"What holds you back from wholeheartedly believing you are a great woman of God?"
I was recently challenged with this question while reading the book, Standing Strong, by Alli Worthington.
My immediate gut response was simple, because I don't feel like what I do every day matters.
I don't feel like being a mom is doing enough to make a difference for the Kingdom. Not when others are publishing books that change the world. Sailing seas to minister to the heart of Africa. Or starting life changing organizations for those in need. How can just caring for these two boys make me worthy of the title, "great woman of God"?
I think the honest answer is, it doesn't. Nor does becoming a missionary or writing best seller books. Nothing I do, good or bad, makes me more or less worthy of God's love. In him I am a great woman of God simply because he is my Savior. And as his adopted child, I am completely worthy in his sight. No matter my vocation or station in life.
And because I am a great woman of God, simply by being a daughter of the King, it means whatever talents, gifts and responsibilities he has given me for this season, big or small, I can partner with him towards the goal of bringing his love to each situation and person, and rest assured it is indeed enough by his standard.
It's true, God requires different things from each of us. But his scale for measuring greatness is not the same as us humans. He does not use the big numbers & achievements to weigh out our success. But rather how much we pour ourselves into the tasks he has entrusted us with, whether they are big and shiny or not. Loving & giving of ourselves sacrificially even if it's never noticed.
Yes, being the mom to these boys often feels mundane and less than flashy. But to God, he is so pleased with exactly what he has given me for today. And the gifts & talents he has entrusted to me serve a purpose so that I can minister to the hearts of these little boys. Maybe I won't change the world by washing dirty faces and breaking up the hundredth fight today, but if I allow God to work through me, I gift them an imagine of their creator and an opportunity to grow in a better understanding of his love and sacrifice he made for us.
And maybe, these small things, are exactly what God needs from this great woman of God to change my corner of the world. And in the story God is writing for me today, that is enough. Because only in God's hands, wrapped in his grace, can the small things become big, for his Kingdom.
Photo Credit Julia Costanzo Photography
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