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Have you thought about your calling? I’m
not only referring to certain things you feel led to do from time to
time, but what God’s real purpose is for you. Working in Christian
radio, you may feel you are living out the reason God put you on
earth. And given the role you play in communicating hope to anyone
within an earshot of your transmitter or view of your website, you
are probably right. But are you called to do more than that or
something completely different? It’s possible. Even pastors discover
over time that even they were made to serve the Lord and His people
outside the pulpit, and in fact, outside the church.
Ephesians 2:10 says that God created us in Jesus so that we
could do good works, which He prepared in advance for us to do (NIV).
Wait… what does “in advance” mean? Could it be 5 minutes before you
were put in a situation to do something? Or does is suggest it was
at the moment of creation when God decided that in the 20th
century He would create you, give you passions and experiences that
would benefit you across the span of your life and that you can use
to benefit others?
I grew up in the church and have always
had God in my life, though I didn’t always live like it. While
attending a Christian college, I started interning at a secular CHR
in Nashville. It was the fruition of wanting to be a disc jockey
since I was 10 years old. I ended up spending 24 years in media in 7
markets, with Clear Channel, Emmis Communications and others, as a
jock, then PD, then regional programmer. I thought I was born to be
in radio, and I was partially right. God put me in those situations
so I could learn, grow, and use the experiences and skills I gained
to do something more significant than schedule music, create
promotions and manage people, though I didn’t know that at the time.
In 2009, a friend gave me a copy of the
book “Halftime”
by
Bob Buford. I’d never thought or even heard much about a midlife
transition from “success to significance”, as the book says. But as
I got deeper into it, Bob’s mindset was similar to what mine had
become by the time I was in my early 40’s. What did I want the rest
of my life to stand for? How would I spend my second half?
In 2010, I attended
the Halftime Institute in Dallas and worked with one of their
certified coaches afterward. I knew I wanted to do more to honor
God in my work, but how? How could a career radio person give glory
to Christ vocationally and still earn a paycheck to support my
family? I found that my experience in radio coupled with my passions
could let me serve outside of media, and in 2011 after prayer,
planning, and trust from my family, I joined the small staff of
the same organization that served me by helping me identify my
“Ephesians 2:10 calling”. We relocated from Chicago to Dallas and my
family and I have never been more blessed. Most of my day-to-day
duties at Halftime are more business-related than ministry-minded.
We have authors, speakers, teachers, etc., so my focus is on
managing people, projects, expenses, revenue and the like, just as I
did in radio for many years.
Like you I’m sure, God has led me through
many seasons in life. Most of them have been great and those that
weren’t made me smarter and stronger. Though He called me to move to
Texas and help lead the Halftime organization in our work around the
world, is this where he wants me for the rest of my time on earth?
No one knows but Him, of course. If not, I will be better prepared
for the next season because of my work at Halftime since leaving my
last radio post 2 years ago.
There are many free resources and
exercises posted at
www.halftime.org if you want more information on how you can
determine where God’s sweet spot is for you, and how you can locate
and get in it.
Tim Dukes is
Chief Operating Officer for Halftime, a Christian non-profit group
based in Dallas, Texas. He and his family are members at Gateway
Church. Reach him at
[email protected].
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