I just recently got back from a ten-day long mission trip to Romania. Upon my return, I was elated to see my family, and I was glad to be in a place where I could understand the street signs and social cues. But I love trips like this because it helps you gain a new perspective on life. When you go and serve God’s people who are less fortunate than you, it definitely gives you a reality check. The things I took for granted, I now find myself thanking God for. But you know, perspective is a tricky thing and sometimes the way we view ourselves is the issue. I have struggled with this personally and in ministry.
When we only see ourselves in a certain light, that is likely the way we will stay. Sometimes I ask, and even beg, God to change me and to stop holding me back, when in reality, I am the only one holding myself back. If you only focus on what you are NOT capable of, you will never see what God wants to do with you. Where your focus is, is where your limits will be found, and too many of us believe in our earthly limits.
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:1-2)
This means that if you only focus on what you are able to do, then congratulations, you are only going to struggle, mess things up, and be ruled by feelings and fear. However, the good news of these verses is that if you focus on Jesus and what God wants to do in your life, you will receive power, a power known as the Holy Spirit. With this power, everything changes and we no longer have limits. This is how Peter could heal the sick, walk on water, and even bring people back to life. Was Peter capable? Absolutely not! He was just a man and Peter had limits just like we all do. Well, how then is it possible to get this power and do these amazing things?
The answer is in Matthew 4. Jesus meets Peter for the first time, and we are told that Peter and his brother Andrew were fishermen. Jesus then says, “Come put down your nets and follow me.” Not only did Peter put down his physical nets but he put down his internal nets as well. He was a fisherman; up to this point, he could only do things a fisherman could do. But when he encountered Jesus, everything changed. There were no excuses or arguments between them. Peter didn’t say, “Well, God, I can’t because of….” No! In verse 20 it says, “At once, they left their nets and followed Him.” Peter changed careers and stepped out into the unknown. He wanted to follow Jesus to the end. He believed and trusted that Jesus is who He says He is. That’s when Peter's journey began. Did he get it perfect from that moment forward? No! He got it wrong constantly, but he was focused on Jesus and that’s when we see him learn from his mistakes and grow closer to God.
If you are focused on what you’re not able to do, you are stuck. How do you know if that’s you? Upon hearing about the mission trip, did you hear yourself saying things like, “Well, I can’t go because it’s just not a good time for me. I’m too busy. I don’t know the Bible well enough. I couldn’t do that because I’m too old (or too young). I don’t have the money. I would, but I can’t speak in front of people.” These are just some of the popular responses to get you thinking. We’ve all been there. This is an example of how we focus on ourselves and not on God. The real question to ask yourself when faced with an opportunity is not, “Am I able?” Or, “Can I do this?” It is, “God, what is Your will here for me?”
I do not feel capable of leading this youth group, certainly not out of the country to a place I have never been. So, how did the trip to Romania not only happen, but how did it go so amazingly well? It’s because I got good at asking, “God, what is Your will here for me?” For example, I saw an opportunity to buy a bike for every orphan. So I asked God, “What’s Your will for this?” He provided and blessed the opportunity and the bikes were bought. I saw an opportunity to teach the kids the American game of 9-Square and leave the game there to show God's love. But the game was expensive and I had no way of shipping it. Not to mention that you can’t buy it in Romania. Well, after all that negative focus, I finally remembered to ask the right question and to get my focus in the right place: “God what is Your will for this idea?” Next thing I know, the money is raised to buy the game, and not only that, but the bags the game comes in are just small enough and light enough that we could count them as checked bags and take them on the plane with us, no shipping needed.
I could share many many more stories like this, but the last one I want to share is my favorite. I had an opportunity that I felt God leading in, and it was to have the youth speak. Each person He placed on my heart to encourage, challenge, and even push to speak, I immediately thought “no.” Why? Because of blank and blank and blank. I gave excuses and used earthly reasoning. I praise God that He showed me I was focused on earthly things and not heavenly things. So I set aside my fears, worries, and doubts. I went up to each person and encouraged, challenged and, yes, at times, even pushed the youth, simply because I was choosing to trust God over my feelings. Each time, without fail, I saw God show up and provide. He used each person on our team to speak life into people. He used each member of our team to pray powerful, divine prayers over others. I watched God save children and adults through the willingness of our team. He did it all. Our team was used to do things that simply are not possible. So, how could that happen? It happened because we stopped focusing on our own capabilities and started focusing on God’s.
I encourage you today, if you are at a crossroads, you have been given an opportunity, an opportunity to trust God. Seek Him and ask for His will in the situation. Whatever He tells you, just remember that you will not be capable of doing it, not on your own. That is because it will take faith and God’s power to accomplish. The reason for this is because that’s when you learn. That’s when you become closer with God. That’s when you give Him the credit and the glory, instead of mistaking it for your own. It is difficult, but remember, God’s got this. So what are we so afraid of?
