Identity & Purpose Seek to Please the God You Cannot See

By Michelle Williams

BY MICHELLE WILLIAMS, GRACE ATTENDER & BLOGGER

Seek to please the God you can’t see.

I’m a writer. Through a marketing-based education and a career full of writing responsibilities, it’s become one of my most honed, productive and personally lucrative skills. Early in my career, I resisted writing to a certain extent. Writing can take a lot of time, particularly when the subject requires a lot of research. But writing can be incredibly easy when you tackle topics within your scope of expertise.

The first time someone suggested blogging to me was in one of my career positions. We were a business-to-business sales distributor, and my first thought was “what a waste of precious time it would be to start a blog that practically no one will ever read.” But one thing led to another and I hesitantly became a business blogger. I spent a lot of time learning about how to build a successful blog. It was my job. Had to do it.

Not too long after that, a dear friend of mine approached me about starting a food & lifestyle blog with her. We were both going through some tough times in life, and she thought it would be a good way for us to do something good for ourselves (maybe even make a little money at it). I was still hesitant because I already had a full time job and a young child, but I felt tugged to help my friend. And so I became a little more personally invested in developing my blog skills.

Fast forward several years, a lot of experiential learning and about 3 other paid writing positions; I get a distinct nudge from the Holy Spirit to start using my writing skills in ways that could help eliminate the growing credibility gap. I had a few ideas that never came to fruition, and then I stumbled onto the opportunity to write for the Grace Church blog. Stumble may not be the right word, because I could totally feel God leading me toward the path. 

But wait, I’m not qualified for this! I haven’t even read the whole Bible yet. I’m still developing my own faith. What could someone like me have to say that would provide anyone any spiritual value at all? What if my articles inadvertently increase the credibility gap instead of shrinking it? These were the fears in the back of my mind telling me to resist this calling. But I put my fears aside and started working with the communications team at Grace Church to help them build the new blog.

It was around that time when we heard in a sermon, “God doesn’t call the qualified, he qualifies the called.” And the floodgates of faith opened for me. I realized that my college education, my entire career, my personal endeavors were all training exercises orchestrated by God. What’s funny? I hadn’t even picked my own major in college! In 1999 when I couldn’t make up my mind about a college major, my mom had intuitively checked the marketing box on the application. And it all led to me building and using my strongest skill to serve God, which in turn has helped to fill me with the greatest faith I have ever known in my life.

My faith wouldn’t be what it is today had I resisted the calling to use the best of what I have to offer to serve His purpose. Tweet This

I didn’t realize that God had been there all along the way—I didn’t see Him back then the way I do now. In hindsight, I can see the path he laid out for me so clearly. My faith wouldn’t be what it is today had I resisted the calling to use the best of what I have to offer to serve His purpose.

Where is God calling you? Not sure? Leave a comment below and we will get you connected to help you find yours.

 

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