When I was in High School, most of the inspirational speeches came from my sports coaches, but recently I was surprised when somebody shared with me a little bit of advice when I didn't expect it.
Hopefully most of you guys know that I'm volunteering with Krochet Kids International (a non-profit that sells beanies made by women in northern Uganda) and about a week ago I was at one of their events in costa mesa. It was an open event, but mostly it was a party for a lot of the volunteers participating in the Give the Gift of Love campaign that was sponsored by Krochet Kids and was just a cool time to hang out with a lot of the people invovled with Krochet Kids. Now, everybody invovled with Krochet Kids already inspires me so much but one of the staffers really reached out to me with some wisdom, and I want to share it to you all. Yet before I begin I want to share with you the context that my friend is coming from.
My friend grew up in the Orange County area, and when he was in college he got connected with a movement, and that movement was krochet kids. Krochet Kids started with a few guys using the art of crochet to pay for prom and it transformed into a nonprofit business that is reaching out to women in northern Uganda and aims to change lives. What krochet kids meant for my friend was a decisive forfeit of ever living "comfortably" or "glamorously" in the eyes of the onlooking world, but krochet kids is more than that anyway. Krochet Kids is a dream come true and it encompasses the ideology of living for something greater than yourself and putting that ideology into practice.
So finally, with a little bit of context now, here's the advice: Don't hesitate to do what you feel you're called to do. For example, it's obvious when you know a little bit about krochet kids to realize that it started as a couple of guys who hardly knew what they were doing, but they went for it nonetheless. But think about some more examples, what turned the Billy Grahams into the the Billy Grahams? Have you ever read his biography. What about Charles Spurgeon, did you know he battled depression? Yet, despite his depression was one of England's greatest preachers. What turned some of these heroes into who they are? I imagine that they battled with some of the same questions that I do on a regular basis. Even in scripture you see people like Moses Gideon, Joshua, Isaiah and many more who questioned their God given ability to act out God's will for their lives. I can see myself in Moses' response to God when Moses was in God's presence stumbling over his words saying, " But God, I don't speak well, I can't do this (see Exodus 3) or in Isaiahs question, "Who am I? (see isaiah 6)" Yet God moved through these men in the bible and in history to bring about His glory. The advice given by my friend cut to the heart. I needed to realize that God has my life in His hands.
Let me attack this from a different perspective, I recently heard a sermon that was establishing how we who have been brought to life through Christ have been made so that Christ can dwell in us. God wants to establish in us something that is worthy of his glory. Think of it this way, God is wanting to remodel your house. But, at this point, you're just a rundown shack, yet God wants to make a place worthy for himself to dwell in. So, in order to establish you as a house worthy of himself, he's not gonna be able to just give you a new paint job, he's gonna have to rip deep into your foundation so that you can be turned into a palace! That's not easy! For me, it means complete surrender, and that's really difficult, but I know that when I give my life over to God, he has great plans in store for me (Jer 29:11). So, Don't settle for mediocre. Realize that God is calling you and equipping you and you can be confident in him, Remember, with God all things are possible. Don't hesitate to act on the dreams that God has given you to fulfill his purpose by using your gifts.
So, just a few words really inspired me, and I hope they inspired you as well.
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