Guest Post: When You Don’t Know What To Do by Kathryn Graves

When You Don’t Know What To Do

“I can’t help you with that, ma’am. I’m not technical support,” the young man on the other end of the phone line said.

“Can you connect me with someone who is?” I said.

“There’s a service you can pay.”

I hung my head and closed my eyes. A tear slipped down my cheek. I didn’t have any more money. Discouragement bit into my heart. I thanked the man and clicked off my phone. And then the lake of tears pressing for release broke loose.

After I pulled myself back together, I needed to assess my position and options. A few things became clear right away.

I am trying to be obedient to the calling of God on my life.
I do not have all the necessary expertise to do everything required.
I do not have money lying around to throw at this ministry.
I have friends and family who know how to do some of the things I struggle with.
If I am supposed to do this, and I ask the Lord to help me, He will send help.

So I made a phone call to my son and sent a text to a friend. There is a way around this apparent roadblock and we will find it.

Are you called to work outside your comfortable space? I remember being told that God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called. In my case, this meant public speaking. Standing up in front of people terrified me only a few years ago, but now it excites me. It also meant developing some technical knowledge even though my usual instinct was to avoid it. And it still means admitting when I’m in over my head and calling for help.

The thing that always helps me through is prayer.

Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.” (MSG)

Each new demand drives me to pray. I ask the Lord to give me the words to say or write. Or I ask Him to put an idea into my head for how to approach the current problem.

So the next time you find yourself working on the other side of comfortable, what can you do?

Remember your call. This takes you back to solid ground.
Identify the problem.
Identify the resource needed to solve the problem.
Pray and ask God to give you the resource you need. If that is as simple as an idea, or as complex as a technical support team, He’ll come through.
Do what He says. Timely obedience is critical.

What is your most daunting task right now? Take a few moments to stop and pray. Give it to the Lord and ask Him for help.

I can report that God helped me find a way to resolve my technical issue. Now, when I face a new hurdle, I have confidence that it will not stop me. After all, “If God is for us, who [or what] can be against us (Romans 8:31 NKJV)?”