Jet Mariano

Tag: Calling

  • MIT-8 — “Here Am I: From Objection to Calling”

    Moments like this remind me that moving forward is rarely about feeling ready. It is about trusting enough to go when called. Like Moses, we may question, hesitate, and even doubt, but the promise remains the same: “I will be with thee.”

    Excerpt
    “Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh…?” (Exodus 3:11)

    Intro
    There are moments when God calls, and instead of stepping forward, we hesitate. Not because we lack faith, but because we see our own limitations more clearly than our potential. Moses felt it. I have felt it. And perhaps we all have, in our own callings, careers, and responsibilities.

    Notes from Scripture
    Moses did not accept his calling easily. In his encounter with God at the burning bush, he raised concern after concern—six in total. Each one revealed a different fear: inadequacy, lack of knowledge, fear of rejection, personal weakness, comparison, and finally, frustration when results did not come quickly.

    Yet each time, the Lord did not withdraw the calling. He responded with assurance, instruction, power, support, and patience.

    Perspective (direct quotes)
    “Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh…?” (Exodus 3:11)
    “I will be with thee” (Exodus 3:12)

    “But, behold, they will not believe me…” (Exodus 4:1)

    “O my Lord, I am not eloquent…” (Exodus 4:10)

    “O my Lord, send… by the hand of him whom thou wilt send” (Exodus 4:13)

    “Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people?” (Exodus 5:22)

    “The Lord uses the unlikely to accomplish the impossible” — President Russell M. Nelson

    Practice (today, not someday)
    Today, I will stop disqualifying myself before even trying.
    I will move forward even when I feel unprepared.
    I will trust that if I am called, I will also be supported.

    Final Reflection
    Moses’ objections are not just ancient history. They are alive in our daily lives.

    In my IT journey, I have faced my own “Who am I?” moments:

    • Standing in front of leadership during critical migrations
    • Identifying blockers others could not see
    • Carrying systems that entire departments depended on

    There were times I felt:

    • not qualified enough
    • not ready enough
    • not supported enough

    Yet just like Moses, the pattern was always the same—step forward, and help followed.

    In my IT journey, I have faced moments where I had to step into complex problems that carried real impact across the organization. The pressure was real, and the path forward was not always clear. But as I moved forward step by step, the way opened.

    In other moments, I questioned:
    Why am I the one carrying this?
    Why does it feel harder after I stepped in?

    Moses asked the same thing.

    And still, the Lord did not remove him. He strengthened him.

    Pocket I’m Keeping
    “I will be with thee.”

    What I Hear Now (direct quotes)
    “I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say” (Exodus 4:12)

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  • I Feel The Answer

    Draper Utah Temple — A rainbow of promise through the branches.

    Intro
    Some moments arrive quietly but carry the weight of eternity. This season has taken me away from the work I love, yet placed me in a space where the Lord can speak more directly. It feels like a “calling” — not just an assignment, but an invitation to walk a path I did not expect, at a time I did not plan.

    A calling can refine you, but it can also break you — I know this firsthand. When I lost my father and my younger brother, the grief was so heavy it lingered for over a year, leaving me with a frozen shoulder and a frozen spirit. But in that stillness, I learned something I now carry with me: when you are not preoccupied, when your heart is still enough, Heaven can speak — and you will hear.

    In 1987, during my Seminary days, there was a song in our Free to Choose program called I Feel the Answer. Its words spoke to the questions of a heart unsure yet willing, and today those words still echo in me.

    I Feel The Answer

    How I wish this hadn’t come right now,
    With so much on my mind.
    I just don’t think I’m ready for a calling of this kind —
    Where do I turn to, searching for me?

    Does He know me even better than I know myself?
    When I am sure that I can’t do it, can I turn to Him for help?
    And will He answer? Will He give me peace?

    More than air to breathe, I need to know
    If what I feel is right — Father, hear my pleading.
    Let me see the light. I’ll do whatever You ask me to do.

    And yes… I feel the answer.
    He calls my name and whispers to my soul.
    And oh, His gentle answer heals my aching heart — and I am whole.
    Heals my aching heart — and I am whole.

    Sometimes, a calling feels like a classroom. Sometimes, a setback is a sacred appointment. And sometimes, the answer doesn’t come as a trumpet blast, but as a whisper — so quiet you only hear it when you pause. In those still moments, He calls your name, and you know — you are exactly where He needs you to be.

    In this quiet stretch of life, I’ve learned that solitude isn’t the absence of connection — it’s the space where Heaven’s voice becomes unmistakably clear. Away from the noise and demands, I’ve come to see that even the pauses in our path are part of His perfect timing.

    Recently, the Spirit carried me back to a sacred temple moment, where familiar faces seemed etched with eternity — not just in their features, but in the quiet witness of the soul. At times, the Lord grants us glimpses of recognition that reach beyond mortal memory, as if to remind us that His hand has been guiding our paths long before we knew it.

    It was a quiet confirmation that the same Spirit who whispered then is still speaking now — through remembrance, through reflection, and through the gentle truth that our journeys, though carved by different streams, are being guided toward the same horizon. And in those moments, just as the song I Feel the Answer says, “He calls my name and whispers to my soul” — and I feel the answer.

    © 2012–2025 Jet Mariano. All rights reserved.
    For usage terms, please see the Legal Disclaimer.

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