Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them. (Romans 12:6 NKJV)
I have a friend named Jim who coached a high school girls’ basketball team for eighteen years. In all that time, they weren’t able to win the state championship. Year after year, the team was either beaten in the regional finals or eliminated in the state tournament before the final round.
Jim shared with me, “I was frustrated and ready to quit, but around that time period, I discovered the power of God’s grace.”
Jim made a firm decision. He would no longer coach in his own strength as he’d done for eighteen years but would completely rely on the grace of God. He asked the Lord what to do, and God’s response was, Restructure your practices. Instead of ninety minutes on the floor, spend forty-five minutes in the locker room reading the Bible, sharing, and praying, then spend the last forty-five minutes on the floor.
Jim told me, “John, this seemed counterproductive. We needed to work on skills and run plays; I needed every bit of the ninety minutes for practice. But I knew I’d heard from God.”
He explained the new strategy to the girls. “They thought it was a bit religious and seemed like a silly idea,” Jim said. “Some were even frustrated when they first heard it, but after further sharing my heart, they bought in.”
With a smile on his face, he continued his story. “That year we won the state basketball championship for the first time. If that wasn’t enough, the next year we won it again.” And that second state championship “was mind-blowing,” he said. “We missed every layup in the final game. We should never have won with all those missed shots. However, after reviewing the stats, we realized we set a record in that game for three-point baskets. The three-pointers compensated for all the missed layups and gave us the score we needed to win.”
Empowered by Grace
Jim tapped into divine wisdom; in fact, it was the same insight the apostle Paul discovered — one that statistically eludes over 90 percent of the twenty-first-century church. That insight is this: Biblical grace is not only God’s gift of salvation, but also His empowerment for our lives. Examine the following words that Paul wrote, quoting exactly from the mouth of the Lord: “My grace is all you need, for my power is greatest when you are weak” (2 Corinthians 12:9 GNT).
There’s no question or gray area here. God directly refers to His grace as being His empowerment. The word weak in the above verse means “inability.” The Lord declares to Paul — and also to you and to me: “My empowerment — My grace — is optimized in situations that are beyond your natural ability.”
Consider again carefully those words from the Lord: “My grace is all you need, for my power is greatest when you are weak.”
Questions to Ponder
What kinds of inherent weakness on your part have you recognized in areas where you most want to serve God and others? And what kinds of empowerment do you most long for in these areas?
In your life, what would it look like to fully trust God for this kind of empowerment?
How can you personally access God’s empowering grace, which is available to you in abundance?
Boasting of God’s Empowerment
For my friend Jim — trying on his own, with all he had, to lead his girls into a championship — what did eighteen years of hard work yield? Nothing but years of falling short. But it was well worth the agony and multiple disappointments for the wisdom Jim would finally discover: God’s grace empowers us to go beyond our natural ability.
In a different letter, Paul makes a rather bold statement: “I have worked harder than any of the other apostles.” Wow, did he really write this? Think of who’s included in this list: Peter, James, John, Barnabas, Apollos, and a slew of other great ones. Sounds a little arrogant, but if you read the rest of his statement, you realize it isn’t:
I have worked harder than any of the other apostles, although it was not really my own doing, but God’s grace working with me. (1 Corinthians 15:10 GNT)
Paul is boasting of God’s empowerment, not his own ability, so there’s no personal bragging involved. He relied on grace to accomplish his divine mission.
After years of frustration and eventual enlightenment as a coach, Jim now depends on God’s empowerment (grace) to go further than his own ability. He’s carried this wisdom into all aspects of his life; his ax (see Ecclesiastes 10:10) has been sharpened!
Your Destiny Is Beyond Your Ability
With this in mind, let’s return to our individual mission. Again, God’s Word declares, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10 NKJV). God Himself prepared your assignment, even before your birth. This crafted calling is what will bring you true fulfillment; no other work or play will. Your purpose is remarkable in magnitude. In fact, in regard to accomplishing it, here’s a critical truth:
Your destiny, which God prepared for you, is beyond your natural ability.
Let me make this abundantly clear. It’s utterly impossible for us to fulfill our divine assignment in our own ability. How do I know this to be true? Because God firmly declares that He will share His glory with no one (Isaiah 48:11). If any of us were to accomplish our divine destiny in our own ability, then God would have to share His glory with us, which He will not do! God intentionally made your calling beyond your natural ability so you would have to depend on His grace to fulfill it.
Questions to Ponder
How convinced are you that the destiny God has prepared for you is beyond your natural ability?
To fully attain this God-prepared destiny, which of your natural strengths and abilities do you think He will want you to move beyond, as you trust in His empowering grace?
Adapted from You Are Called: Discover Your God-Given Gifts to Fulfill Your Purpose by John Bevere.
Do you feel like you’re on the sidelines in God’s grand design? Like there’s a role waiting for you, but you just can’t quite grasp it? Many of us long to make a meaningful impact with our lives. You Are Called shares how.
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John Bevereis a minister known for his bold, uncompromising approach to God's Word. He is also an international bestselling author who has written more than 20 books that have, collectively, sold millions of copies and been translated into 129 languages. Along with his wife, Lisa, John is the co-founder of Messenger International — a ministry committed to revolutionizing global discipleship. Driven by a passion to develop uncompromising followers of Christ, Messenger has given over 50 million translated resources to leaders across the globe, and to extend these efforts, theMessengerXapp was developed, providing translated, digital discipleship resources at no cost to users in 120 languages and counting.MessengerXcurrently has users in over 19,000 cities and 228 nations. When John is home in Franklin, Tennessee,you’llfind himloving onhis g-babies, playing pickleball, or trying to convince Lisa to take up golf.
