Yesterday I followed a bit of advice from someone I do not know, but who seems very wise, Lysa TerKeurst, the author of several books including Made to Crave and the president of Proverbs 31 Ministries.
The question to her on Twitter was, “What is your advice for a woman starting a ministry?”
Lysa responded, “Ask God for your assignment each day and start with what’s in front of you.”
Since Lysa has started a ministry before I am thinking this is great advice! So as I sat in the big, fluffy chair where I meet God each morning I said to Him, “God, today I am asking you to please give me my assignment for today”, in a sweet, sing-song voice as if His assignment was going to be one in which I could just sing my way through, check off my list, and go to bed feeling like a better person.
I didn’t think any more about it.
About an hour later I went to the computer and opened my email expecting to see the same old things I get every morning – a few emails from friends, Facebook notifications, newsletter subscriptions, etc. – and there it was. My assignment from God.
Suddenly my arms got heavy feeling like they were dragging the floor. Nerves welled up inside me causing me to shake. Fear overcame me.
God, I didn’t mean this! This? I can’t handle this! I’m not good enough for this! What are You thinking?
I was almost paralyzed.
After God got a hold of my mind, I realized, “Did I really think asking God for an assignment would be anything that I could handle on my own?”
A popular saying is “God never gives us more than we can handle”. We assume this is in the Bible because we say it so much and hear it so often. In actuality this statement is not in the Bible. The verse that this statement tries to emulate is “He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure” (1 Corinthians 10:13). So in regards to temptation, yes, God does not give us more than we can stand, and He always shows us a way out.
But I wasn’t being tempted. I was faced with a task that I did not feel adequate enough to handle. God does give us tasks that we cannot accomplish on our own, especially when we pray bold prayers and ask for them.
Why does He do this?
The very next thing I did yesterday morning, after God got a hold of my mind, is I prayed. I went to God and told Him that I am not wise enough, strong enough, spiritual enough to handle the assignment He had given me. Then I asked Him to please work through me, use me, be my hands, give me my words, so that His purpose could be accomplished.
If I was able to accomplish this on my own, then I would have no need to turn to God. I would carry out the actions that I thought needed to be done, and I would receive the credit, ultimately putting myself higher than God. See, God’s tasks require the supernatural – supernatural wisdom, supernatural strength, supernatural patience, supernatural endurance.
Then when I’m asked questions such as:
“How are you so strong?”
My answer is: “I’m not. God is.”
“How do know that?”
My answer is: “I don’t. God does.”
“How do you get through this?”
My answer is: “I can’t. God can.”
God gives us more than we can handle so that He can show us His power, His sovereignty, His grace, and His love through us. We see His majesty, and we have faith that He is who He says He is and that He does what He says He is going to do.
What do you do when you feel like an assignment from God is too much for you to handle?
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