More opportunity has been lost to those who do nothing than to those who try something.
What I have come to believe is that practically the only real mistake in life is to not begin. Many things I have done in life looked, to those around me, as foolishness and folly. I have taken paths that, to the natural man, seemed fraught with danger and sure to lead to destruction. However, the difference is that I went these ways, not based upon my own reasoning, but based upon the leading of God’s Spirit.
As I look back on my adventures in God, I realize that the most important thing I did was to actually begin doing what God was leading me to do. Often, I did not do it perfectly and I made mistakes, but what ended up happening was that because I was willing to move in Him my Father was able to lead and guide me as I went. When I made mistakes, He corrected me and brought me back to the path He had marked out for me from before the foundations of this world. Therefore, I ended up where I should have been anyway, even though I might not have traveled in a straight line.
We are imperfect – and it’s okay
The truth is, there is no straight line to any God-given destination in this world. We are imperfect and when we hear God’s word, we will do it imperfectly. However, the one who created us knows this and so leads and guides us around and through life’s obstacles as we move forward in Him.
God always calls us to do things that are beyond our ability simply because He plans to make up the difference in what we lack. If Jesus tells you to come, all you need to do is step out in faith and He will make the impossible possible. We are never meant to do Spirit-led things alone.
Just begin
Therefore, when God says “come,” we go. We simply begin doing what He says to do, when He says to do it, with whomever He says to do it with. It does not matter how small our first step is, it simply matters that we take it; that we begin. One step leads to another and added together those steps begin the journey. As long as we are moving and we allow God access to our will, He steers us in the right direction.
So many of us get caught in the “paralysis of analysis.” We try to think about all the possibilities so that we can feel secure in making the “right” choice. However, being overly cautious may cause us to begin too late–or worse yet, not at all.