Excuses, intimidation, and fear are holding my feet firmly
planted on the ground. As the mountain
stands in front of me, I can’t help but stare at it. Regardless of where I turn, my mind can’t
escape its presence. How do I overcome
this mountain? When I received this vision from God, I was very careful who
I shared it with. Nevertheless, we
sometimes need godly counsel to direct us, so I spoke with my pastor. What he shared with me wasn’t a profound
mystery but it’s keep me on the path.
“Tina, it sounds like God gave you an elephant.” At first, I was very startled by his
comment. Yet, he said, “Do you know how
you defeat an elephant?” I replied, “No,
sir.” “An elephant can only be defeated,
one bite at a time.”
Well, I admit this elephant wasn’t very tasty; he is causing
me to stretch myself with each bite.
God’s call is a wonderful gift upon our lives’, so it should be
cherished. Nevertheless, the call
will bring lessons from God.
All of the lessons are for our benefit to develop our character, our
relationship with God, and to develop our leadership. When it seems as if the “elephant’s biting back” it’s time
to listen to what the Spirit is saying.
If we don’t have a listening ear to God’s voice, we can’t be
guided. If we refuse to listen, God will
use whatever is necessary to get our attention. God desires for our lives to be fruitful, so
He has to prune the dead ends for the vine to have a chance to grow.
Upon entering a conference for church planters, I was so
excited to begin. Excited to brainstorm,
met new people, and develop plans to fulfill God’s call. What an opportunity to grow and develop! Oh, I recognized an area of personal
development-my insecurity. So, as the
ugly monster stares me in the eyes I have a choice to either surrender or
fight. We can’t overcome a weakness; if we don’t recognize it. Recognize what is your weakness but don’t
allow it be your complete focus. If you
only focus on your weakness, you will never exercise your strengths. Although my weakness may not match yours; it
doesn’t mean we don’t face them. Giants
will come into your life to speak defeat, fear, and taunt your faith. The only
way to defeat the giant is RESTING in who God is, meditate on God's past
victories in your life, and attack the giant. Once the giant is hit with God's
power, he will fall. Yet, we have to cut off his voice; it's time to remember
to WHOM we belong.
What is your weakness?
What are your strengths? Realize
Satan wants to minimize your worth, God wants to maximize it. As the conference continued I realized how
intimated I was to share my ideas, overwhelmed with the responsibilities, and
wondering if I could complete this vision.
During those difficult moments the Holy Spirit keep saying, “Press Into
Me”. Also, this passage of scripture
keep coming into my mind, “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high
calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:14
If we are to finish the race, we have to persevere to inherit
the promise. “For you have need of
endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is
promised.” Hebrews 10:38 All of this pain doesn't come without a price; it will stretch us. God will reward us for our faithfulness, He sees our hard work and dedication. A harvest is promised if we don't give up.
"
We will never know the power of victory if we never face adversity,
weakness, or trials. Adversity builds our
faith, weakness builds our trust, and trials build our character, so they are
completing the work of Christ. Whatever
we face, we don’t face it alone. Run to
the Rock! “The LORD is my rock, my
fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my
shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 18:2
If we are to complete God’s call upon our lives, we have to
press in to Christ to press onward. Weakness
is no excuse, inadequacies have no place, and fear can’t prevent a heart fixed
on Christ. Fix your eyes on Christ, so
the weakness can’t trip you. Even if it
does trip us, Christ will carry us. Yet, whatever is causing us to trip, we need to leave it behind. We can't reach forward if we are tangled up with sin or anything causing us to lose focus. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of
witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily
entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
Hebrews 12:1
