Go Forth and Be Fearless

James 1: 5-8, 22-25
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

I know for sure the following things:

• I lack wisdom.

I do not know what to do in life. Those things that I want to do, I do not know how to do, or how to do them well. So I tend not to do anything at all.

• My doubts toss me around like a rag doll.

I fear that the things I want to do may end up being the wrong thing to pursue. What if I put in all that time and energy only to find that I have been investing in an unprofitable venture? 

• I am slow to act. 

If I act, I act very cautiously, taking teeny tiny baby steps in my chosen direction. I take every single in-between step, evolving rather than transforming my life. 

This is what needs to be done:

• Determine my theology.

What I believe about God impacts what I do and how. I believe in His sovereignty. I believe that He has given me a new heart. Everything else I still need to learn.

• Determine my course of action.

I can trust the Lord to guide my heart. I can seek His face and His blessing upon what I will do, and then I must stick with it. 

• Go forth.

I must be courageous and not waste my life away scuttling around in fear. I must act. I must invest and bring a return upon the resources the Lord has given me. I must pursue ways to maximize the return. 

Help me be a faithful, fearless steward of the time You have lent me, Lord.