The Paralyzing Fear of Inadequacy

Have you ever thought I’m not talented, prepared, ready, or just plain good enough to do something for Christ?

There are times in my life where the paralyzing fear of inadequacy prevents me from living in the fullness of God’s call on my life. Here are a few examples of how it has shown up in the past in my life:

When I wrote this I caught myself using the word “called” a lot, so, before giving you my examples, I feel like I should clarify what I mean by that. I don’t mean that I hear an audible voice or anything extremely profound like that. It’s more like a sudden urge to do something that reflects God, and wouldn’t come from my normal human nature. It’s a prompting to step out in an act of faith, and quite frankly it’s usually something I wouldn’t want to do on my own.

One example is personal evangelism. I felt called to share my relationship with Christ with the friends I had around me, but the call was always shadowed by these thoughts: What will I say? Will I have the right words? Am I smart enough? Am I far enough in my walk to do this?

On other occasions, I’ve felt called to act in some way of faith, to talk to a complete stranger, to pray for someone who I don’t know, or to seek healing for someone who is sick or crippled. In these cases, the fear of inadequacy shows up like this: Can I really do that? God, is that really what you want me to do? Am I the kind of person who has that kind of faith?

Because of my fear, I have missed out and walked away from many opportunities in the past.

2 Timothy 1:7, says:

“God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of POWER, LOVE, and self-discipline.”

We have been given the Holy Spirit, so no matter where you are in your walk, let me speak some truth into your life. You are good enough because of Christ, you are prepared enough because the Holy Spirit is alive in you, and you are talented enough because the talent is not your own but the gifts that have been given by God through the Holy Spirit.

Go, live in the Spirit, and follow the promptings. Put fear aside. Then share your stories with us as you overcome those fears in your life. Your stories of victory will be an encouragement to us all =)