Home Outreach Leaders Articles for Outreach & Missions Feeling Inadequate? Good. Now God Can Use You

Feeling Inadequate? Good. Now God Can Use You

You see, saying, “I feel inadequate,” is not a hindrance to being used by God. It’s actually a prerequisite to being used by God. When God called the Apostle Paul, for instance, he was a defeated, destroyed, hot mess. To this seeming “failure,” God said, “But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you” (Acts 26:16).

God isn’t focusing on Paul’s potential. The focus of that call is on Christ and his work. The same is true of us. Like Paul, we can be confident that he who began a good work in us will complete it (Philippians 1:6).

Relying on God’s power makes the most unpromising among us into potential world-changers. I think of William Wilberforce, whose efforts brought the transatlantic slave trade to an end. But he was one of the most physically unimpressive men you’d ever imagine. He suffered from severe scoliosis (among other maladies), and one history book I read called him an “elfish, misshapen little figure.”

But Wilberforce discovered the purposes of God, stepped out on the runway, felt heaven’s wind at his back, and changed the world. He did it not by discovering his inner potential but the purposes of God to bring salvation to the world. God used a physically broken man to break the back of the slavery industry.

Some people feel like they have nothing to offer. Others, like Paul, are flat on their face! If that’s you, God’s word to you is this: “Get up! Stop looking at your limitations, and look instead at the power and faithfulness of the Christ who is calling you.”

You say, “I feel inadequate!” You say, “I can’t!” He says, “I can! Follow me, and watch me do it through you.”

Christ in you, your righteous standing before God.

Christ in you, the power of new life.

Christ in you, your sufficiency in all things.

Christ in you, the hope of glory.

You’ll never be satisfied trying to fit God into the corners of your life. You were created for so much more! You were created for total surrender to God, to act as a vessel of the power of God, all for the sake of the mission of God. Stop taking God’s name in vain, and let him work through you!

This article originally appeared here.