Our Daily Walk

Get out of God’s way!

            We’ve all been there before.  It could be at work, the mall, or even across the fence from our own backyard.  A lost soul is standing off by itself. We know that we could approach that person and speak to them about our Lord. We know we should.  Perhaps we’ve even got a card from our church with an invitation printed out in bold, bright letters. All we’ve got to do is walk over and make the contact. Our feet are itching to start walking, words are forming on the tip of our tongue, and just before we make the approach that voice inside our head reminds us of our uncertainty, our fear, and our nervousness.  Suddenly all we can think about is why we can’t approach that person.  They eventually walk away and we’re left feeling ashamed and embarrassed.

            Have you ever noticed that such failures are always the result of self-centered thinking? I get nervous. I get tongue-tied. I get uncomfortable. "I, I, I, ME, ME, ME!" How very selfish of us!

            At such times we need to train ourselves to focus less on ourselves and more on God. Rather than fretting over our own timidity, let us reflect on God’s goals. Rather than submitting to our own insecurities, let us submit to God’s will. Rather than relying upon our own ability, let us glory in God’s power. We need not preach a sermon where a simple invitation will suffice. Philip’s simple, “Come and see” works just as well today on a truth seeking heart as it did then (John 1:46).

            Do you feel insufficient to serve as God’s fellow worker (1 Corinthians 3:9) in spreading the gospel message? Me too!  Even the apostle Paul knew he was not sufficient in and of himself (2 Corinthians 2:16b). Yet Paul knew that his sufficiency came from God (2 Corinthians 3:5) and thus he was imminently qualified to serve as God’s spokesmen. The Christians sufficiency comes from the same Source. Our God is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think (Ephesians 3:20) and we must never forget it.

            Perhaps that lost soul will come across another Christian who will make the contact. Why should they have to? Let us resolve to focus more upon God than ourselves.  “I, I, I” must become “Him, Him, Him.” Let’s stand at His side and not in His way!