I would like to talk about our calling. How many of you believe that God has called each one of you? Hallelujah! I strongly believe. You know, God has brought us together to be the body of Christ in this place, at Alanka, in this church. And I have great respect for all the churches, all the ministries God is raising across the globe. God is using them. But I have something to say about this church. If God had just called you to be a believer of some church, He would have brought you here. There is a definite calling upon each one of your lives. That's why He has brought you all together here. It's beyond being a Sunday believer, beyond being a member of a local church. I believe God has a definite, specific calling upon each one of us. Turn to your neighbor and say, "You have a calling."

A successful life is all about fulfilling the call of God upon our lives. You know, the world defines success in various ways. I don't want to get into that. That's not the topic I want to share. Success in God's sight is all about fulfilling His call.

Now, this morning, I have titled my message "Just Come Out of Your Hiding to Meet Your Calling." Many of you are hiding. You know that God has called you, you know that God has anointed you, you know that God has met you. But yet, there are times that we go into hiding. So this morning, if I'm successful in pulling you all out of your hiding places to meet the call that God has for you, I think I have done a successful job.

I'd like to talk about this point from a person called Saul, who was chosen by God as the first king of the nation of Israel. I'd like you all to look at how his calling began and how God worked in his life, from 1 Samuel chapter 9 and chapter 10. The chapters are too long to read in full, but I'll highlight a few verses. Through it all, I want you to observe how God calls a person, how God shapes a person, and how people respond to His calling, and draw a few lessons for us today for our lives.

Alright, his story is introduced to us in 1 Samuel chapter 9, verses 1 to 4. Let's read those introductory verses about Saul, and then let's go on from there.

"1 Samuel chapter 9, verses 1 to 4: There was a wealthy, influential man named Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. He was a son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, of the tribe of Benjamin. Saul's father was Kish. Saul was a most handsome man in Israel—head and shoulders taller than anyone else in the land."

Some additional details about his dynamic personality—he was handsome, he was tall, and he stood out. This person could not go unnoticed; he had a very dynamic personality as well. Something interesting happened one day.

"Verse 3: One day, Kish's donkeys strayed away. He told Saul, 'Take a servant with you and go look for the donkeys.' So Saul took one of the servants and traveled through the hill country of Ephraim, the land of Shalishah, the Shalim area, and the entire land of Benjamin. But they couldn't find the donkeys anywhere."

One day, his father lost donkeys. How many donkeys? We are not told, but some donkeys. Sitting here in the 21st century, we might not really understand the value of donkeys. Okay, to, for a person to leave three days of job and to go after lost donkeys, we might laugh at it, but if you understand the times of those days, those days, donkeys were today's BMWs, okay? They used to travel from one place to another place, to donkeys and carry heavy load upon them, so they were very valuable. Their property was not estimated by the cars and the buildings and how you evaluate your property. Those days, your property was evaluated by the number of donkeys you had, probably goats and lambs. So all the point I'm making is that, by donkeys were something valuable, unlike these days.

So Saul had to leave his family for almost three days and go out to search for lost donkeys. And what in turn he finds is something great. What he finds is the calling of his life. He went out to search for the lost donkeys, but what he ended up meeting was the calling of his life.

So this morning, if any of you are seated here and being disturbed about losing something in your life—maybe you lost your job, or things are not going right with your job—there is hope. If you have lost your business, things are not going well in your business, that can be good news. If you have lost a bit of your property, or full property, or any property issues, there's still hope. Have you lost an important relationship in your life, or you're disturbed that your children are off track, or somebody, something you lost, some relationship that was very close to you, friends or family members? Have you lost any of the relationships, or the fear of losing any relationship? Have you lost your health to some sickness, or any... I don't know what you lost. If any of you in this place are having a sense of having lost something, sometimes losing some things, especially which are valuable and precious to you, can be good news.

Why am I saying that? If Saul would not have lost his donkeys, he would not have gone out to search for them. If he had not gone to search for those lost donkeys, he wouldn't have met Prophet Samuel. If he hadn't met Prophet Samuel, he would not have discovered his calling. There are many times in our lives when we lose certain things, and that might end up leading us to God Himself, coming to God, or men of God, believers. We pray, and what we in turn would find is a great call that God has upon our lives. Amen, hallelujah.

Another point that I would like to mention here is, when you compare the lost donkeys to the calling which was greater, the calling of God was much, much greater than the lost donkeys. So God is able to help you find much more than what you have lost in your life. How many donkeys Saul said? We don't know. Probably three, four, I don't know. But imagine, after becoming a king, how many donkeys he would have had, hundreds, okay? So, the calling of God upon our lives, I want us to understand, is innumerably greater than anything that we can think of. So, I don't want anybody to trade the call that God has upon our lives for anything of this world. It's much greater.

But many times, and I see generally across everywhere, the people, the believers, they are more concerned about donkeys. They want their donkeys. I can imagine the conversation if we were in Saul's place, and I am saying generally, okay, if you were in Saul's place and when Samuel broke this news, you know what, you've got a great call of God upon your life, you're going to be the king of the nation of Israel, and how we would respond today? How would believers respond today? "I just need my donkeys. I came here for donkeys. Please pray for my donkeys. I just need my donkeys."

What do we mean by donkeys of today? Donkeys are nothing but our jobs, our responsibilities, our careers, our businesses. It's all about, you know, you. And when God is saying, "I'm calling you to influence, to impact, to be a witness, to make a difference, to become a catalyst of change," when God is calling out His people for greater purposes, we want to be satisfied with what we have, our jobs, our responsibilities.

This morning, I believe the word of God for all of us is: your donkeys are found. Okay, they will come, but you'll find much more than that. But there is a, I want us to recognize, there is a call of God upon our lives that is much, much infinitely greater than the donkeys that you are so in love with, so longing for, so desperate for. I don't know what you're so desperate and longing for, but your jobs, your businesses, your money, and whatever, you know? But God wants to tell you that there's something much, much greater than that. Hallelujah! Turn to your neighbor and say, "Your calling is much greater than anything else."

Do you really believe this? That the calling of God, when you compare it with anything, is like donkeys? Are you convinced about it? If you're convinced, then you'll definitely let go of these donkeys and go beyond to the calling of God upon your life. Hallelujah!

This morning, I want to challenge you, brothers and sisters. I don't know about yourselves, how much you believe in your calling. I believe in your calling. God believes in your calling. Satan also believes in your calling. Only you need to believe in your calling. I want you to step up and meet your calling this morning. Hallelujah!

The second thing I would like to share from this call of God upon the life of Samuel is: You're anointed to fulfill the call of God. Second Samuel 10:1 says, "The next day after meeting Samuel, as Samuel was about to send Saul off, something interesting and powerful happens. Verse one says that Samuel took a flask of olive oil and poured it over Saul's head. He kissed Saul and said, 'I am doing this because the Lord has appointed you to be the ruler of Israel.' This special position is the first thing that Samuel does—he breaks this great news that Saul is chosen to be the first king of Israel. The second thing he does is anoint him with oil. We need the anointing of God to fulfill the call of God upon our lives. Hallelujah! Saul did not need an anointing to take care of donkeys, but he surely needed the anointing of God to fulfill the call of God upon his life. Amen, hallelujah! So, all of us who have a call of God cannot do it on our strength, our capacity, our wisdom, or our resources. In fact, God always calls us to do things beyond our natural capacity. May I ask you a question this morning? Are you ready for this? How many of you think that right now you're doing the will of God? Think about it. Joel feels yes, one confident person, I'll meet you later or just wait for a minute. How do you know that you are, right now in your life, doing the calling of God, accomplishing the purpose of God, moving in the things that God has called you to do? If you're taking care of your donkeys, you don't need an anointing. As I said yesterday also when talking to the youth gathered, you know the interesting conversation that Nicodemus had with Jesus in John chapter 3? What were his introductory words that Nicodemus had to say to Jesus? He said, "Rabbi, I know that you are from God." How did he know that? He's from God because no man can ever do the things that you're doing unless God be with you. So, Nicodemus knew that there is a man here who's doing things that no man can ever do unless God be with him.

So, has anybody come and told anyone of you, "I see things that you're doing that you couldn't have done unless God be with you"? Joel is still confident. Okay, yes, if you're all confident that I'm doing. I tell you to be your IT engineer, a software engineer, doctor, teacher, professor, team leader, you don't need an anointing for it. If God anoints you with that profession, that business, well and good, praise God. God can use it. But there are so many other people in your company who might probably be doing a better job than you, a better job than you. They don't have anointing. So, if you're only doing your work, your profession, your responsibility, that is all you have to say about your life, then you don't need anointing for it. The story of the Bible is all about ordinary people who went on to do extraordinary things of God through the anointing of God upon their lives. Hallelujah! Don't get me wrong. God can use our professions, our jobs, our careers. No, I'm not saying it's not possible. It is possible. God can use that to bring many people unto the Lord. But right now, is there something in it that you're doing that others can come and say, "It is truly something different"? You know it's not your capacity. It's not your wisdom. If any of you are feeling, are able to tell that yourself or somebody has told you, congratulations! You have discovered your call. You're doing the call of God.

But if many people who are only taking care of your donkeys, then you're only doing your job, your whatever is given to you. Faithfully doing it, then you have to think about it. I would like to share from this life of Saul that he was anointed to be the king of Israel. Hallelujah! The purposes for which God has called us are great. He has called us to be His witness, His representatives, to impact, to influence, to build His church. When God is calling us to such great things, let's not imagine to say, "Lord, please take care of my donkeys. Give me my donkeys. I'm happy with my donkeys." I would want to challenge that, you know, to step up to the calling that God has for us.

The third thing I would like to share from this call of Saul is: You need a transformed life to fulfill the call of God upon your life. Okay, the first thing Samuel broke the news of the call of God upon Saul's life. The first thing, yes. Second thing, what he does, he pours the anointing upon him because he needs the anointing to fulfill the call of God upon his life. I want to encourage all of us who are involved in ministry with me in this church, know we cannot do it on our strength. The vision that we are carrying, the mantle that we are carrying as a church is too big. I cannot, none of us can. It only can be done through the power of the Holy Spirit. Let's continually be dependent upon God and His Spirit.

So next is, we need transformed life. First Samuel 10:5-9, this is what Samuel says to Saul: "When you arrive at Gibeah of God, where the garrison of the Philistines is located, you will meet a band of prophets coming down from the place of worship. They'll be playing a harp, a tambourine, a flute, and a lyre, and they will be prophesying. At that time, the Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them. And this is what I want you all to notice: You will be changed into a different person after these things take place. Do what must be done, for God is with you. Then go down to Gilgal ahead of me; I will join you there to sacrifice burnt offerings and peace offerings. You must wait for seven days until I arrive and give you further instructions." As Saul turned and started to leave, God gave him a new heart, and all Samuel's signs were fulfilled that day. In fact, Samuel gives him three signs. One sign is as you're on your way back home, you will meet two men who are going to tell you that your donkeys have been found. Now, Father has stopped worrying about donkeys and started worrying about you. And after you go a little further, you will see three men coming. One man will be carrying three goats with him; another man will have three loaves of bread; and another man will have a wineskin filled with wine. And as you go further, you'll meet a band of prophets. The Spirit of God is going to come upon you, and you'll prophesy. And the thing that I ask you to notice here: When the Spirit of God came upon him, what happened? He became a different person. God gave him a new heart. That is one of the powerful signs that the Spirit of God is at work in our lives. We know we are a charismatic church. We believe in the various manifestations of the power of the Holy Spirit. Yes, we believe in speaking in tongues and all the gifts of the Spirit and all those kinds of things. But the greatest evidence that the Spirit of God is at work in our lives is a transformed life, a changed life. May I here mention to you also, what is a sign that we have been anointed? You know, sometimes in the presence of God, it comes heavily upon us, we may fall, we may rise, all that's fine. But let me also tell you, you need not necessarily fall to receive the anointing. Sometimes it comes so heavy on you, you're not able to bear it. It's okay. But that's not the only sign that you've received. You've been filled. You can just stand there, and the presence of God comes, you'll be overwhelmed. You know something is happening within you. But the greatest evidence that the Spirit of God is at work in one's life is a transformed life, is a changed life. All the emotional experiences, feelings, ecstatic experiences can last for a few moments. We can see people in one powerful encounter service, you know, they'll be so filled and so many things. But you know, again, going back to their right, you know, all that can happen if you're not allowing the Spirit of God to work deeply in your life. A transformed life, a changed life, a new heart is absolutely essential to fulfill the call of God upon one's life. To be an effective engineer, a doctor, a lawyer, a team leader, a teacher, a professor, nobody cares about your transformed life. If you have good character, well and good, people will appreciate you for it. You can beat up your wife or beat up your children, have a bad temper, maybe addicted to different things, drugs, alcohol, pornography, all of that, you might have and still, if you are effective, go back and do a good job. Nobody cares about it as long as you're fulfilling your responsibilities at the workplace. Nobody really cares who you are at home and what kind of person you are. If you're good, excellent, people appreciate you for it. Even if you are not, as long as you fulfill your duties and responsibilities, nobody cares about it. But if you want to be a person of God, if you want to be effective for the call of God, if you want to fulfill the call of God upon your life, a transformed life is absolutely essential. And that is why in John 3:16, Nicodemus had to come and say to Jesus, "Rabbi, I know that you are from God because no man can do the things that you're doing unless God be with you." Are you willing for that transformation in your life? Are you crying out to God? "Lord, I want that transformation in my life. God, I want to fulfill the call of God upon my life. I want to be transformed by Your Holy Spirit." Are you saying that to God?