I suppose for those of us who are in the ministry…Monday is that day to either celebrate… or, to second guess what happened yesterday! I don’t know if it is factual or not, but, I’ve heard it said that Monday was the number one day for pastor resignations. I suppose at least some of that comes from the “second guessing” of what happened on Sunday.
I know from my own personal experience that the number one thing I find myself “second guessing” on Mondays…especially when I am in one of those valley times… is me! I start thinking, “Did God REALLY call me…or, was it the pizza I had the night before?”
But then, I call to mind how Paul began nearly all of his letters… he would begin each one of them by identifying the fact that he has been called to be an Apostle by God Himself. That helps me to remember that God knew EXACTLY what He was doing when He called you and I. And not only has He called us…but He has gifted and empowered us to do the work that He has prepared for us to do! Isn’t that something?!
Pastor…Ministry Leader…Teacher…God knew exactly what He was doing when He called you! He didn’t dial the wrong number. There wasn’t an angel that messed up and went to you instead of your next door neighbor. He called YOU! And…when we learn to allow our identity to be in the fact that the CREATOR of the UNIVERSE called us… instead of how many people have “friended” us on facebook,… or how many people we have in church …we can truly learn to rely on His strength and not our own!
He called us…not because of who we were… but in spite of it! He knew everything about us…all of our previous sins (and the future ones as well), and yet still chose to call us to Himself and give us stewardship of something that is very near to His heart…His church! WOW!…GO GOD!
He called you not because He knew you could get it done…but because He knew you were the person who would bring Him the most glory. Rick Warren once said that… “God most often puts His strongest gifts in His weakest vessels!” (I thought he was really smart until I realized he was paraphrasing 2 Corinthians 4:7.)
He called us…and, He gifted and empowered us to do HIS work! Sure, there are times when we feel like we literally can’t go on. There are times when it seems that our strength is zapped and we want to tap out. But, I’ve found that it is in those times that He most often does His best work!
He called you,… equipped you,…will sustain you… and be with you always! So, if you are second guessing yesterday…just remember that God isn’t second guessing you! Fix your eyes on Him and get on with whatever He’s called you to do!
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