God is such a big God. Nothing he does is small, yet he is involved in all the small and intricate details of our lives. As humans made in the image of a great God, he often calls us to greater things. Things that challenge and stretch us and It is very easy to feel ill equipped, or imperfect.  We feel as though we are not the right person to complete the task. Perhaps we have made so many mistakes that we feel unworthy or incompetent. I believe that sometimes we mistake the call to do something that God has asked with the call to be perfect. God never asked us for perfection. Honestly, we couldn’t give him that anyway. He just asks us to be worthy and sometimes being worthy is as simple as being willing.

 It starts with our heart attitude. Are we willing to do what God has asked? How do we live a life that is worthy?  Colossians 1:9-11 says, “ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience.” I believe first that must be prayer. Prayer for the desire to do God’s will. My prayer for myself is always that I would walk worthy of my calling. Pray that he would give you knowledge of his will for your life. If you are unsure what that looks like go to bible. For example, If you desire marriage see what God has said about that. The second part is to pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal to you what God has said about that specific thing as it relates to you personally. I read once that “Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.” When you know God’s word (knowledge), you have relationship with God (which is how you learn to hear the Holy Spirit) you will have wisdom that allows the Holy Spirit to help you interpret how that applies to you.  When you are guided by that God inspired knowledge and wisdom, then you can be successful in living a life that is pleasing to him.

This scripture goes a step further and not only gives a command but tells you what the outcome is. You will bear fruit, grow in the knowledge of God, and then he will give you strength to endure and have patience. He will help you to walk worthy! If you seek him, he will equip you! Be confident in your ability to do what God has called you to. He has counted you worthy.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Being an imperfect perfect person and wanting to please a perfect God can sometimes be a daunting task. Not because God is hard to please but because in and of our self we will never be enough. However, God knew that and made provision for us when he sent Jesus. Why then, is it so hard not to sin? Why is it so hard to get it right? The answer is that we are flesh, frail and imperfect. It is our natural inclination to do things that please the flesh. However, if we do the things that please the spirit it will eventually become more natural. Whatever you feed grows. If you feed your flesh you will see the negative effects of that in your life. If you feed the spirit you will see the fruit of that in your life.  The bible says in Galatians 6:8 that if you sow to the flesh you will reap destruction. If you sow to the spirit you will reap eternal life. Living in the flesh will always lead to your demise. It may not happen immediately but don’t be fooled, it will surely come.

When we are young spiritually our flesh is stronger and quicker than our spirit, so when I’m offended my natural default in the flesh is to say something rude in response.  We can be just like computers, we have default settings. On my computer there is a default font and when I open it automatically it goes to that particular font. If I want anything different I have to go in and change it. The same goes for us. Romans 12:2 states “Be not conformed to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” The only thing that has the power to truly transform you is the word of God. We cannot change by ourselves. That is why it is so important to memorize scripture and practice applying it to your life.

 Psalm 119:11 says “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” You have to put God in to get God out. If you saturate your mind with the word of God eventually you will become more like God and your character (and actions) will reflect him. I had to put God’s word in me. In those moments where I wanted to react out of my flesh God’s word would come to my mind. I would hear him whisper to me and I knew what I needed to do. As I began to apply God’s word in my life it became easier but more importantly it began to change me. Instead of getting offended and saying something rude in response I became a more understanding and compassionate person. Slowly, through putting God’s word in my heart I am changing outwardly. When I sow to the spirit and not the flesh, I reap eternal life and that is the ultimate goal.

Online dating has become more and more popular with the increased use of social media. Many have found love and hopefully the partner with whom they will spend forever, others have found people that they wouldn’t spend a moment with. I personally have never tried it and I’m going to tell you why. However before I do let me give this disclaimer: This is my personal story. I am in no way against online dating for other people but for personal reasons I don’t choose to do it. Each person must led by God in their decisions surrounding dating.

As I previously stated I have friends who have found success in online dating and have a beautiful love stories. Some of those friends encouraged me to consider dating online. One day I went to a website and thought that I would create a profile. There were so many questions that it blew my mind and I didn’t know the answers to half of them.

The first was a series of questions about my personality. Based on my answers to these questions the website would match me with whomever they deemed to be a good fit. Well,  how accurate are my answers about my personality going to be? I know myself to be a certain way but other people may perceive me differently. Oftentimes what we think of ourselves is in part based on what others have said to us about us. The only opinion that matters is how God sees us. I didn’t make me, God did. He knows me better than I know myself so I can’t answer all the questions about who I am and my personality correctly because as new things happen I learn more and more about myself.

The second was about what characteristics I desired in a mate. I know what I  would pick in a mate and sometimes I do a decent job; but I have also had relationships and friendships that haven’t worked out. What I thought was a good fit obviously wasn’t.  As I stated previously God created me. He knows who has the best qualities to complement mine. He knows what he called me to do and who will be the best person to partner with me to make that happen. I can only pick a mate for the now, but I am going to change and evolve. God knows how to help me pick a mate for the future.

The last set asked about my preferences physically. I know what my “type” is. I know what I’m attracted to but so does God because he wired me that way. I may end up with what I thought I always wanted. However, it is completely possible that what God gives me will look nothing like I thought but be everything that I wanted.

Ultimately, online dating was not for me because I felt that it was so humanly dependent that it wasn’t divinely independent. The “best” matches for me were based on my answers to the questions, whether correct or incorrect. I believe in God ordained love and I don’t want any part of that because when imperfect people get involved there is always room for error. I know that God does all things well so when he does place two people together it will be for their good and his glory.