Second-Guessing Myself

 Don't be anxious about anything... —Philippians 4:6

I don't know if you've ever experienced this or not, but I have found that sometimes after I have said yes to serving the Lord in one capacity or another, I begin to second-guess myself. I think of all the other qualified folks out there who could do a much better job than me, and I grow a little weak in the knees. But then, just about the time I have convinced myself that I really ought to bow out of my obligation, God encourages my quivering heart by reminding me of the type of people He used in the past.

Take Amos, for instance. When God needed a preacher to talk some sense into His people Israel, He didn't go to the nearest synagogue or seminary to find His candidate; he chose an ordinary man who tended fig trees for a living.

When he was looking for a king to rule over His people with a heart like His own, God did not peruse palaces or look for someone with influence or affluence; he chose a young guy like David who had spent most of his days out in the back-ninety with a herd of smelly sheep.

And, when Jesus began calling men to be part of His inner circle of friends… men who would one day bring His message of salvation to this sin-stained, war-weary world of ours… he chose guys like Matthew, a vilified tax-collector, and four scrubby fishermen like Peter, Andrew, James and John, who knew more about bait, hooks and nets than anything else.

But there is another story in the Bible that encourages my heart like none other; it is found in Judges 6. It's when God nearly scared Gideon, an insignificant wheat farmer, out of his wits when He called him to lead an army of a few hundred men into battle against thousands. What encourages me is not so much the seemingly impossible role that God laid before Gideon, but the words that He spoke into Gideon as He raised him up for the task. He said to him, "Go in the strength that you have… for I will be with you!"

In other words, it was as if God was saying, "Don't you worry, Gideon, My friend! You may be a bit weak-kneed now, but that's just where I want you to be, because, you see, my power is made perfect in your weakness. So, go forth in whatever strength that you have, even if it is a bit feeble, for I am right there with you, and that is all that really matters in the end."

So, the next time an opportunity to serve the Savior comes calling, may we not shrink back. Let us follow in the footsteps of these ordinary folks and go in the strength that we have, because we know that God is with us.

Though my qualifications may be limited, Lord, and my knees may be knocking, help me to step out in faith knowing that your power is made perfect in my weakness.

In a very real sense not one of us is qualified, but it seems that God continually chooses the most unqualified to do His work, to bear His glory. If we were qualified, we tend to think that we have done the job ourselves. If we are forced to accept our evident lack of qualification, then there's no danger that we will confuse God's work with our own, or God's glory with our own. —Madeleine L'Engle author of Walking on Water