– Monday Muse –
Dear One, recently I was talking to a gentleman who wondered who in our church might get a new ministry up and running. The man’s idea for a ministry was a beaut. As he spoke, I could see passion in his eyes, and excitement in his voice. To me it was clearly obvious that there was no need to look any further for a leader.
I said, “You are the one.” He looked surprised. Then I added, “Just look at your passion, your eagerness.” He hesitated, and offered, “It does seem that God has been preparing me for this kind of ministry.”
Then he suggested that he might not be the one because he was uneasy about doing it, in fact, a bit fearful. I laughed, “Being scared is a given! I have found that every time God pushes me out beyond my comfort zone, I am again face-to-face with fear, but a person does get used to it. Your comfort zone grows, and then you are given more opportunities to make a difference. At some point, you just have to shrug your shoulders, and learn to accept fear and trembling as a gift offering to God for the privilege of serving Him.”
As I write this, I am reminded of what happened this spring when I was invited to speak at a Mother’s Day Tea. I wasn’t scared. And that made me wonder if I was really supposed to do it? Where is the fear, the concern for my lack of ability? Am I understanding God correctly? Am I supposed to do this? I finally decided that maybe I had gotten use to being stretched and that I might not have to suffer for it anymore. WRONG. The day of the tea, fear entered in. And the funny thing was, the fear put me strangely at ease. Isn’t that a twist? For then I had to rely again entirely on God, just as I always had, just as Man always should. So I stepped forth in fear, trusting that God would provide, and He did, as always.
Later I had another conversation with the man. He was bent on getting things rolling, he had a plan, had made connections, and his plan was broadening to reach more than first anticipated.
Listening to him touched my heart. God was sending out yet another person into His field to plant hardy spiritual seeds into the lives of His people. Regardless of the season of life, there are few things as beautiful as spiritual growth.
Have you received such a nudge from God? If not, perhaps He has not quite readied you yet for the tasks ahead. If so, don’t try to rush Him. He is all Wisdom; we are not. It was seven years of sitting with God in His Word, and prayer before He pushed me into ministry. Yes, I was one that apparently had to be pushed, but with that one hard push God pointed out, “You are the one.”
Believe me, you are the one, too. God’s children are all the…ones. If you don’t know for what, keep hanging with Him, and you will. It may not even be for something different than you are already doing; it may simply be an attitude change, such as, doing all unto Christ…all. Believe me, that alone is life-changing, and life-giving.
This is something else that I have learned. Until we know God, we cannot know who we were meant to be. It is in the knowing that we were meant to live. Life apart from God is not living; it is merely existing.
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13
Blessings,
Susanne
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