I am nothing special. Truly, when I consider my life, I bring very little to the realm of existence. Out of 8 billion people, I am merely a blip on the global radar of significance. Many people are more intelligent, better looking, funnier, better-natured, and all-around more complete individuals. Psychologically, I am a mess at times. I can be too harsh or not firm enough. My words can build up and tear down. I am a mixture of failures and successes. I can get intertwined in my thoughts and imagine myself to be more significant or less sufficient than I am in actuality.
I have messed up more times than I care to count. I am broken. I am flawed. And yet, somehow, despite these egregious issues, I made it into professional ministry. I often feel like Moses, who came up with excuse after excuse as to why God should choose someone else.
“Choose Aaron; he is far more eloquent than I am.” “Pick anyone else to stand before Pharoah and request a release of Your people.” Moses would appeal. There must be someone more qualified or more worthy to stand in my place to represent God to the world.
And I can say without a doubt there is someone in the world who is better and more equipped than me.
And then, I am reminded of some key verses that provide me comfort and clarity.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 –
“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20 For you have been bought for a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”
Romans 8:11 –
“The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.”
1 Corinthians 3:16 –
“Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?”
Colossians 1:27 –
“For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.”
Time and time again, scripture reminds us that we are not living by and for ourselves. We have a value perceived and evaluated by the Creator. On top of this valuation, God wants so deep a relationship that He will send His very Spirit to live in me. This thought alone should make you feel worthwhile and enough.
Speaking of Moses, this is the comfort that God gave to him. Moses believes himself to be insignificant and unable and is not told to puff himself up or belittle those around him; God encourages him with this comfort.
Exodus 3:11-12
“But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 And He said, “Assuredly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain.”
“Who am I?” And God replies, “I will be with you.” This is the remarkable thing about our lives: we often think that we are not enough, that we are incapable and unimportant … and yet God says, “I am with you.” God is so near to us that He has imparted a portion of Himself to dwell within our lives. And so, it grows from there because it signals that I’m not doing this alone. Paul reiterated this in a discussion regarding our actions lived out in faith as he states:
Galatians 2:20
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”
We are not doing this alone. We recognize that it is through Christ living within us. It is no longer about my abilities, great or small, but about how faithful I will be to the things God has asked me to be and do. The very fact that God has chosen to live inside of me should help me to understand that everything is not about me anymore. If we are honest, if it were up to human ability, the Gospel would never have spread; the first obstacle or hindrance would have squashed it. Thankfully, enough people have recognized this throughout history to allow God to work in and through them.
We believe that we build our lives based on our abilities and talents, and God says that it is about faith and obedience. It is up to us to recognize and realize that God has stated time and time again, “I Am with you.”