When You Feel Unqualified

At 22 years old, I was once asked to preach – in a church, from the platform, and in the pastor’s place.

With little speaking experience and no formal training, you can imagine my response.

It was a 10-day trip to Brazil with a team of others, and though we were there to serve, I hadn’t prepared for this.

When asked, I thought to myself:

Me? But I’m no pastor. I’m just an ordinary young woman.

How am I qualified to do this?

But the Brazilians loved hearing our English, and they were eager to listen. So I readied my heart, prepared my material, and when the day came, I stepped up on that platform, and through an interpreter, I preached.

I would love to tell you that on that day, every soul in the room was stirred. However, I’m fairly certain that wasn’t true.

But let me tell you what WAS true.

God had asked something of me, and I was obedient.

Even though I felt less than qualified.

I’m telling you this story, not to praise my own actions, but because I want you to see something important.

And I’m going to illustrate this with the book of Amos, which I just read through last week.

Amos is a short book in the Bible. Only nine chapters long, it’s full of prophecies given by the man himself.

Amos was just a regular guy who cared for fig trees and tended sheep.

Until the day God called him to prophesy in Israel.

Like me, he had no formal training. He hadn’t gone to the local school for prophets. He wasn’t accustomed to standing on platforms.

Yet he was asked to do a noble task.

Surely, Amos had thoughts similar to mine.

Me? But I’m no prophet. I’m just a shepherd. (those last four words he actually said in verse 7:14).

He likely thought:

How am I qualified to do this?

Yet he was obedient.

SO obedient, that his words found their way into the Holy Bible we read today.

Which got me thinking.

In God’s topsy turvy kingdom, he loves to do the unexpected with unexpected people.

He did it back in Bible times with fishermen, shepherds, and dare I say it – women – who, back then, were far less valued than we are today.

And he continues this practice with us.

Why? Because when an unlikely or unqualified individual does a work by faith, the doer will give God the glory. And the bystanders will pay attention.

God loves to use the ones who will depend on him for strength the whole way through.

And the ones who, because they feel unqualified, will continually remind themselves that…

…with God all things are possible. – Matthew 19:26

This is true in any moment when we need to depend on God to accomplish something for which we lack training, skills, experience, or confidence.

Whatever the task – we are called to be obedient.

So let me ask you… is there something you are feeling called to do, and yet you feel unqualified?

- Maybe it’s a task that seems daunting, and you’re not sure how to do it.

- Or a conversation you need to have with someone, and you don’t know where to begin.

- Maybe you’ve been asked to serve in a capacity that seems way above your head.

- Or you feel prompted to share your faith with another, yet you feel completely intimidated.

If this, in any way, resonates with you, then God has you right where he wants you right now.

Because at this moment, you stand at a pivotal place in your faith. That place where you have to put complete trust in the Father and choose to move ahead.

And that place where God gets to walk you through the uncomfortable and show you, once again, that he is with you wherever you go.

If you find yourself hesitating, may I speak a word of encouragement to you?

If you are feeling God’s prompting to do that thing…