Confidence
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Then I said, "Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy." But the Lord said to me,
"Do not say, 'I am only a boy';
for you shall go to all to whom I send you,
and you shall speak whatever I command you,
Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord."-Jeremiah 1:6-7
Almost every prophet in the bible, when called by God, expresses great doubt about their ability to be a prophet. This Sunday, God comes to Jeremiah and says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah’s response is, “But I’m only a kid! I have no idea how to speak, let alone be a prophet to the nations!
It’s understandable, right? What if an angel of the Lord came into your kitchen this afternoon and said, “I’ve been watching you, (your name here), and I have chosen you to bring justice into the world.” What would you say? Take a moment to imagine that scenario. What would your first point of self-doubt be in response?
Jeremiah felt he was just too young. Isaiah said that he had unclean lips. Moses told God that he was too slow of speech to be a prophet. Amos felt that as an arborist, being a prophet was way beyond his pay grade. What would be your biggest concern?
God’s response to Jeremiah was to say, “Hey - you don’t have to worry about your youth or your speaking abilities. I will give you every word you need to say. I will be with you every step of the way. You are doing my work, not your own.”
Maybe there are things about yourself that keep you back from being the strong person of faith you’re called to be. Oh, I could never do that. I don’t have enough experience, education, confidence, charisma, intelligence, sensitivity, understanding, time, energy, talent, history, strength, health etc, etc, etc. But we’ve heard the same story over and over throughout scripture. People doubt God would have much use for them. God begs to differ. When God calls someone forward to serve, God believes they can do it, and assures them that they will not be alone, and that with God, nothing is impossible.
And lest you think that only special people are called, I draw your attention to a quote from Brother Davide at SSJE:
Some of us may experience a dramatic call, which turns us around and points us in an entirely new direction. But most of us, most of the time, will experience God’s call as something that only becomes clear over time, and seems to unfold gradually in very ordinary ways. Don’t wait for the writing on the wall; pay attention to the ordinary and the everyday.
How is God speaking to you in your day to day? It may be in ways you don’t suspect. What are you most passionate about in life. What do you love so much that you lose track of time doing? What big issue breaks your heart? What have you felt called to do something about? What desire calls out to you when you are quiet enough to listen? What would you step up and do if you trusted God would be right by your side, helping you all the way?
What if you trusted that God might have made you, with all your passions, wounds, desires, gifts and shortcomings, for just such a time as this?
