"Unlikely"
Oh hey, short on time? No worries! I'd love to join you on your commute or daily walk/run, or shoot, even while you take care of that to-do list. We can't let these things get in the way of this friendship. It's just starting to get good! Click below to listen to the blogcast.
Y'all. We have made our way through the whole Bible this year!
That is not an easy feat. If it were, everyone would be doing it, and they're not. So, nice work! Whether you're a Christ-follower or not, this is for you to decide. I simply want to help make The Bible easier for you to understand, maybe knock down some barriers you had to opening this book and reading it, so you can make an informed decision.
A decision about our eternity deserves our time. And just with five minutes a day, look how far we've come together!
I'm so very proud of you, friend.
Through this journey, I hope you've also seen God is not afraid of our questions. We can bring Him our doubts, the things we don't understand and dig into His Word for truth.
When I read The Bible, I see circumstances time and time again out of man's control, and I see a God who longs to known through them - a God who longs to be trusted. And, oh friend, He is so very worthy of our trust.
Like we said when we first began, The Bible is the greatest story of all time and it includes you and me. It's a love story through and through, and it's a rescue mission.
We, too, are on mission.
Maybe, you're thinking, "That sounds nice Candace, but that's for someone who has it all together. That's not me."
I get it. I almost let this lie keep me from writing and sharing the words the Lord lays on my heart. I was off social media for four and half years when God nudged me to start this. I had no desire to be in the spotlight. Still don't. I'm much more comfortable laying low ...but not near as fulfilled.
You see, what is most fulfilling for me is actually when I am stepping out in faith and out of my comfort zone, when I'm relying not on my own ability but on God's power to work through me.
It blows my mind to see what God has done in a short period of time through this little space on the internet. Now the girl who didn't want the attention is on multiple social media platforms, host of a YouTube channel and a weekly podcast and speaks encouragement to those in her community. Isn't that wild?!
So friend, I don't know what the Lord is pressing on your heart, but I know there is something. Can I speak truth into that narrative you've been replaying in your head?
There's something beautiful I've noticed about all the people we've studied in Scripture together. When we feel like we don't have the background, qualifications, or circumstances to do the thing pressed upon on our hearts, we can remember:
The man who was old and whose wife was barren, who God made the father of many nations...
The woman who God used to preserve the life of a Hebrew child in the middle of a Hebrew genocide led by her own father, the Pharaoh of Egypt...
The baby boy found in the river, whose life God preserved to teach the people His ways and commandments and became the first author of God's Word...
The man who was sold into slavery, who God promoted to second-in-command in the powerful land of Egypt to save His people from the famine...
The man who first served as a spy and held tight to his beliefs though unpopular, who God later used to lead the Israelites into the promised land...
The woman with the scandalous past of prostitution, who God later distinguished in the lineage of kings and the King of Kings!...
The woman who was barren, who God made the mother of a powerful judge of Israel...
The man who was a lowly shepherd, working out in the fields who was not at all the warrior-type, who God chose as the King of Israel...
The men who refuse to follow the king's orders, who God promotes to leadership positions.
The woman who lost both her mother and father, who God promotes as queen to save His people from genocide...
The young, poor Jewish couple, who had no worldly riches nor the optimal circumstances to eagerly welcome a new child, whom God chose to raise His Son on earth...
I think you're starting to get my point, but just to be sure, let's keep going...
The man whose own miraculous birth was foretold and who ate locusts and wild honey, and spent time in the wilderness, who God used to prepare people for the Lord's coming...
The man with the criminal background who hung on the cross next to Jesus and who, in the mere moments before being condemned to an eternity in hell, Jesus saved and welcomed into paradise with Him...
The woman who had been tortured by seven demons, who God invited close when Jesus healed her and she became a friend and faithful follower of Jesus...
The man who denied Christ three times, who God later used to build His church...
The man who persecuted and supported the murder of Christians, who God used to spread the Good News of Christ, even when it meant enduring shipwreck and imprisonment...
The men who were half-brothers of Jesus and did not believe in Him as the Messiah until His resurrection, who God used to spread the Gospel...
The man who was banished, to whom God revealed insight on the second coming of Christ...
And of course, the child born in a manger - not to great wealth or of military strength, but a servant - who God sent to us as the Savior of the world!
When we feel like we don't have the background, qualifications, or circumstances to do the thing pressed upon on our hearts, we can remember: God uses unlikely people in unlikely circumstances to fulfill His purpose. All He needs from us is a surrendered heart.
It's not about us or our abilities, our know-how, or our strength. It never has been and it never will be.
It's all about God's power to work in and through us. Again, all He needs from us is a surrendered heart.
Though we see people from the Old Testament, Jesus Himself and the New Testament, I assure you this is not an exhaustive list. Nor is it a finished list. You know how I know this?
Because our names aren't on it.
That's right.
God wants to use YOU! Right where you are, God wants to work through YOU to bring the hope of Jesus to the hurting world.
We've said it before but it bears repeating...
God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called. He chooses the one with a surrendered and obedient heart, however unlikely they may seem, and prepares them for the things He needs them to do.
If the thing God has laid on your heart screams "unlikely," well, then buckle up, buttercup! God uses unlikely people in unlikely circumstances to carry out His will.
I've seen this in my own life through this writing journey. It's nothing special about me. I simply said "Yes," when I could have said no.
Like we've said before, God never promotes for our selfish gain. It's always, always, always for His glory. With great blessing comes great responsibility.
Rather than seeing it as "unlikely," consider your situation as one with ample room for God to show Himself faithful!
This story from Genesis to Revelation is a love story of our redemption, but it's even more. It's an invitation to the greatest and most fulfilling adventure of a lifetime.
All we have to do is show up. God does the rest.
Will you show up for the greatest role of your life?
Watching the movie 12 Strong, the true story of the first Special Forces team deployed to Afganistan, it struck me how the Taliban soldiers welcomed the task of carrying a hand grenade in a suicide mission because in their religion, the next life held all the meaning.
Christianity stands in stark contrast to this. Though heaven is indeed far better than life this side of heaven, Jesus tells us,
"I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." - John 10:10
Life to the full starts not one day but today! The lives we live have meaning! Our lives are inherently significant! Go forth as a light unto a dark world, a world craving hope, a world longing to see someone boldly living out the truth they believe!
I hope this series has been meaningful to you. I know it has been for me. Thank you again so very much for joining me.
May we find strength in the Word of God. May our joy for reading scripture grow as we intentionally choose to set aside time to spend reading it each day. May our peace overflow as the Word of God reads us and changes us from the inside out. Then, we will know rest this world can't give.
The good life, well it starts with a good day. Then another. Then another. Let's choose to live #TheGoodDay one day at a time.
I love hearing from you, so go ahead. Leave a comment. Be brave. Maybe your comment will speak life into someone else!
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