Stick Your Neck Out

This excerpt is from a book by Travis Kolder, Stick Your Neck Out

“But I’m not equipped. I’m not ready.”

You’re right. You’re probably not equipped or ready. But Jesus has this disturbing habit of picking people who aren’t ready. He doesn’t call the equipped; he equips the called.

Stop for a second and think about the guys who were the first fruits of this laborers’ prayer. None of them were equipped. Sure, they left their lives to follow Jesus. But none of them were ideal church planters. They were fishermen, tax collectors, and revolutionaries. None of Jesus’s disciples were trained as Pharisees. None of them had spent their lives studying the Scriptures. But he still called them.

In fact, the only religiously trained follower of Jesus who started churches was a very violent man named Saul. He would later write, “Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you” (1 Corinthians 1:26).

Think about this: Who in the Bible was ready for the call of God when it came? Most of the truly called people were surprised. Some even rejected the call at first. Most were not qualified by the standards of those around them. That is what made them the perfect choice. No one was expecting Saul the Christian killer to become Paul the church planter. No one was expecting Gideon, hiding in the pit, to be the deliverer of the nation. No one was expecting fisherman like Peter and James and John to turn the world upside down.

So you might not be the ideal ministry candidate. That’s what makes you so perfect for working among the lost. That enables you to build bridges with those who know nothing about Christ. You are not the ideal candidate, which makes you ideal. “The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).

The harvest is great. The laborers are few. Jesus is asking you to pray for more laborers. As you do, you become the answer to that prayer.

You are called! Don’t say no to the calling because you aren’t equipped. Say yes to a God who is infinitely wiser than you are. Say yes because the power of God is stronger than all your imperfections and reasons for saying no.

I’ve been telling you over the past few chapters that this is a dangerous calling. This calling will bring all your fears, insecurities, and reasons to give up to the surface. Jesus must be more valuable than your fleshly need for safety and security.

You will need to be sure you are called. It’s the only way you will stick your neck out.