And That’s Exactly Where God Works
Earlier this week I shared a post on social media that I came across on my early morning scroll. It said, “Maybe you aren’t enough. But neither was two fish and five loaves of bread for thousands of people. . . and look what God did with that.”
It hit home with me. This current season of life has me questioning why me and if I can do what I feel like is being asked of me. So all through the day I thought about it and saw how many others it resonated with as well as the shares kept rolling in.
The response got me thinking about how often we see and hear phrases like “you are enough”, “just be you”, or “you’ve got this”. Though encouraging sentiments that are ment to foster good will and perseverance, they don’t fully align with what Scripture teaches. The Bible does not tell us that we are inherently enough on our own. Instead, it teaches something far more freeing: God’s grace is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9), making us sufficient through Christ (Colossians 2:9-10), who is our fullness and identity (Psalm 139:14), empowering us in weakness (John 3:30) and creating us for good works (Jeremiah 29:11), so our value comes from Him (Ephesians 1:7), not our performance.
If our value depended on our performance, all of us would be straight up that creek with absolutely no paddles in sight. Not to say some of us haven’t tried – because sister sure does. But comparing myself to others and depending on my own abilities and strength has never gotten me very far – you? And if that were the case – earning spiritual reward – life would be exhausting and salvation impossible. Thank goodness that’s not how that works! Salvation is a gift, not something we earn. Jesus was crucified on the cross so that we wouldn’t have to pay that same price though we deserve so much worse. Ephesians 2:8-9 says we are saved by grace through faith and obedience, not by works. Not how great we are or how much we’ve done or given. Not based on merit at all. The numerous examples in the Bible where God used imperfect and weak people to show His glory… And then what? He sent Jesus to die so that we would not have to pay the price for our sin – death. And not just physical death but spiritual, eternal death. He paid a debt He did not owe at a price we could never afford (Romans 5:8).
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Your imperfections are opportunities for God’s power to shine through. Throughout scripture, God consistently uses weakness to display His strength. Moses, dude couldn’t speak in public for nothin’ and yet helped deliver God’s people from slavery doing that very thing. David, the youngest and smallest of Jesse’s sons, but a man after God’s own heart, defeated the Giant Goliath and became king. (There is definitely an aside here to be mentioned – “For God sees not as man sees; man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 – don’t judge the book by the cover guys!) Or fearful Gideon who God intentionally reduced his army so that victory could only be credited to Him (Judges 6-7). Or baby Jesus – bringing salvation to the lost through a wee babe. How much more vulnerable could one get than a baby? Our imperfections are not disqualifications; they are invitations for God’s power to be made visible. He is not enough, He is so much more.
Knowing we are imperfect, it helps that our worth is not measured by how much we can prove ourselves. Scripture is honest about our limitations, however much we’d all like to ignore them, physical, emotional, spiritual, or otherwise. In 2 Corinthians 12:9, God tells Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” God doesn’t dismiss our weakness – He uses it. He says you see this weak limbed, minded, and willed human? Watch what I can do through her – y’all ain’t seen nothin’ yet! Our weakness and insufficiency is not a problem to be fixed before God can work; it is the very place where His power is revealed. This truth stands in sharp contrast to a culture that tells us to strive harder, be better, and rely solely on ourselves – what a selfish world we live in! Again not all wrong, but I mean how many stupid times a day I use the word I (name that movie)? I did this, or I did that, or I need this, or why can’t I do/be/have that… The Gospel invites us to cast away self-sufficiency and rest in the truth that Jesus us enough for you. So no, we’re not enough, but through Christ we can be enough together.
“Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude… and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over every ruler and authority and in Him you were also circumcised… the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And when you were dead in your wrongdoings… He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our wrongdoings… and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.”
The Bible also says our fullness comes from Christ alone. Colossians 2:9-10 reminds us that all the fullness of God lives in Christ and that in Him we have been brought to fullness. But what even is fullness in this sense? It’s operating on all cylinders. It’s being ALL that we can be – as a person with priceless value and unlimited worth. We can only be “enough” and fully fulfill our purpose when we allow God to move, work, and use our lives. And our “enough-ness”, our identity, value, and worth are not built on performance, productivity, or perfection. They are rooted in who God says we are. One of my favorite verses, Psalm 139:14, affirms that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Not because of what we accomplish, but because we were created by God for God in His image with intention and care.
“I will give thanks to You, because I am awesomely and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.”
The story of 5 loaves and 2 fish illustrates this perfectly. The disciples looked at their resources and saw how little they had – only 2 fish and 5 loaves for loads of folks. I’m sure they thought they would never make it – I know I have at times. But when those small offerings were placed in Jesus’ hands, they became more than enough to feed thousands (Matthew 14:13-21) with LEFT OVERS y’all. This story mirrors so many of our realities. Our responsibilities, relationships, dreams, and struggles often feel overwhelming, unattainable, and insufficient. Recognizing I can’t do it on my own with my 2 fish and 5 loaves and need Him to feed the figurative thousands of my responsibilities and relationships and just general life tasks is hard but so so worth it and fulfilling. We were all chosen by God for greatness in our own lane – we just have to “let go and let God” do His thing. Accepting that we cannot handle them on our own is humbling, but surrendering them to God is where fulfillment begins. And I know that’s easier said than done. As a life long fiercely independent person relying on anyone is hard, and giving it ALL away feels impossible. But y’all.. the peace and blessings when you do. Give Him your fish and bread and watch.
But this doesn’t mean we get to sit back passively and wait for God to do everything. You know those old bumper stickers that say “Jesus is my copilot”? They’ve always bothered me. One, who on earth is going to insist on driving when the only perfect person to walk the earth is in the car? Like seriously though. Two, when we do get out of the way and literally hand over the reins we don’t become passenger princesses either – stuff still has to get done, choices need to be made, and directions are to be followed. It’s still work – faith is active. When Isaiah said, “Here I am, Lord. Send me.” (Isaiah 6:8), he was offering himself for God’s work. Send me to work, Lord. Use me how You will for Your full glory and I will follow where You lead. But I will also work for as James reminds us, faith without works is dead (James 2:17). Use me, Lord. Surrender doesn’t mean inaction; it means obedience fueled by dependence on God, not ourselves. Embrace your weakness and His absolute power. And live out your purpose. Bloom where you are planted. Recognize you are created with purpose and equipped by God to fulfill it, taking steps of faith and obedience when you feel inadequate.
Contentment also plays an important role in this surrender. You hear a lot about just be happy and choose happy – which I don’t disagree with on the whole. I agree with choose, I don’t with just happy. Happy isn’t the goal, eternal salvation is the goal – contentment is how you get there. I know that word has a negative connotation often but contentment isn’t bad. Neither is compromise – they are good things if used and seen in the right context. Biblical contentment is rooted in trust. I Timothy 6:6 tells us that godliness with contentment is great gain. Contentment is not complacency (a word with definite negative connotation), but gratitude. It is choosing to focus on God’s provision rather than constantly chasing more, and blooming where we are planted while remaining faithful in obedience (Philippians 4:11-13).
“Not that I speak from need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with little, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”
I’ve talked on and on about how great and powerful and mighty and fulfilling God is, so it should be pretty clear what the choice is at this point. But if you’re anything like me you still struggle some because well I am only human after all.. But then I think about my little brother’s baseball coach, Dr. Blackman, who used to tell his players: “Good enough never is.” That phrase has stuck with me. Probably because my mom picked it up, using it to encourage us to always give 100% and never settle for the bare minimum, good enough. It challenges the idea of settling for “enough” when we serve a mighty God who does immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). Imagine lowering our bar to “enough” when phrases like “exceedingly abundantly” are used, and we could be so much more, surpassing all expectations through Christ who strengthens us? I mean it’s like get it through your thick skull Liz! I never want to stop or limit the power of my awesome God to just enough – sounds very bare minimum to me. John also reminds us in John 3:30 that “He must increase, but I must decrease.” When we stop trying to be enough on our own, we make room for God to do far more than we ever could. Light and power meet hill top – get to steppin’ bushel, because we’re about to shine!
So no, we are not enough on our own. And that’s ok. It ‘s not just ok – it’s freeing. Through Christ, we are complete, empowered in weakness, created with purpose, and called to live lives of faith and action. When we stop striving to be enough and start trusting the One who already is, we find peace, purpose, and power far beyond ourselves. So when I get bogged down in the questioning of am I the right person to be in this role, or handling this situation, or speaking on this topic, as I often do these days, I can remind myself. You gave your fish and bread – He knows the need, the recipe, the purpose, and the hungry, let Him use you to feed. Bloom where you are planted. Shine your light.
Bring your two fish. Bring your five loaves. Say “here I am, Lord. Send me!”. And watch what God does with what we place in His hands.
Life Thereafter 