospel and connect every facet of daily life back to our Creator isn’t an easy one, but it’s a Godly one.

His Word, Our Command

When your daughter has a big question, where does she turn? If all goes right, in times of unknowing she turns to you, her parent. As she ages, it’s common to stray from the parent and turn to the friend. But ultimately there is one place, one respite for our girls that we desire first and foremost—and that is the arms of the Father.

Girls today are inundated with the voices of others and opinions on what is right and true. Parents, teachers, coaches, influencers, they all speak loudly into the minds of girls who are looking to discover their identity.

But there’s one voice that can be difficult to comprehend amid the noise of the others—God’s. It’s unlikely that your girl hears a loud booming voice that she knows belongs to her Creator. She probably, like a lot of us, hears that still, small voice in the back of her mind. It can be hard to decide, especially in difficult circumstances, if it’s God speaking truth or the enemy seeking to manipulate.

With your Troop, contrast the ways the Lord and the enemy speak in Scripture. Notice the differences, for example: where God brings hope and the enemy sows suspicion. The more she reads, the more she can strengthen her spirit of discernment and answer the call of Colossians 1:10, NJKV “that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

Girls can develop their discernment skills, even from a young age. This AHG Program year, encourage the girls in your Troop, especially Pioneers and Patriots, to devote their hearts and minds to discovering God’s calling. As believers, we are each called to live the charge of Matthew 28:19-20, to make disciples of all nations. How we’re led to do that, through career, relationship, and mission, is a specially-formed way, a vocational calling as unique as our individual physical selves! Celebrate individual talents, explore new life skills and interests through badge work, discover new ways of serving others, and remain prayerful that the Spirit of the Lord would make known the right path!