What do you love to do? What do you dream of doing? What fascinates you? What can you talk about, think about, and study all day and not get bored? Where have you been most effective in your life?
Asking these questions is key to finding your niche in life. Working will not feel like work when you incorporate your niche into your vocation. There are three key ingredients to understanding our niche. They must be experientially done in a trial-and-error manner.
- Make a habit of spending time with God daily, studying His Word, meditating on it, and asking for clarity and counsel.
- Receive His counsel and act without hesitation. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, get it wrong, or do it poorly. He will lovingly correct you on the way to doing it better and getting it right.
- Engage with others in mutual support and exploration. Your abilities are for the benefit of other people, therefore you can’t experiment in a vacuum. Nobody is good at everything. We are imperfect people who need each other. We are made to work in teams.
When you do what God has wired you to do, it brings Him glory and it brings you delight and gratitude. The greatest thrill in the world is doing what you’re made to do. Joy means the perfect fulfillment of that for which you were created. Like a ship out of water or a train off the tracks, you’ll find that you don’t function well outside the sphere of God’s will for your life.
A classic example of someone who understood his niche is Eric Liddell. Eric was the Olympic gold medalist from the Academy Award-winning film, Chariots of Fire. Famously, he would not run on Sunday because of his strict observance of the Christian sabbath, and so he did not compete in his signature event, the 100 meters, at the 1924 Paris Olympics. He was the greatest sprinter in the world at the time, and his choice not to run was controversial and ridiculed by many. Nevertheless, Liddell triumphed in a new event, winning the 400 meters and beating the world record at the time.
In an article at Olympics.com titled, “Liddell finds salvation with record-breaking 400m triumph,” it is reported:
Unlike the famed scene in Chariots of Fire, the schedule for the men’s sprint was announced several months before the Paris Games and once Liddell decided he could not run, he trained instead for the 200m and 400m.
He won a bronze medal in the 200m … and was faced with the 400m qualifying round the following day.
Some had derided Liddell’s decision not to run on a Sunday but it was reported that an American team member handed him a piece of paper shortly before the race. Written upon it were the words “Those who honor me I will honor.”
Those words were a reference to 1 Samuel 2:30 in the Bible which states, ““Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: … Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.”
No matter your opinion about Eric Liddell, it’s indisputable that he ran and lived for the glory of God. The truth is that God smiles when you use the gifts that he’s given you. When you’re doing what you were wired and created to do, God says, “Well done! I created you to do that!”
That’s why it’s worth finding your niche in life.
MindWolves 
This was your MASTERPIECE blog for me, Marc! Don’t forget you mentioned Acts 20:24 in your latest podcast with Coach Dave Gray which also resonates to me now. Thank you!
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