Looking Impossible in the Face
Have you ever prayed a prayer that was “too big for your britches?” Some time ago I asked God to allow me to live a life that was so far beyond my natural abilities that others would look at me and know without a doubt that it was all of God. This sounded rather Christ-honoring and noble and all together super-Christian-hero-like in my mind until God started to answer my request.
God began to prod me in certain directions, answer prayers, and stir up things in my life that needed to be removed so that He might have His way with me. That is when reality walked off the classroom chalkboard of my mind and slapped me upside the head. Reality said, “Get real, Donya. That life you imagine is NEVER going to happen. Those goals you want to accomplish are too big for someone like you. Who do you think you are?” My dreams were big, but I quickly found that my faith was very, very small. Thankfully, I have found that God can work with that.
In Matthew 17 the disciples had a reality check similar to mine. They had attempted to cast out a demon from a boy and were unable to do so. The boy’s father brought him to Jesus who healed the child. Afterwards the disciples pulled Jesus aside and asked why they weren’t able to heal the child. Jesus responded,
Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
This was quite a rebuke! All the disciples needed was just a teeny tiny bit of faith, no bigger than a mustard seed, and they could have done what seemed impossible to them. “Tsk, tsk” we say to the disciples, but what about us?
If we are to live the kind of lives God is pleased with, we must walk by faith. Of the nine times the word “impossible” is mentioned in Scripture, five passages tell us that we can do anything through the power of God, one says that without faith it is impossible to please Him and one says that it is impossible for Him to lie. When you add all of that up, we are left without any excuse at all to remain in our comfort zones and hide from God’s calling. Is it scary to walk by faith? Absolutely. Terrifying. Eleanor Roosevelt once said,
We gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face… we must do that which we think we cannot.
It isn’t Scripture, but what she says is true. God grows our faith by putting us in situations that we don’t understand and have no idea how to handle so that we have to go to Him for the answers. We have to walk in the Spirit, because without Him we couldn’t get out of bed. But through His power, His courage and His strength, we can face our fears and overcome them. Through the Holy Spirit working in us we can accomplish our impossible dreams.
Right now I am looking at situations that I cannot imagine overcoming, but God didn’t say I have to have it all figured out. He just said that I have to keep walking towards the goal and to keep trusting Him to take care of everything.
My idea of the impossible dream was for God to enable me to do great things. God’s idea for my impossible dream was for me to allow Him to do great things through me. In my own strength, my dreams will never happen. In God’s strength, nothing can stop me because nothing can stop Him. So even though most of my prayers start with “God, I don’t see how…” I have to believe that He is going to grow my mustard seed size faith into a beautiful, fruit bearing tree. I have to believe, because He promised He would…and it is impossible for Him to lie.
So what about you? What impossible dream are you dreaming today? Are you loafing in your fear or are you baby-stepping it in faith? Tell me about the journey God has called you to. I’d love to hear from you.
Photo Credit: Debbie Borrmann – Graphic EmbellishmentsFor with God nothing shall be impossible. – Luke 1:37
