RSING UP IN GOD'S GRACE

Jesus's hand for help

Hi, how are you today? If you are reading this, there is a good chance that this article is about you. My prayer is that God heals you or gives you that eternal peace in Christ Jesus.

You may ask, why have you started writing this article with a prayer? It is because I am writing this for both of us. What do I mean? Well, have you ever been in a situation where you continuously question your own capabilities, competence, knowledge, or skills? You speak to yourself saying, "No, I can’t do that now; I have got to learn first." And the longer it takes for you to acquire the knowledge, the lower the passion or desire to pursue what you have been asked to do or dream for becomes.

Sometimes you may find yourself in a classroom or a work environment, and when it is time to deliver or be tested, you think, "No way am I going to excel in this; I need help." And when there is no one to bail you out, you give up and accept failure. Sometimes it happens in a competition or a relationship; just by looking at the expectations, you think, "No way am I going to succeed in this. I am not well equipped to handle this sort of pressure or expectation,i was not built in that way." So, you give up, move on, and focus on other things or chase other relationships that fit your level of abilities and expectations. I have too.   

I have been in those kinds of situations so many times. When I received my calling, I was excited at first. I met Jesus, and I had this confidence that everything was going to be fine. I thought He was going to be the security guaranteed that I needed,like a life insurance policy. But as the years passed, the more insecure I became about what the future would hold as a born-again Christian. Surely, I did not understand God's ways at that time, and then I thought, "I can’t do this." I felt so inadequate, yet I expected God to be my Savior and Deliverer in everything I did.Whenever I faced challenges and saw things crumbling in my life, and when God felt absent in the process, my insecurities grew. I would have questions about the nature of God and my faith in general, and that was the beginning of my depression.

Maybe you are also experiencing the same thing. Maybe your feeling of inadequacy has led to losses, failed relationships, depression, or anxiety too. Or maybe you still do not understand God's ways like I did, and you are blaming God for not compensating for your inadequacies, incompetence, lack of skills, or knowledge. This article has been written to tell you: do not be angry at yourself or God because you are feeling negatively about things, or feeling anxious or depressed.

It is okay to feel that way, as these are all outcomes or products of having feelings and emotions. Feelings and emotions are gifts from God; sometimes they can be positive when things go our way, and negative whenever things go astray. It is part of life to live our lives between the positive and negative scales of life. That does not change who God is or the nature of God."Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." (Hebrews 13:8)

So, Your situation does not change Him, even though it changes you. It is part of God’s process of maturing you in Him.

Secondly, God's thoughts and ways are higher than our thoughts and ways. We are on earth and He is in heaven, so it is also okay to feel that you do not understand God because the truth is, you cannot always understand the ways or thoughts of God. The moment you do, then God ceases to be God, and you become your own god—a situation that God will not allow to happen to humanity.

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:9)

If that were not the case, Satan would have been allowed to sit on the throne of God in heaven, but God said no and chased him away. What I am trying to say is that your inadequacy and imperfection make God see you as being perfect because of Jesus Christ. Jesus died on the cross so that you can be perfected and empowered in and through Him.

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9)

So that whenever you are down and try to go again, you can go with an attitude that says: "I can do all things through him who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13). You can say to every enemy that if God is for you, then who can be against you.

"If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31)

And when you face challenges, you can now say: 

"No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." (Romans 8:37)

Your inadequate or negative feelings (anxiety or depression) are your pathway to a higher level of grace. It has been said that whatever doesn’t kill you will make you stronger. God is waiting for you to rise up or go again stronger, with knowledge, wisdom, and now experience with full of grace to take over again and overcome the world.

You are no longer inadequate, for He qualifies and equips the called. You now have grace of our Lord JesUS Christ and authority to go again and take over the world. That is why we started this article with a prayer. My hope is that God meets you right where you are now and completes the good work that He started in you in Christ Jesus.

"And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6)