OnFire #295 Just Average? Part 2

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #295 Just Average? Part 2

Hey Folks:

In my last letter, I told the parable of a drill who wondered if he was “Just Average” because there were other drills who seemed to be so much better, flashier, and feature-filled. It came from my own recent experience of dealing with an attack of self-doubt and insignificance. Last time we saw that God uses ordinary people to accomplish his purposes. Scripture is filled with examples of ordinary people.

And now, to continue...

...Second, we need to remember that our measures of success are not the same as God’s. Our ideas of success are based on what we see, and they change according to the age in which we live. God’s measure of success is not the same as ours.

Take David as an example. The prophet Samuel went to David’s father, knowing that the new king would come from the family. David was not the one Samuel would have chosen, but God sees things differently.

"Do not consider his appearance or his height,... The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (1 Sam 16:7)

We tend to judge on the appearance of things - how good someone looks. How much money they have. We find a number and compare. How big? How successful? How attractive? We even do this in Christian circles. How big is the church? How large is the ministry? How much is in the offering?

This is a dangerous game, for a couple reasons. First, our measure of success is constantly changing. Have you ever seen a picture of a winning boxer from the 1800's? A winning hockey or football team from the 20's? We wouldn’t look at these people twice if we saw them today.

Second, and more importantly, if we don’t have the numbers for success then we wonder if “just average” is good enough. We end up feeling small and insignificant, and we question our value.

1 Samuel 16:7 reminds us that God’s measures of success are not the same as ours. God judges based on the condition of the heart, not on something we measure like money or beauty, or size, or how smart we are.

I don’t know about you, but I find this encouraging because it levels the field. The world we live in favours the rich, the beautiful, the powerful, the outstanding. What if we don’t have these advantages? Do we get left behind? God measures on a different scale, and it doesn’t matter if we’re rich or powerful or beautiful. We all have a chance for spiritual success.

Paul reminds us of this also. “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” (1 Cor 1:27)

Third, we need to ask the right question. After about a week of arguing with myself about these things, it occurred to me that I was asking the wrong question. When I reframed the question, I began to feel better. My outlook changed as I stopped asking if I was “just average?” and ask start asking, “Am I faithful?”

Am I faithful to the teaching of scripture, obedient to its commands? Or, do I dabble in disobedience? Am I a faithful follower of Jesus Christ? Is my commitment solid, or only when it suits me?

“`Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: `Love your neighbor as yourself.'” (Matthew 22:37-39)

Do I faithfully model Jesus in my character?

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23)

Am I faithful in exercising my spiritual gifts?

“We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.” (Romans 12:6-8)

The question we need to be asking, the only one which really matters, is, “Am I faithful?”

Fourth, there was one verse which especially prodded me.

Yet, O LORD, you are our Father.
We are the clay, you are the potter;
we are all the work of your hand. (Is 64:8)

The context of this verse probes the issue very uncomfortably. If God is the potter, who are we to suggest He didn’t do a good job in making us as we are?

Finally, one last thing. These thoughts of self doubt may lead us to do stupid things, all out of panic and insecurity. A ministry colleague passed it along some years ago and it has been helpful to me in ministry and to others outside of ministry. Here it is - Never resign on a Monday or in February. There are times and seasons which seem to affect our outlook on life, and it is wise not to make major, life-changing decisions while under the influence of these cycles.

My attack seems to have passed and even February doesn’t look so bad. I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a biweekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. This letter published Feb 5, 2013. Troy is the Pastor of Next Generation and Connections at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. Scripture taken from New International Version, 1984. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #294 Just Average Part 1

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #294 Just Average? Part 1

Hi Folks:

This OnFire is in two parts. It’s a little longer than normal but starts with a parable. I got hit with some major insecurities over the Christmas break and had to work through these things. I thought it might help OnFire readers.

Blessings,
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A parable...

There was once a drill sitting on a shelf in a hardware store. He was shiny and new inside his snazzy 4-colour box. He wasn’t fancy, but he wasn’t bargin bin either. He could go forward and backward, and he came with a set of high-speed steel bits in standard sizes. He waited for the day someone would lift him from his place on the shelf and carry him home.

That day finally came when a man entered the store looking for a drill. He was a new homeowner, and he needed a drill to drill a few holes. He didn’t consider himself handy, but he thought it was time to learn, so he headed out to the hardware store that day to find himself a drill.

Our drill was exactly what he was looking for. It drilled holes and it had reverse. He didn’t know if reverse was important, but it sounded good. And just as important, the price was right. Not as expensive as the tools at the other end of the aisle, but much sturdier than ones he had seen at the bargain store.

The drill was excited to be bought by someone so keen and eager. He had been made for drilling holes, and now he was drilling holes. He and his owner drilled holes wherever they were needed - in walls, in boards, even floors and doors. Along the way they discovered that reverse is important, and the drill thought life was just grand.

Until, this is, the homeowner brought home another drill. This drill was similar in that it drilled holes, but it had a heavier motor and a feature called variable speed. It started slow and the more the user pulled the trigger the faster it went. This was important for putting in screws, which the older drill wasn’t really designed for. The homeowner still used the old drill, but not as often as the new one. It was hard not to envy the new drill with its new skills.

Life continued in this way until THAT Christmas when the homeowner opened his presents to find a bright and shiny new cordless drill. It boosted forward and reverse, variable speed, a clip on the side to hold driver bits, and it didn’t a key to tighten the chuck. And, of course, it needed no cord. True, it didn’t have as much power as the other drills. And it didn’t have the same stamina – it always seemed to die in the middle of a job. But, how easy it was to carry the newest drill up the ladder and down the stairs, and around the corner to exactly where it was needed.

Time passed and the homeowner continued to add new tools as he did more things around the house – screw drivers and chisels, and even a few saws. He was especially fond of a specialized tool with mini grinders and tiny bits so small our drill couldn’t even hold them with his large teeth.

Our drill didn’t know how to feel. He knew he had important skills and abilities. He could drill forward and backward, he had plenty of power, and as long as he was plugged in he never ran out of juice. But the other drills seemed faster and fancier. At least he was more portable than the old drill press the owner brought home.

He felt so, so? What was the word? He felt so average. He didn’t like that. He wanted to stand out, to be special. But what if he was just average? Just mentioning the word depressed him. He didn’t want to think it, but what if he really was just average?

It’s not only imaginary drills who feel this way at times. This feeling of “just average” goes kind of like this, that if we’re not notable for some good reason, then we have failed. Its a feeling that, “I’m just an ordinary person. What good am I if I’m really just average? What good can I do if I don’t stand out from the crowd?”

I want to talk about being “just average,” and not only because I try to help people deal with this issue all the time. This year over the Christmas season I got nailed with this thought. I found my soul tugged back and forth as my heart ached with a feeling of insignificance while my head tried to counter with what I know is true. It’s hard to argue with a feeling, I know. Thankfully, however, feelings come and feelings go, and the feeling seems to have passed. But wanting to be true to the spirit of OnFire, I figured if I go through these things others probably do also. So here it is...

At least three things can help us battle this feeling. First, the Bible is filled with examples of how God uses ordinary people. Who was Noah? Abraham? Moses? Ruth? Boaz? David? Mary? Joseph? John, James, Andrew and Simon? No one, really. But God used them in powerful ways.

True, there are some people in the Bible who we might expect to do well. Daniel and his friends were chosen for service because they were the cream of the crop. Saul/ Paul was pretty bright, but was making his mark against Christians.

Many - perhaps most - of the people we see in the Bible were ordinary people. God uses ordinary people.

...To Be Continued... in the next OnFire, we’ll take a look at the final two reasons.

I Hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a biweekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. This letter published Jan 24, 2013. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. Scripture taken from New International Version, 1984. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com