I wonder if you remember being a child when it came to sports and maybe you were picked last. Those moments can leave an impression on a child. It can make them feel like they’re too small, too tall, too slow or too fast to be used on the team. Or maybe it’s at university or in work, you’re surrounded by ‘experts’ who always seem to have the right answers and you don’t. You can feel left out, you can feel insignificant, inexperienced or stupid.
Most people have been in a situation like that before in their lives at some point. But it goes beyond the playfield and the work place. The same feelings can creep into the church and our lives as individual believers.
The church is a mixed bunch of people from different ages and stages and so there are naturally different levels of knowledge and experience. Sometimes this can lead new believers to feel ‘stupid’ because they don’t know as much as another person. In some conversations people might feel out of their depth in terms of their understanding of Scripture or their knowledge of church history or theology.
Suddenly you’re transported right back to that playing field where you were left in tears as a child, or that meeting where you backed yourself into a corner quietly because you were embarrassed.
But the glorious truth is that there are no unwanted people in God’s team, they are no misfits, no unusable people. The Lord uses ordinary people, doing ordinary thing to fulfil His extraordinary plans.
There’s nothing wrong with having lots of knowledge about the Bible and theology, in fact it’s a good thing, but you don’t need to reach a certain level of knowledge in order to be useful. The church started with a bunch of ordinary people. No seminary degrees. No phd in Old Testament theology. No distinctions or merits in a bachelor of theology. Jesus chose ordinary men to be the ones who would lead the early church.
What was different about these men, what was special about them? Nothing, expect for the fact that they had been with Jesus.
The best thing you can do in those moments when you feel like an imposter, remember that Jesus used Peter who denied Him three times. When you feel inadequate, remember that Jesus used two brother who wanted to call down fire from heaven on a town. When you feel like your past hinders you from serving, remember Paul the greatest persecutor of the church turned one of the biggest proclaimers of the gospel.
There are no misfits or unwanted people on God’s team. Each one of us has a place to serve. Each of us has a part in God’s plan. Each of us has been called and equipped to glorify God in our lives. You don’t need to win Bible trivia every time to be useful. You don’t need to have memorised the Psalms to be a help. You don’t need to read the Bible in a year to be a ‘good Christian’.
God has called you to His team, do not doubt that He has a plan for you! He has a place for you to serve. He has a place for you to go. He has a people for you to reach. He sovereignty chose you to come to Him so that you can put your hand to the plough and work for Him.
Don’t let the sport day feeling stop you from serving. Don’t compare yourself to others, but let your soul be comforted by the fact that God chose you by His Son for His glory.
Chalmers' Blog 