Perfect Weather

Ecclesiastes 11: 4: "Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud they never harvest" (NLT).

I have control issues. I don't like to take a step of faith unless I’ve solved all possible problems and eliminated all possible risks. I don't like to put myself out there in the public eye unless I’m fully confident nothing bad will happen (and I’m rarely fully confident).

But the truth is, I can never be prepared enough. I can never annihilate every possible risk, and I can never, EVER, guarantee bad things won't happen.

I want to feel competent. I wanna feel prepared. I wanna feel qualified, and professional and... ready. But sometimes God calls us to step off the boat and into the waves before we feel ready. In fact I’m convinced He does this most, if not all, of the time. Because if we felt like we had everything under control we wouldn't go to Him would we? Chances are we'd get lost chasing our own pursuits instead of building the Kingdom of Heaven.

Recently God asked me to set out on a journey I didn't feel "ready" for. It's something I’ve been putting off for YEARS. Because I haven't felt capable. I haven't felt prepared.

But finally God brought me to a place of brokenness where all other options were gone. And He brought me back to the dream He'd placed in my heart a long time ago.

Sometimes God says wait. Sometimes opportunities for action steps don't come for a really long time. But I don't think that’s what Ecclesiastes 11: 4 is talking about.

I think its talking about situations where God has instructed us to sow seeds in faith, but we hang back and make excuses like "Oh look, there's a cloud. I probably shouldn’t start today. It'll probably pour down rain the second I get out there."

Stepping off a boat into a raging sea can be terrifying. Walking up and down a field planting seeds when we don't see any progress for a really long time can be discouraging. That's why we need faith. That's why we need to remind ourselves of God's truth. That's why we need to cling to Jesus and ask for His help.

The Good News is Jesus didn't wait for us to be perfect before He came to save us. And He doesn't wait for us to be perfect before He begins to grow us.

Steps of faith can be really REALLY scary. But I know from past experiences that when I do push back the fears, hold tight to God’s truth, and take a leap of faith it is SO worth it.

Because Jesus first stepped down from heaven to us, we can take hold of His outstretched hand and take steps of faith with Him.

Question: Are you dragging your heels on a step of faith? What's holding you back? Pour out your heart to God about it and ask for the courage and strength to do what He’s called you to do.