Do you remember when you were little and adults would ask you, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Well, it seems like we are at the point of being "grown up." Are you doing what you said you wanted to do? Are you following you passions and desires?
As a college student, I have had the opportunity to chase my dream of becoming a teacher to teach inner-city children. However, I have not known that all my life. Perhaps, when I was little I thought I wanted to be a teacher, but I forgot about that and aimed for high-paying careers throughout high school.
To my surprise, God had other plans and directed my heart toward teaching during my final months before college. When I started going to college, I took the classes necessary for teaching in middle school or high school (secondary education). I enjoyed most of my classes, but there were some that made me re-evaluate my choice to become a teacher. I started wondering if I should choose another major because of the negative experiences that I faced with a few classes. I spoke with friends, mentors, and family members. They encouraged me to explore my options but to remember what drew me to my initial plan of study.
Am I the only one who has doubted their career path? ... No.
After talking with more friends and professors (who see college students each year go through the process of navigating their degrees), it was evident that most people question their career path at some point. They might want to change programs of study completely or they might want to add something to their degree to guide them to their ideal job. I've also seen adults change jobs because they lost a passion for it.
A wise person once said to me once that God did not give us free will so that we would wait for Him to tell us which career to choose. Instead, He gave us gifts, talents, and passions so that we could choose the thing that made us must happy and glorify Him in that.
This changed my perspective about a few things. One, I thought God was waiting for me to make the "right" decision, but He was actually just waiting for me to be decisive. Two, I came to the realization I had put God into this worldly category of some superior waiting for the right answer or action while He was actually lovingly and patiently taking the time to show me how to make important life decisions. Three, I realized that if I enjoyed teaching, I shouldn't let a few classes get in the way of that.
Now, I am currently a teacher intern (a.k.a. student teacher) at a public school in Michigan. Having the experience of teaching children is something that I feel privileged to do each day. I love making learning fun and exciting as well as applicable to my students' present and future lives. Showing them patience like God showed me in my decision-making process is one of the many ways I get to show them God's love.
If you are currently working in a career that was not something you went to college and studied, I don't want you to read this and be discouraged. Instead, I want you also to be encouraged in a different way. My parents are not college graduates, but they each have jobs where they are able to use their unique gifts and talents to bring joy to their co-workers and the people they interact with each day. They are loving parents that show their passions in all they do and the way in which they speak. You can do the same. In fact, you should use your gifts and shine your light to the world around you in whatever you do.
In this world, there are wonderful and terrible teachers, cashiers, engineers, owners, drivers, baristas, mechanics, actors and all other careers that are necessary in order to make our society run well. It is your choice to be good at whatever you do via natural talent or development.
As we have seen on the news recently, Donald Trump is now the elected president of the United States of America. As unreal as that may seem, it is the reality, and it seems more important now than ever to chase your passions. If we are not doing what we are passionate about in a world that is not always loving (sometimes cruel, in fact), how are we supposed to shine the light that God placed within us?
Thus, I must remind you to chase your dreams. Follow your passions. Love what you do. Be contagiously passionate.
Your passions are things that make you cry (either from laughter or joy). These are the things that drive you to make a difference in the world. Find out what that is for you, and don't stop until you get there. Take a moment to remember how you answered those adults when they asked about your "grown up" career, and perhaps you'll re-discover your passion.
