I was looking through some pictures I’d saved to my phone. (I go through Facebook and save pictures that make me smile, so that they can make me smile again in the future). I came across a picture (well, it’s actually words saved as an image…) which had a phrase that jumped out at me. It’s a phrase that really spoke to me about 5 years ago when I felt unqualified for the role I was in. And it’s sort of a phrase that has never stopped being important to me.
The phrase is ‘God doesn’t call the equipped, he equips the called’. Sometimes we won’t feel like we’re equipped to handle a situation we find ourselves in, but if God has put us there, he will also equip us to handle it. The problem here is that sometimes it’s not God that has called us into a position, we have just made a mistake or some questionable choices, and it’s not always easy to know the difference. It requires discernment and (sometimes) patience, and, if that’s is your way, prayer and listening to God.
But I want to back that up. And this is why I like the image so much. We see all through the bible of God calling unlikely people and equipping them to fulfill that calling. God doesn’t set people up to fail. I’ve already written about Gideon, the new leader of his people who was uncertain and scared. We’ve looked briefly at Peter, the impulsive and brash man who spoke before thinking, and who ended up being one of the most influential figures in the spread of the early church. We’ve looked at Moses, the mouthpiece of God who didn’t trust his own voice (although I don’t think I mentioned that he had a stammer). We’ve looked at Paul who started out as a a murderer and who became a passionate evangelist for Jesus. What a out David, the ‘man after God’s own heart’? He had an affair and tried to hide it. Jacob, the Father of Nations? He lied and cheated to get what he wanted. Jonah, one of God’s messengers, ran away. There are more (the image is at the end of this post).
The point is that if God calls us somewhere, not matter how unqualified we might feel or how illogical it might seem, God will also give us the skills and the opportunities to learn in order to see that calling through. God doesn’t look for perfect people to use, he looks for real people with potential (which is all of us) and helps them to grow. All those bible characters we admire (with the exception of Jesus) started as imperfect people and made mistakes along the way. And yet God’s plan was not thwarted.
So that phrase, backed up with knowing the stories of those people in the bible, remind me that I don’t need to feel ready to step out. I just need to be ready to learn, because God will give me those opportunities.
The Reason for my Hope Blog 