He came right out and said, “I am not the
Messiah.” John 1:20 NLT
It appeared
he could do it all.
I know a
man who in his younger years amazed me. His father farmed and taught him the
trade—along with a little bit of everything else. Tractor needed mechanical
repair? No problem. Shed needed rewiring? Still no problem. And a few years
after he married, when he and his wife decided to sell their mobile home and
build a house, he launched right in and did it.
Nor did his
days seem to have limitations. He had a kind heart and showed it by saying
“yes” to almost anything anyone asked of him. If I spent the day with him, we
spent more time helping others than we did doing things he needed to get done.
But my
friend does have limitations—and he did then. He couldn’t have walked onto a
college campus, applied for a professor’s position, and got hired. Nor could he
have entered a science lab and developed a cure that would have changed the
world of medicine. He had limitations on his knowledge. He also had limitations
on his time.
John the
Baptist held a significant place in history. His job was introducing the Messiah.
But when he appeared out of the wilderness, dressed in strange garb and eating
funny food, people thought he might be the long-awaited Messiah. He quickly
told them he wasn’t—and he couldn’t be.
I was once
a yes man who thought I could do it all—and wanted to do it all … for the wrong
reasons. All it got me was disappointment and a bleeding ulcer.
We all have
limitations. We can’t do it all, nor does God expect us to. Each of us lives
within a confined amount of time, in a specific geographical place, with a
limited amount of knowledge, and with limited opportunities.
We only
have enough time to do exactly what God wants us to do. John’s job was
introducing the Messiah. My friend’s was quality control and farming. When we
ask, God will show us what He wants us to do, give us the abilities, and
provide the opportunities. He doesn’t want us to feel guilty because we
sometimes have to say, “No.”
Accept your
limitations, not as a defect, but as God-given. Discover what God wants you to
do … and do it.
Prayer:
Father, show us what You want us to do, and then give us the courage to do it.
Tweetable: Are your limitations limiting you?
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