Sunday Message · Fountain of Grace International · Pretoria North
Why Nobody Calls Back Even After 40 CVs
Preached by Ricardo Zaal, Founder and Lead Pastor ·
You have the qualifications. You have sent your CV everywhere. But nobody calls back. Pastor Ricardo Zaal unpacks what the Bible says about why visibility and action matter more than a perfect resume.
You're qualified but invisible, and that's stopping the job offer
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This message is for you if:
- You have applied everywhere but nobody calls back
- You are tired of hearing just keep trying
- You wonder if something is wrong with you
- You are waiting for opportunity instead of positioning yourself
The CV serves a purpose.
You have sent your CV everywhere. Forty copies. You printed them, held them in your hand, walked them into offices and gave them directly to a person. Not one called back. You are a graduate. You have the qualifications. But nothing happened. People around you say keep trying, and you are tired of those words because you have tried.
The real barrier is your location and visibility. A CV is a paper with your past on it. It tells what you have already done, not who you are now or who you can become. Pastor Ricardo Zaal explains what matters: being where someone can find you, evaluate you in real time, and see what you can do.
The numbers in South Africa are real. The unemployment rate is 33.6 percent overall, and 47 percent for people aged 15 to 34. But those numbers cannot quiet your mind at 2 a.m. telling you there is something wrong with you. Shame makes it worse. Shame makes you stop applying. Shame makes you stop telling people you are looking. Shame misleads you about the real problem.
The marketplace owner went out to find workers.
In Matthew 20, Jesus describes a vineyard owner who goes out to hire laborers. He goes to the marketplace to recruit. He goes to the marketplace early in the morning, and that should be the end of the story. That reality differs. He goes back at the third hour. Then the sixth. Then the ninth. Then at the eleventh hour, just one hour before sunset, he goes out again and finds others standing idle. When he asks them why they are standing there all day not working, they answer: Because no man had hired us.
The owner pays fairly. He acknowledges the real barrier. He simply says, Go ye also into the vineyard. And he gives them work. Notice that the owner is seeking. Notice that seeking people keeps finding people. He went out to multiple places to find workers. He went to the marketplace multiple times because that is where people stand, where they can be seen, where they can be evaluated, where they can be hired.
Idle means lacking opportunity.
The Greek word for idle in that passage is argos. It means without work. The English translation suggests laziness and unwillingness. The men's own answer tells you what it really was. They were willing. They were ready to work. They were standing in the marketplace waiting to be found. The difference between somebody who got the job and somebody who missed it is visibility and opportunity. It is visibility. It is being in a place where the employer can find you.
This changes everything about how you think. You have the qualifications. You are capable and worthy. The problem is your absence from places where people can see you, evaluate you, and find you. Ruth, a widow and a foreigner, goes to the field to glean. She positions herself where she can be seen and found. Her action puts her in the sight of Boaz, who becomes her redeemer. Ruth went to the fields where Boaz could find her. She went to where work happens and where people can find her.
Work is visible, and visibility changes everything
When people ask what Jesus did for a living, Mark 6:3 says, Is this not the carpenter? The Son of God was known as a working man. His service was out there. He was known for what he could do. Work is honorable, and being visible while you work is how you become findable.
Pastor Ricardo Zaal shares his own story. He worked as a merchandiser in a Checkers store in Southgate, packing shelves. But while he was packing shelves, every time a sales rep walked in, he greeted them, spoke with them, showed them who he was beyond the job description. A woman named Greta saw him in action, saw how he carried himself, and offered him a job as a tele-seller with a car allowance, a credit card, and a salary of 9,500 rand plus commission. This job came not because he sent out a CV. It came because somebody saw him working and saw that there was more to him than what a shelf could contain.
This is the shift you need. While you are in your current job, while you are waiting, keep moving forward. Show up. Do the work. Let people see you solve problems, handle objections, speak with customers, care about excellence. Your CV will never change, but you change every day. A better you is always possible. And when someone sees the better you in action, they want to hire you or partner with you or work with you. You can do kingdom work without holding the title pastor or apostle. Sometimes you just have to think outside the box, try to fix something, gain experience, and let that experience make you more employable.
The marketplace is more than a job board
This message encompasses calling and purpose beyond employment. It is about every area where you are looking to be found. You want to be a worshiper. You become a worshiper by gathering with worshipers, attending church, and standing where worship happens. You want to be part of the Great Commission, to make disciples, but you sit in your room thinking about evangelism while your feet never find the street. You want to be a partner or a wife. You get found by being in places where people see you in person, observing how you carry yourself, how you speak, and what you care about.
Ecclesiastes 9:10 says, Whatever you can find to do, do it. And the reason is simple: you are alive and God is still working on you. That is why what you can find, do it. Show up before everything aligns perfectly. Do what you can find to do now, and do it where people can find you. Tell one person what kind of work you want. Let someone who knows you put your name in front of someone who might take you to your next step, your next opportunity, your next glory.
Stop waiting and stand in the marketplace
Proverbs 22:29 says, Seest thou a man diligent in his business? He shall stand before kings. He shall not stand before mean men. This means you should be diligent in the thing you are looking for, the thing you are seeking for, the business you are looking for. Diligence combines effort with visibility and action. It is visibility plus effort. It is showing up, doing the work, and letting yourself be seen while you do it.
If you have lost your job, tell your family. They need to hold you accountable for your next step. If you have a CV, send it out this week. Share your need with people who can help. Go to a specific person and deliver it by hand. And while you are out, do something that makes you visible. Get into the marketplace. Whether you seek a job, customer, relationship, calling, or way to serve, you must be findable. You become findable by being in places where people see you, evaluate you, and have opportunity to hire you. Stand where the employer can find you. Stand where the customer can find you. Stand where love can find you. Stand where God can use you. That is where you become hired. That is where you become known. That is where your future changes.
"A CV is a paper with your past on it, but the now and the future is a better you, and it will always be a better you."
- Pastor Ricardo Zaal
Key Takeaways
- Visibility matters more than qualifications on paper Your resume tells what you have already done. Being findable shows who you are right now and what you can become. When an employer sees you work, solve a problem, handle pressure, or care about excellence in real time, that is worth more than a paper resume. Ruth went to where Boaz could see her. She went to the field where he could see her. The vineyard owner went to the marketplace to find workers himself. He went five times to find people standing there. You are hired when someone evaluates you in action, not when someone reads about you on paper.
- Shame stops you but visibility changes everything Shame tells you something is wrong with you. Shame tells you not to tell people you are looking for work, a customer, a partner, or a calling. Shame makes you stay home and wait instead of standing in the marketplace. But shame is lying. The real barrier is your location and visibility. It is that you are invisible. The moment you show up, the moment you tell someone what you are looking for, the moment you do what you can find to do, you become findable. One person who knows you can put your name in front of someone who changes your life. Shame keeps you quiet. Courage keeps you standing.
- Move while you wait. While seeking your next job, customer, or opportunity, stay active and visible. Work where you are. Show up. Do the thing you can do now. Let people see you. Let them see how you handle challenges, how you care, how you think. Your CV stays static, but you grow and change every day. Your future self is always better than the version written on paper. That better version is visible only when you are standing in the marketplace, doing the work, letting yourself be found.
If you are in or around Pretoria or Johannesburg, come and join us on a Sunday - these messages are preached live every week at Fountain of Grace International, 323 B Danie Theron Street, Pretoria North.
Frequently Asked Questions
I have sent my CV everywhere and nobody calls back. What am I doing wrong?
You are probably not doing anything wrong. Your CV records past achievements; your presence demonstrates who you are now and what you can become. The problem is likely visibility, not qualification. You need to be where people can see you work, evaluate you in real time, and determine if you are right for the role. Go to specific people and deliver your CV by hand. While you are out, do something that shows your skills and character. Let someone who knows you recommend you. Show up in places where your target employer goes. Being seen and evaluated in action is what gets you hired, not a resume alone.
What does the story of the vineyard owner in Matthew 20 teach about finding work?
The owner goes to the marketplace five times a day. He goes to the marketplace to find workers. He actively seeks, and those he hires are the ones standing where he can find them. The men say they were idle because no one had hired them, demonstrating their readiness and availability. They were willing and waiting in the right place. The lesson is that you must position yourself in places where employers, customers, and opportunity-makers go. You must be visible, available, and ready to be evaluated. You get found by showing up in the marketplace.
Does this message only apply to finding a job?
No. The principle applies to anything you want to be found for. If you want to be a worshiper, you must stand where worship happens. If you want to be part of the Great Commission, your feet must find the street and the mission field. If you want a partner, you must be in places where you can be seen and known. If you want a better job than you have now, you must show up and do excellent work where people can see you. The marketplace is anywhere people gather, evaluate, and make decisions about who to hire, partner with, or work with.
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