This is my 3rd of 4 blog articles following on the theme that, ‘it’s easier than you think to discern God’s timing!’
In this blog I want to give you the benefit of a great coaching model which has helped hundreds of Christians to discern God’s timing, and God’s specific plan in preparing them and leading them towards fulfilling their calling, The Calling Journey Timeline.
Dear Tony Stoltzfus created this and I find it so helpful when coaching people. Tony discovered through research of dozens of leaders, including studying the pattern of Biblical characters, and other heroes of our faith, that there are common patterns that all believers go through on their way to ‘convergence’, (fulfilling their calling.)
So, in summary The Calling Journey Timeline, has three common valleys and four life stages. What’s super interesting is that there are average times for each of these stages. There are some common things that God deals with in each stage. ‘Valleys’ have specific names which relate to what God addresses during these times. Their names are ‘valley of dependence’, ‘valley of wholeness’, and ‘valley of identity’. The life stages also have names, ‘natural promotion’, ‘preparation’, ‘releasing’ and ‘fulfilment’.
How does understanding your ‘valleys’ help?
Using the The Calling Journey Timeline, you understand which valleys, you have been through and which are to come.
If you are older, being able to post process what God dealt with and formed in you during the valleys you have already been through, is encouraging! It’s also useful for purpose development. You learn to understand the invaluable character formation that you gained through those times. This helps you take more ownership of what you carry, once you know what it is! Confidence is developed in it all. All of this builds a deeper understanding of your purpose to know where you have strengths that have specifically been formed in valley times.
If you are younger, in your 20s or 30s, yes you will have to face the fact that there may be another one two valleys to go through. But…..you can know what valleys are coming or what valley you are in. This model gives you keys to understand what kinds of things God specifically deals with in these times. Knowing this enables you to lean into Him and His agenda. Leaning into God’s agenda actually speeds things up somewhat! Yes that’s right, when we lean into God’s agenda during a difficult valley time, research has shown that this actually speeds up the valley time. We get to progress through it more quickly! I personally, found it super helpful to know that you can be productive in this way and other ways, during a time when you feel anything but productive.
When I explored The Calling Journey Timeline for myself, I was textbook! For me as happens to others, who get coached through this model, I found out I was going through a valley time. I had given up on my dreams, my purpose, my calling. Sadly, I genuinely thought nothing amazing was going to happen in my life because of what I was experiencing in my valley. (I was experiencing burn out, so struggling with health and energy issues. Honestly, I didn’t realise I would get better). At this time, I discovered The Calling Journey Timeline.
After being coached in it and learning how to coach others through it in Tony’s 2 day workshop, my whole world was turned around in a good way. Understanding that my current experience was just a season, I knew I was nearly through it. Discovering what God had been doing through the time, I got to know how my valley had been preparing me. Best of all, I knew that it would end and roughly when and what I would bring into my purpose from it! Guess what I ended up enjoying the rest of that season. I ended up learning precious ways of communing with God in that time because of understanding how it all fitted together in the bigger picture of my life.
How understanding ‘life stages’, helps keep you going!
The other part of Tony’s model is ‘life stages’. Studying the different stages (which are ‘life stages’, in between valley times) helps you understand where you are in relation to fulfilment your calling. It helps you know what God is up to. This is empowering! Each stage allows you to understand typically how calling unfolds throughout your lifetime.
The concept of Tony’s concept of ‘outside preparation’ or ‘inside preparation’ is clarifying also. It turns out most people (including Jesus himself), are prepared outside the realm of where the ultimate fulfilment of their call is. This can be confusing if you don’t know, as you may feel a constant sense of ‘not being there yet’, and ‘missing the mark’, but God is just preparing you outside the realm of your call. (Eg, Jesus spent most of His adult life being a carpenter, not a travelling rabbi of 12 disciples ministering, teaching, healing and demonstrating signs and wonders. He was prepared outside the ultimate realm of His call.)
The final life stage in The Calling Journey Timeline is called ‘Fulfilment’. I am happy to say that I have coached many older leaders coming up to ‘retirement’ age, to really grasp a valuable Biblical concept so beautifully demonstrated in this model, that is that retirement is not God’s plan. God sees our latter years as a time for fulfilment, of the greatest part of our call. It is a time for our greatest influence. Obviously how this looks is most often different to what we think. Reading others stories of their fulfillment stages helps us to see this. It helps us to understand God’s ways.
Life Messages
The Calling Journey Timeline coaching model includes the concept of how different stages form ‘life messages’ in you that you carry to share with the world. Your life messages are weighty, full of hope and wisdom. It’s super helpful to get them coached out of you. They are similar to and related to your core values.
I now offer workshops on this model for anyone interested contact me to run one for your church or small group. Or if you’d like me to coach you one to one to know where you are at, contact me
In what way could understanding your journey and where you are at help you?
How could being coached in this model help you in your relationship with God?