Why Not You?

A couple of months back, my wife and I were enjoying a rare, peaceful midweek moment in the living room, most likely running on fumes after a full day of teaching preschoolers for my wife and chasing the rush of everyday life. In walked our 17-year-old son, RJ, the youngest of our children.

RJ is the sweetest young man, tenderhearted and thoughtful. Being the youngest, and the only boy among many girls in our family, opportunities for him to speak freely without interruption are hard to come by.

So when he said, “Mom and Dad, I have something I want to talk to you about, but I don’t want you to make a big deal,” we knew to stop everything and give him our full attention, whatever we had left to muster that evening.

He continued, “I’ve been asked to preach in a couple of weeks, and I said yes. I want to obey God and say yes when He gives me an opportunity to serve Him.”

I will admit, I wish I could go back in time and respond with more enthusiasm and encouragement. Instead, my reaction was something like, “What? You are?” It was a response marked by surprise and hesitation, silently questioning whether he was capable of such a task.

How quickly we can discount or diminish God’s ability to use us when we operate in fear or doubt.

Philippians 4:13 reminds us, “I can do ALL things through Christ who gives me strength.” Yet sometimes we live as though it says, “I can do only the things I feel experienced and confident enough to do in my own strength.”

In RJ’s obedience, I was both challenged and encouraged to step out in confidence, trusting what God had asked me to do. I was reminded of Moses when God called him to go to Pharaoh and demand the release of His people. Moses’ first response in Exodus 3:11 was hesitation: “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh?” He went on to remind God that he was not eloquent and was slow of speech and tongue.

Ever feel like Moses?

Psalm 139:14 declares, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” This means that who we are, our gifts, talents, and wiring, are exactly what God intended and part of His design. God does not simply call the qualified. He delights in qualifying those He calls, right where they live, work, and serve.

I love the entire narrative of the Christmas story because it showcases how God uses the unthinkable to make His name known. Zechariah and Elizabeth were “too old” by human standards, yet they were chosen to bring great joy through their son, John. Mary was greatly troubled and asked the angel, “How can this be? I am a virgin and do not have a husband.”

The powerful words spoken over Mary are the same words that make all things possible for us today:

Luke 1:35, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you…”

RJ did preach his first message, and he did so with the power of the Holy Spirit. He spoke from the book of Daniel, sharing how Daniel and his friends, at a young age, set themselves apart and refused to conform to the culture of their time. They committed to obeying the voice of God rather than the voice of man. The Holy Spirit showed up powerfully, delivering them from the fiery furnace and Daniel from the lions’ den. That same Spirit is still at work today in our schools, our workplaces, our neighborhoods, and our families.

Another incredible thing God did was this. On the very same Sunday RJ preached his first message, I was given the opportunity to preach in an unreached region of West Africa, encouraging local church and marketplace believers that God desires to use them, right where they are, to reach their communities and make Jesus known through faithful presence and obedient action.

Ephesians 3:20 reminds us:

“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

So what is God asking you to do that causes your first response to be, “But God, I can’t,” followed by a list of reasons why?

Is He inviting you to learn more about what He is already doing, perhaps by understanding another culture, a global need, or the story of an unreached people group?

Is He prompting you to give in faith, beyond what feels comfortable, toward a project, a person, or a work advancing the Great Commission?

Or is He calling you to go, whether that means stepping into greater faithfulness in your workplace and community, serving in your local church, or considering how your skills and vocation might serve a BAM work internationally?

Together, let’s turn our doubts and insecurities into opportunities for God to display His power. Let’s transform hesitation into Holy Spirit moments and replace “Why me?” with “Why not me?” through the power of the Holy Spirit at work within us.