This month I have
learned a lot about being ready.
Several times we
have piled into the van and showed up at a house, church, or building. Upon arrival we are usually notified
that we will be sharing a message, testimony, the gospel, special song, or word
of encouragement.
If you are like me
you might stand there for a few seconds with you mouth open and your brain
turning for some sort of idea on what to do.
I know that is how
I felt about a week ago when we made the three-hour journey to a church
service. About thirty minutes
before arriving I decided to clarify on what “was expected” of us for the
service. Turns out someone needed
to share the message for the church service. I looked back at the girls on my team and thought okay who
wants to be the preacher tonight.
Of course all of us looked around hoping that the person next to us
would volunteer. It wasn’t that we
did not want to share, but if you thought speaking in front of people was
scary. Try preaching at a church with less than an hour notice!
Finally I decided
it was my time to share. As the
pastor says, “Be ready in and out of season.”
All I knew was that
the less I felt prepared, the more I needed God to pull through. The less I knew what to say, the more
God would say.
I know that God
gave me the words to share that night.
He wanted me to talk about trusting Him through the hard times and
persecution.
There is a story in the Bible where
Jesus walked on water and asked Peter out of the boat to walk to Him. He said, “come” so Peter came. And Peter walked on water with
Jesus. But next thing you know it,
he looks at the waves and he’s a goner. Thanks to Jesus, he reaches out and
saves him. With life we take that
step of faith out of the boat to follow Jesus. Yet once we are walking with him, we lose focus and see the
storms of life; the hard times and persecution. We doubt God and begin to
sink. But the minute we cry out to
God for help, what does he do?
Immediately He reaches out his hand to us and lifts us up.
I wouldn’t
recommend waiting till the last minute to prepare a message, but I do know one
thing. God wants us to be ready to
explain the faith we have in Jesus.
He promises that when we don’t know what to say, He will give us the
words to say.
So allow yourself
to get in those moments where you need God to speak through you or you’ll look
like a fool. Allow those times for
you to feel not prepared, so God can receive all the glory for what happens.
Allow yourself to
be inadequate so that He can be the reason why you’re enough.
And lastly,
Be Ready In and Out of
Season!!
Here are some pictures from a children’s church:
