The Lord answered him, “I will certainly be with you, and you will strike down the Midianites as [if they were only] one man.
Judges 6:16, AMP
As I looked over the test results, I noticed the woman leading our spiritual gifts assessment glancing over the shoulders of those in the row before me. I wished I had a scrap of paper to cover mine. We’d only been attending this church for a few weeks, and as she looked over my left shoulder, I felt as though I didn’t have a stitch of clothes on my back.
“Ah, I see you wouldn’t make a very good teacher, huh?”
My cheeks flushed. I kept my eyes lowered to the scores that were far from perfect 10s. These were areas in which I felt I should be stronger by now. If the one area I’d always considered my greatest strength was being called deficient, what must everyone think about the rest of my scores? Her comment reverberated in my head as I thought of the two degrees, years of experience, and the Teacher of the Year certificate I had stashed away in one of my keepsake folders. All I could do was laugh and resist the urge to defend myself. It wasn’t that she was reading the results incorrectly. She simply didn’t have all the information.
When We Feel Unqualified for What God Is Calling Us to Do
The truth is, I don’t have all the information about myself, either. A simple test couldn’t define all the ways God could use me. Neither can my limited perspective. How often do we make assessments based on the information available to us? I often decide how likely I am to succeed based on what I know about my personality, talents, and prior experience. While I don’t consider myself super competitive, I don’t like playing games I have little likelihood of winning. Given the choice, I’ll choose a word game over a video game any day. I know my skill set and you have a 99.99% chance of beating me in any video game. When the stakes actually matter, I sometimes assess my odds the same way.
When You Don’t Feel Ready for What God Is Calling You to Do
Any time I’m faced with something uncertain, a new season, a different step to take, a new skill to attempt, I face thoughts of inadequacy. When my friend suggested I start a podcast, I said absolutely not. I’ve rehearsed plenty of reasons I’m probably not the woman for the job: I’m not ready. I don’t know enough. I’ve never done anything like this before. This doesn’t come naturally to me. Someone else could do this better. But what if the reasons I feel unqualified aren’t the final word on what God is asking me to do?
Maybe you’ve been there too. Maybe you’ve waited for confidence to give you the permission to obey. When I know more. When things settle down. When I’m more prepared. Then I’ll say yes. But what if readiness isn’t the prerequisite we’ve made it?
What Gideon Teaches Us About Feeling Unqualified
Perhaps you are familiar with the story of Gideon in Judges 6. When God called Gideon, Gideon saw some pretty specific things about his situation. His nation, Israel, was under oppression by Midian. His clan was the weakest in Manasseh. He considered himself least in his family. He was afraid.
God saw everything Gideon saw, but He also knew what Gideon didn’t. Gideon’s information wasn’t wrong. It was just incomplete. Yet before Gideon ever had his first victory, God called him a “mighty man of valor” (Judges 6:12). He told Gideon to “Go in this strength of yours. Have I not sent you?” (Judges 6:14). When Gideon continued to give God his resume of why God couldn’t use him, God said, “I will be with you” (Judges 6:16). And when Gideon first obeyed God’s instruction, the Word tells us he did so at night and with the support of ten other men because he was too afraid to do it alone (Judges 6:27).
I can relate to Gideon. When God asks me to do something, it isn’t always something I’ve done a hundred times before. Sometimes I feel completely ill-equipped to obey, but Gideon’s story reminds me that feeling inadequate doesn’t mean God isn’t asking me to take the next step. God knows what I don’t. And instead of answering every one of my doubts before I begin, He asks me to trust that He will be with me as I obey.
What Does It Mean to Be a Woman of Valor?
That’s a different description of valor than what I tend to picture. When I think of a woman of valor, I think of the Proverbs 31 woman. Too often, I’ve read her description like another assessment, giving my checklist-loving heart another set of boxes to mark off. Then I notice all the places I don’t measure up to that perfect 10. And as I ponder this, maybe I’ve been thinking about this woman of valor all wrong. Maybe she isn’t the woman who never struggles, never doubts, never needs encouragement, and always knows what to do next.
I picture a woman of valor as someone who has her life ordered and knows exactly what she’s doing.
She might not.
Surely a woman of valor never gets nervous.
She does.
Surely a woman of valor feels ready to do whatever God calls her to do.
Maybe not.
And surely a woman of valor doesn’t need reassurance.
Have you met a woman who doesn’t?
Maybe a woman of valor isn’t the woman who has conquered every insecurity and finally feels ready. Maybe she’s the woman who trusts God enough to take the next step no matter what she’s feeling.
God called Gideon a man of valor when we can still see his fear on the page. Valor doesn’t require me to be fearless. Sometimes valor is choosing obedience while my voice quivers, tears form, and my legs shake.
The Biblical Definition of Valor
The word valor is the Hebrew word ḥayil, a word which conveys strength, ability, valor, worth, or capability. It isn’t synonymous with perfection. And Scripture doesn’t reserve this word for men going into battle. It is the same word used to describe Ruth’s character as a virtuous woman (Ruth 3:11). Ruth couldn’t see where her faithful choices would eventually lead her. She simply kept taking the next faithful step in front of her.
The same word is also used in Proverbs 12:4, describing the wife who is a crown to her husband in comparison to one who brings shame, and in Proverbs 31:10, the woman whose worth is far above rubies. The Word doesn’t say the Proverbs 31 woman is perfect. In fact, as the chapter draws to a close, the focus of the passage conveys the root of what makes her admirable. We’re told, “A woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised” (Proverbs 31:30).
When Preparation Becomes a Search for Perfect
I like to know the answers before the questions come. So when God led me to start the podcast my friend had mentioned repeatedly and I was all out of excuses, I became the over-preparer. I wrote down every sentence I wanted to say and practiced in front of the mirror until I could convey my message without stumbling. I figured if I could prepare enough, maybe that would eliminate the possibility of getting it wrong. Then I used a prompter that would help give me visual cues as I shared the messages God had placed on my heart.
All that preparation helped me do something unfamiliar, but preparation didn’t make me feel perfectly ready. Even with all the practice and technological help, I was nervous and made mistake after mistake. I didn’t want to look like I had no idea what I was doing, and I also didn’t want to teach something about God that wasn’t true. Filming felt riskier than spending weeks mulling over paragraphs. There were tears of frustration and steep learning curves. There have been months where the calling sat on the back burner. I’ve told myself I’m too busy as I’ve focused on other demands, and I have been. Learning something new takes time, and there are other good things God has called me to do, too. But busyness hasn’t been the only reason. I’m still nervous. Yet I still hear that gentle whisper: Are you ready to try again?
Maybe I’m not. Maybe I don’t have to be.
And I nervously look at the camera as it waits to be turned back on.
Obeying God Even When You Feel Afraid
You see, God doesn’t always call us to fight armies numbering more than the grains of sand. Sometimes He asks us to repair a relationship, forgive someone who hasn’t apologized, continue praying for a child who isn’t walking with God yet, or pick something back up that fear convinced us to put down.
Sometimes we just need to say yes to a very ordinary, simple thing and show up faithfully as He works through us. Even if we’re nervous. Even if we feel unprepared and completely unqualified. And even if it doesn’t turn out perfectly. Valor isn’t reserved for the big things. Sometimes it’s revealed in the consistent choices of a heart surrendered to God’s will because we honor and respect who He is too much to disobey.
God’s Answer to Our Inadequacy Is His Presence
We want to feel perfectly prepared before we obey. God asks us to obey and trust Him with what we don’t know yet. God didn’t answer all of Gideon’s insecurities by telling him how gifted he was. He told Gideon to go, reminded him that He had sent him, and promised, “I will be with you.” God’s answer to my inadequacies isn’t always more confidence. Sometimes His answer is His presence.
The woman who looked over my shoulder at a piece of paper made an assessment based on incomplete information. I laughed because I knew things about myself she didn’t yet know. Gideon looked at himself and made an assessment based on incomplete information, too. But God knew what Gideon didn’t.
I don’t have all the information about me, either. But God does.
I don’t have to feel fearless, perfectly prepared, or completely confident before I obey. I just need to know the One asking me to go will go with me. Wherever He leads, I can follow.
What does God know about the person He’s calling you to become that you can’t see yet?
Pray
Father, thank You that You don’t ask me to be something I’m not before You can use me. All You ask is for me to trust and obey Your voice. I don’t have to know every reason that You are asking me to step and I don’t have to wait to feel confident or ready before obeying. I pray that You help me to remember that You are with me, even if my knees are knocking and my doubts outweigh the justification. I trust Your plans for my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
References
All scripture is taken from the Modern English Bible unless otherwise noted. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (AMP) are taken from the Amplified® Bible, Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org
All definitions of Hebrew words are from Baker, Warren, and Eugene Carpenter. The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2003.
A Little Something From My Table to Yours
If you’re anything like me, sometimes you need a reminder that not everything has to be done perfectly, including dinner.
This Buffalo Chicken Pasta bake is one of those wonderfully forgiving recipes. There’s no perfect amount of chicken, no carefully measured sauce, and no single “right” level of heat. Make it mild. Make it spicy. Add a little more cheese. (I usually do.)
I’ve turned the recipe into a pretty printable for you to keep. It includes the recipe, a few ways to make it your own, and a little reminder from Chasing Perfect for the days when you need it.
Download This Free Recipe.
Already Wondering What Your Next “Yes” Might Be?
Maybe the problem isn’t that you have nothing to offer. Maybe, like Gideon, you’re making an assessment based on incomplete information.
My What’s in Your Dish? printable workbook will help you take a closer look at what God has already placed in your hands: your gifts, experiences, abilities, and opportunities, and consider how He might be asking you to use them.
If Chasing Perfect has you wondering what your next faithful step might be, this resource can help you explore that question..
Download Your Free Workbook.
Continue the Journey
If today’s message encouraged you, I think you’ll enjoy these resources designed to help you continue walking in God’s calling.
- Believing for a Miracle – For the woman waiting on God to do what only He can do.
- Meeting God in the Ordinary – A 30-Day Digital devotional download to intentionally plan for those unplanned moments
Join the Conversation
Are you more likely to jump into something new and figure it out as you go, or do you want to feel completely prepared before you begin? Tell me in the comments. I have a feeling I’m not the only over-preparer here. 😉
Share This Encouragement
Know someone who needs this reminder? Share this post with a friend who may need encouragement today.
