Deserts of pain, of regret, and loss, often this is where we find ourselves in a wrestling match with God, desperate to understand, afraid to keep walking. This is the place we must decide whether or not to continue living behind a wall wrestling with God or to step out into our calling.
We can’t remain in our calling and still be barricaded in the comfort of our fortresses so we can’t feel the pain when it comes, or endure the storms that will arise. Here is where we must wrestle over the gates, we must hold them fast or throw them wide and step into the place we belong.
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Wrestling With God Over Our Calling
Out of our biggest discomfort is where our calling and the world’s need will meet. It’s scary, it’s uncomfortable to leave the familiar and follow God’s call. It’s risky; It can be painful, it requires us coming face to face with the things we want to hide and letting the world see it and then pointing to God.
This place makes us come face to face with the scars and the things that have held us in bondage. It requires us to sacrifice everything that is keeping us from God’s call, to lay down anything that drives a wedge between Him and us, everything that keeps us sitting on the bench satisfied with the familiar and sitting them at the foot of the cross.
You know what? Someone is waiting for you to obey and step into your calling because they need what you have. They need you! But we spend so much time wrestling with God, saying I’m not good enough, I’m scared, I can’t do that, He didn’t ask if you were qualified, He asked for you.
What Keeps Us Wrestling With God?
What is holding you in bondage? Is it words that someone spoke over you? Words that declared you “worthless” or “insignificant”? Is it something you don’t like about yourself? The way you look? The way you sound? Have these things become shackles keeping you in your fortress? Keeping you wrestling with God?
Or maybe it’s the fear of messing up. Of looking like a fool, or worse yet making Him look bad. Is it that you don’t feel qualified? Maybe you tried, and it didn’t go the way you’d hoped, and now you’re afraid to try again. And so you find yourself pitching your tent in the wasteland, content to let others — content to live out of this broken place, shackled by fear and regret and wrestling with God.
Is Fear Keeping Us Wrestling With God?
I’m not good enough. Who am I to go? What qualifies me? What gives me the right? I don’t have the words. I don’t know what to say. God, I don’t speak well. Why would they listen to me? God, have you seen me lately? I don’t even have a slingshot and some stones. I’m nobody. It all kind of boils down to I’m not significant enough for you to use… I’m not good enough. These scars, these words keep us wrestling with God over our calling.
The Bible is stuffed full of people who weren’t good enough, but He used them anyway. To follow God, to step into our calling requires we step out of all that is familiar and comfortable. Where He wants to take you, the boat doesn’t go. So you have to get out and leave everything that is holding you back.
God doesn’t call us to be comfortable, He calls us out onto the water, into the wastelands, into the risky, hard places so that we can grow. So that we have no choice but to abandon the boat, abandon other’s expectations, It’s here that we throw away the weight of what others will say, what others will think. It doesn’t matter! It doesn’t matter because you aren’t following them. We’ve got to walk through the wasteland so that some things we’ve allowed to grow and take over in our lives will wither beneath the heat.
We can let fear shackle us to the familiar, like a ball and chain keeping us from our purpose. We can stay in a place we’ve gotten so used to, or we can let Him break those chains and let them fall away. You hold the key, your God is a chain breaker, and He is ready and willing to break those chains. Stop wrestling with God and let Him break through them, you do not have to stay in this dry season.
Choosing To Stop Wrestling With God
We can choose, to serve comfort, or to serve our King. We can take everything that we’ve claimed as the truth about us, the things that have kept us wrestling with God, we can take every reason that we hold up as an explanation of why He can’t use us and nail to the cross. Those things are not who you are; those things are keeping you from being who you were made to be.
Perhaps this is the most beautiful offering we can give… stripping away the things that we have claimed, the things that have prevented us from flinging ourselves into His waiting arms and nailing them to Calvary. No name that has been spoken over you has any power because His name is bigger. No issue, no impediment, no fear can overshadow what He is going to do through you.
God, I am not good enough, but you are glorified in my weakness, so I am coming. I am following anyway. I don’t want to sit in the boat when you are out on the water. I don’t want to serve comfort when you are calling me to the wasteland. I don’t want to live behind the walls I’ve built. I don’t want to live in fear anymore, I want you.
Trusting God’s Plan When It Doesn’t Make Sense
God doesn’t call the equipped. He doesn’t bring in the qualified- He provides for the ones He calls. If we were came equipped for our purpose, then we wouldn’t need Him, we could do it in our own power. Your authority doesn’t come from you, it comes from the one your with. If God can use a donkey what makes you think He can’t use you? (Numbers 22:21-39) Donkeys aren’t even supposed to talk. If God can use a rock for Jacob, and bush for Moses what makes you so unusable?
When we first started doing Coffee At Rosevine Cottage, I literally wanted to swallow my tongue. I HATE talking; seriously if you get me to answer the phone, it is a miracle. I don’t like being in the spotlight so doing videos is so far outside my comfort zone. The whole month leading up to our first episode I wrestled with God over them, Blogging, that was my comfort zone, I can sit and write from behind the safety of my laptop with my coffee and red lipstick but doing a video requires you to step into the focal point. Your no longer just a faceless person behind a screen. It’s scary. It means coming face to face with things I don’t like about myself and facing my insecurities.
But you know what? If even one person is impacted by it, all of the discomforts are worth it, but even if no one sees it still worth it because at the heart of all of it you didn’t do it for them, you did it for Him.
Stop Wrestling With God, And Trust His Plan
Are you ready to abandon comfort and risk it? Ready to take that word, that issue, that reason you can’t and nail it to the cross? He doesn’t call you what the world calls you because He’s already seen the end of your story, He already knows the impact of your calling.
Stop wrestling with God and step out confidently. He didn’t call someone else to this place, He called you. Which means He will see you through, He will provide the way. He will be enough. He was enough in every storm, He will be enough now. He brought you through every wasteland, every dry season, every stormy sea, He’s poured you out and filled you back up, He’s washed away every name that tried to claim you, He’s overrun everything that tried to keep you from Him for a reason. Someone somewhere needs what you’ve learned on this journey, what He’s taught you and they are waiting for you.
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This is so so crazy. God has been talking to me about stepping out the comfort zone since December. He wants that to be my main aim for 2019 but being uncomfortable is one of those things that I just HATE. I love my bubble of comfort and I'm constantly refusing to leavw it in case I fail or things go wrong. Like you said, God used the most unconventional things and people to make an impact so I know I should be running out the comfort zone right now. I need to trust in the lord but anxiety is one of those things that has held me down since I was like 13. It's a chain I NEED God to break but I'm struggling. Fear is the only thing holding me back.
Chelle | http://www.chellebelle2016.blogspot.co.uk
I absolutely love this! It’s oh so true! This is the picture of what it looked like when God called me into writing again. I had already been a writer and couldn’t make it work and then God said, “I’m calling you!” And that has made the difference. Just like you said, “if even one is reached…” He is so faithful to bless our obedience when we embrace the uncomfortable and walk in our callings!
Such encouraging words – I'm glad you listened to God and stepped out of your comfort zone – you look like a natural from here!
Ahhhh, SO GOOD!!! And this — "He's already seen the end of your story, He already knows the impact of your calling. Stop wrestling with God and step out confidently" — that is critical and so encouraging. Thanks for this!
Stepping out of our comfort zone to serve God is always hard. That's where faith comes into play. However, we all wrestle with God, don't we? Trust, faith, and prayer will get us through, every time.
I had the same quote plastered on my bathroom wall for years…. "God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called." It is so true for me- He called, I answered (but not without ALOT of wrestling!) and the results were beautiful!
I love this! I can totally relate to your uncomfort with video and I applaud your courage in doing it anyone. Keep stepping out of your comfort zone!
This is so spot on! Life is to short to get stuck behind our fears. This is one of my goals for 2019, to step outside my comfort zone even though its scary. let's let go and let God use us.
https://www.rocksolidfaith.ca
I feel like this topic just keeps coming around for me! I've been really focused on letting go of other's expectations for me and allowing God to use me to create a bigger impact for those around me. It can be so challenging, but you are right – the boat isn't going where I need to go! Thank you for that very clear picture!
I stepped out of my comfort zone last October to start my blog and I've experienced my fair share of fear since. I saw this quote on my devotional this morning, it read, "Courage is fear that has said its prayers."
Thank you so much for sharing, this is a beautiful piece (as usual ?). ?
Loved this post and can relate for sure! Stepping out of our comfort zone is hard but worth it! "Wrestling with God" has been on my heart as well. Thanks for always sharing your heart!
This is amazing! We don’t have to know the how’s or the whys. We simply need to know The Who. He’s got it all under control, I just have to be willing to let Him lead and do what He does.
I so relate! And I'm inspired by you. I want to start doing videos, but I feel like you explained… we'll see if I can muster the gumption to do it!
Thanks for the encouragement & inspiration!
"God doesn't call us to be comfortable, He calls us out onto the water, into the wastelands, into the risky, hard places so that we can grow." Powerful.
Yes…”it’s uncomfortable to leave the familiar and follow God’s call.” I wholeheartedly believe that’s part of God’s calling on our lives. If it was easy, then it wouldn’t be a “call.” To me, a call to do something means stepping out of our comfort zones and out from behind the familiar (even in Christianity), and following God into the great unknown. Such a powerful message, thank you!