You Have What You Need

4 days ago

2 min read

For His divine power has bestowed on us [absolutely] everything necessary for [a dynamic spiritual] life and godliness, through true and personal knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. (2 Peter 1:3 AMP)

I wonder how many opportunities I’ve delayed because I was too busy evaluating what I didn’t know, what I hadn’t accomplished, or how much further along I thought I should be.

It’s interesting how we can extend grace to others for their learning curves while holding ourselves hostage to expectations we created without considering what life would actually require of us.

I’ve learned that wisdom doesn’t always arrive before the experience. Sometimes it comes because of it. There are things I understand today that no amount of preparation could have taught me. I needed the exposure, the uncomfortable conversations, the disappointing outcomes, and even the decisions I wish I had made differently.

None of it was wasted.

But here’s where we have to be careful. We can become so consumed with assessing our readiness that we never exercise the ability we already possess. We keep looking for another confirmation, another credential, another person’s approval, or the perfect circumstances to begin.

At some point, we have to stop confusing preparation with permission.

God has already entrusted us with gifts, abilities, and opportunities that require our participation. That doesn’t mean we know everything or won’t make mistakes. It means we have a responsibility to steward what we’ve been given, rather than let uncertainty determine what we do with it.

I’m learning to appreciate the person my experiences have equipped me to be, without letting yesterday’s limitations dictate today’s decisions.

And when adjustments are necessary, I can make them without treating them as evidence of failure.

The question is no longer whether I have everything figured out. It’s whether I’m willing to put what I already have to work. I don’t have to know everything about what comes next to be faithful with what God has placed in my hands today.

“Stop waiting for another confirmation of what God has already placed inside of you. Your gifts were never meant to remain unused while you question your ability to make a difference.”

— DeMi