Thursday, March 05, 2009

Why feel inadequate? We all are!

I get so frustrated with myself at church when I can't remember a verse, or a story, or something important in the Bible like others. I LOVE to be around people from AIM because they are a total wealth of biblical knowledge and I love it! I often wonder if I will ever be where they are. I'm there in my heart, but it hasn't all quite reached the communication portion of my brain yet!

God uses our inadequacies to help strengthen us in our weakest times. Often it is just as simple as giving us the right words to say to a friend. I can't tell you how many times I've talked to someone where I thought "I wish I had a scripture to reference". What I find happening in my life is that I don't always need to quote scripture. God is keeping me simple. He wants me to learn, but I don't have to feel bad because I can't come up with one off the top of my head. When I rely on Him, He will give me the exact words He wants me to say.

I love the story of Moses in Exodus 3. So many times, I feel like Moses when he was practically begging God to send someone else to talkt to Pharaoh. So many times, I feel that I am not adequately prepared to talk to others in communicating God's word effectively. But God didn't give up on Moses. It seems to me like the more Moses persisted to NOT do this task, the more God was eager to use Him. Seriously, how many signs does one have to get? God gave him three, told them what they were, how to use them, and then put the exact words into his mouth to say in order to convince the Israelites! God used that feeling of inadequacy in Moses to make Him stronger and a better leader in order to bring His people to the promised land.

We can't give up on ourselves just because we feel inadequate. We each are equally important in the kingdom of God. But we can't all be the same. Then only one type of message would get out. We have to be different. We have to be unique. We have to strong......and we have to be inadequate so that He can work in us to make us what He wants us to be.

God~ You are so powerful....and yes, at times, I feel inadequate to do the work you have put me here to do. But you've made me adequate in the areas of life that are the most important to you. You put me here for a specific purpose. You continue to help me grow each day into those other areas where I feel a bit "less than" adequate for the task. I thank you for those opportunities. I thank you for the hard times that I can learn from. Keep challenging me. Push me farther so that I can come to know you more, believe in you more, trust you more, and have the strength to do the things I'm not always so comfortable with. Send me to where you want me to be. Even if it's difficult, I trust you.

3 comments:

Tammy said...

I was just thinking today that I am a "Jack of all trades, master of none." I feel so inadequate in everything! Singing, video, photo, and especially relationships. I really feel the need to be in the Word and glean what He wants me to be and do and depend on Him totally, only to forget to study, forget what I studied and in general blow it. Thank you for being in my life. I see God working in you greatly, so maybe there is still hope for me :) I love you!

Terry Rush said...

Brenda and Tammy,

I feel as you, inadequate. It isn't a feeling as much as a fact!

Yesterday I did a wedding and walked away bummed as I could have/should have done it much better.

God is good; even in the center of our yuckies!

I love you today!

Linda L said...

Wow, when 3 of the people that I consider to be pretty confident and really good at all sorts of things, especially encouraging others with wisdom from Scripture
are feeling just like me... inadequacy is my middle name! I get so frustate sometimes when I know what I want to say but can't seem to get it to go from my heart to my brain and then my mouth! I feel so much like Paul when he talks about "I do the things I don't want to do and not the things I want to do". Love you all!