When we were in college, we had a professor who was a very deliberate teacher. When we would complain about a certain assignment, he would say; “Nobody loves me, everybody hates me, I think I’ll go eat worms.” Now, I have no idea what great poet penned those words (it could have been that professor for all I know), but it is a poem that has stuck in my mind. His point was that there are times in all of our lives when we think the whole world is against us. You may be having one of those times today, or you may face a time like that today. I want to give you some encouraging news.
“They prevented me [came against me as enemies] in the day of my calamity: but the LORD was my stay. He brought me forth also into a large place; he delivered me, because he delighted in me” (Psalm 18:18-19). So, the next time you think the world is against you and you might want to go eat worms, remember that the Lord is by your side and that He delights in you! That is an amazing thought to me! How could God delight in someone like me? I know me very well, and I don’t even like me most of the time.
I believe the reason that God can delight in us, is because He can see what we can be … not necessarily what we are at the present. He sees in us the potential for good for His plan, and not the failures of the past that we so often focus on in our past. Isn’t that a great thought? God sees our potential to fulfill His will in our lives, even though we often are slow to jump in and serve for fear of failing as we have done in the past.
Let me help you understand His perspective. We now have ten grandchildren: five girls and five boys. I am their Poppy. As I look at them, I see the great potential they have in their lives. As they look at different situations, they think they cannot do things. I can look at the same things and know they are capable, if they will only try. I see unlimited potential in those ten little people, and in their parents too. If you have children and grandchildren, you know what I am talking about.
God made us in His image, and He knows full-well what we can do for Him and His glory. I believe that God could do far more with us, if we would simply trust Him to empower us, and step forward toward the goal. What is it that God has touched your heart about that you think is not possible? Why not step out by faith toward that mark today and see what God will do? Luke wrote that with God, all things are possible. I am not a prosperity preacher, but I do believe that when God is for me and with me, there is nothing that can stand in His (our) way! Attempt great things today!