Through my studies I’ve met many great people who have gone on to all manner of things.

Today I was messaging one of my good friends who’s currently in Timore Leste, which I’d personally never heard of.

She described it to me, saying:

It neighbours an Indonesian island. It’s a very hurting and poor country, been under Indonesian rule for over 30 years. Whole villages wiped out, men shot down in front of their wives. And well, it’s just generally a very wounded and hurting nation. I’m speaking and ministering to people. There’s so much brokenness, and a lot of family and relational challenges that I end up addressing.

Knowing her character, her skills and love for Christ, I couldn’t help responding:

I’m sure you’re being amazing! It sounds like God chose someone good to help out.

She then replied:

Really, you think so?!

Sometimes I feel so out of my depths. The level of their pain and struggle and past is so beyond anything we know in the urban prospering world that I feel at a loss. No amount of theology or therapy helps me at that time. I just sit… and say what feels like a measly few words but somehow it touches people’s lives.

It has to be Jesus; nothing more, nothing less.

I could really hear where she’s coming from. What can we do in this situation? Yet I wanted to encourage her so I said:

Uh huh. You’re not chosen because you’re great at what you do, though you are, you’re chosen because you are what love looks like in that moment.

 

Did you just come up with that quote?! That’s beautiful, I am going to quote you in my talk to women tomorrow.

I share this, with her permission, not to show off but in the hope that it’s encouraging to you too!

God calls each of us to very different situations,
and often we can feel overwhelmed and inadequate to represent Jesus to others.

However wherever we find ourselves,
whether it be conversations
in pubs,
small groups,
after church,
with friends
and family,
or while at work
or on outreach
and evangelistic activities,

we have to remember that it is not our efforts which make Christ known and present, though our efforts are important, but it is Jesus himself who works through us – sometimes in ways that have impacts on others which we may not be fully aware of. 

And so when you end up speaking with people and feel out of your depth, remember: