In the last post I discussed the fact that sometimes we are in certain circumstances we may not always find enjoyable, yet which are crucial to our spiritual and emotional growth and are a part of the process of becoming who God created us to be. I wanted to share with you some stories of great men, who did not necissarily start out so great. God allowed each of these people to have extremely humble beginnings so that He could prepare them for all the greatness He had in store for each of them.
One of them is the story of King David. David began his work as a humble shepherd, but God ended up placing Him to be a great warrior, protector, and King over all of Israel!
Moses is another, who came from a bloodline of slavery and even killed a man. Despite Moses' shortcomings, (and his extreme fear of public speaking!), God spoke through Moses and used Him to lead an entire nation of people who had been enslaved for hundreds of generations to finally be set free and released from slavery!
Another great story of humble beginnings is the one of Joseph. Joseph was sold into slavery by his own brothers, thrown into jail for a crime he did not commit, but then raised up and blessed by God to be put second in command in all of Egypt (just one step below the Pharoah!).
I'm sure none of these men "enjoyed" being humbled while it was happening, but God was doing a work in them to prepare them for the wonderful future He had in store for them. So, my encouragement to you today is to know that whatever your circumstances may be, that there is a reason for it. You may not like where you are at, but you are in the training grounds for becoming all that God wants you to be, so that He can put you in a position of greatness.
Remember that "Humility preceeds honor, (Proverbs 15:33)" and that if you "Humble yourselves before the Lord, He will exhalt you [at the right time]." (James4:10, 1 Peter 5:6). So if you feel you are being humbled by your circumstances, know that it is because God is preparing you for great things. Also keep in mind that "those who can be entrusted with little can also be entrusted with much" (Luke 16:10). If you are faithful with the little God has given you, you will be blessed with more. If you keep being an honorable person of uprightness and integrity, despite your humble circumstances, God will honor that.
Sometimes, in life we are not always were we want to be. Things may seem to be taking longer than they should be, dreams may appear to be delayed or even failed, and everything just seems to be moving too slowly. You might feel "stuck" in a certain situation, or even like you've failed at accomplishing certain tasks. Well, I'm here to tell you that despite what it may seem like on an external plane, that God has you exactly where He wants you. Despite what may appear to be delays in accomplishing your goals are really just character-building steps that are leading you closer and closer to accomplishing your dreams. So don't get frustrated, discouraged, or distraught when things don't seem to be going your way or as you had planned. Instead, thank God things are not going your way! Because His way and His plans for your life are so much greater than anything you could have planned or done on your own! Just keep being patient, keep perservering, and don't give up! You may be right around the corner from a breakthrough. But, until then, "keep your eyes on the prize." Work with the end goal in mind; imagine the feeling of accomplishing that goal. If things don't seem to be going right, if you feel like a failure, then get excited! Why? Because God loves using people who may consider themselves inadequate or unsuccessful and using them to show His adequacy, His success, His power, and strength to do something so completely beyond what they considered possible.
When you feel like a failure, remind yourself of all the other people before you that "failed foward." Thomas Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. When asked about it, Edison said, "I have not failed 1,000 times. I have successfully discovered 1,000 ways to NOT make a light bulb." He didn't see his failed attempts as ultimate sentences of failure. Instead, he saw his unsuccessful attempts all as stepping stones bringing him closer and closer to his end goal: The light bulb. Because Edison did not give up after the 10th, 50th, even 500th attempt, we now have light accessible to us whenever we need it. Think about the impact your goals could possibly have on society, or the world, if you don't give up and keep pursuing your God-given dreams. There is no limit to what you can do when God is on your side. "Failure" is not final. Failure is only failure when you give up, everything else just means you are one step closer to accomplishing your dreams.
"But these things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, do not despair, for these things will surely come to pass. Just be patient! They will not be overdue a single day!" (Habakkuk 2:3 TLB).
God has given each of us a special dream or vision of what we would like our lives to look like. He's imputed within each of us a purpose to make an impact in this world for the better. Each and every one of us has been hand-crafted, uniquely designed with a specific purpose that only we can fulfill because we were created for it! God may have put a dream in your heart that, to the outside world, may seem completely ridiculous or even impossible. Something I've learned however, is that nothing is impossible for God. If you've let go of your God-given dream because it seems too unatainable, know that the God you serve holds the universe in the palm of His hand. He gave you that dream for a reason! It is attainable! God is more for you than you are for yourself! With Him on your side, nothing is impossible!
Start taking action today towards your God-given dream. Every large goal starts with one, small and minute action. No matter how large your goal may be, take one step at a time, only looking at the step right in front of you--soon enough you will see your dream come to pass!
