Recalibrate

“Many plans are in a man’s mind, but it is the Lord’s purpose for him that will stand.”   Proverbs 19:21

As I have been spending time in prayer the last few weeks I have been impressed with the importance of letting the Lord recalibrate or realign the way I have viewed my worth. For too long I have listened to the subtle lies of the enemy that whispered in my ear, telling me what a disappointment I was. By trying to meet some unattainable and unrealistic standard of what I presumed a good Christian woman to be, I was setting myself up for failure. I would never be kind enough or holy enough or smart enough or “anything” enough to achieve the perceived goal. Every time I failed it only reinforced the feeling of letting others and myself down. By listening to the lies of the enemy my vision had become skewed and I was living a defeated life.

While I could only see my shortcomings and downfalls God reminded me that He chose me before the beginning of time and that I am created in His image. That I am accepted by Him and I don’t have to try to earn His love because He has freely given it to me. He reminded me that Jesus paid the price for all my imperfections. In Christ, I am a new creation and as such I am more than able. As I began to wrap my mind around the magnitude of what was done for me on the cross, the taunts of the enemy began to loosen their grip on my life. Instead of being overwhelmed by the demands and expectations myself and others had placed on my life I found myself excited and energized to go forth and accomplish the purpose God had created me for. I became able to move ahead in confidence because I know my God has promised to lead and equip me.

As I have allowed God to realign the standard by which I held myself, I have been refreshed and renewed. Now when I hear the enemy saying that I am going to fail I can say, “I might, but if I do I will learn from my mistakes and carry on.” So often in the past, I had believed that my blunders had disqualified me from what God was calling me to do. The reality is that my failures in the hands of God are the very things that equip me to carry out my purpose.

We have each been created for a specific purpose and God will use everything (including our shortcomings and mistakes) to equip us for that purpose. All throughout the Bible there are examples of God using imperfect people to accomplish His perfect will. There was Noah and Joseph, Gideon and Peter and Paul and so many more. God used each of these fallible humans to minister to His people in mighty ways. He meets us right where we are at and then He gently leads us to where we need to be in order to be used by Him.

If you have felt intimidated and inadequate for what you sense God is calling you to, let Him recalibrate your vision and begin to see yourself as God sees you. Let Him show you the possibilities that are to be found in following hard after God and giving Him full access to your life. You will not be disappointed, God has good plans for you!

-Cindi Beauman

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