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“It’s time to deal with the fear of not mattering.”

A thought by Max Lucado (2012-02-06) from his book, Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear (p. 25). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Do you feel that way?  Do you fear that you don’t matter?  Do you?  Listen, it is a very powerful fear.  It really is.

Max says, “The fear that you are one big zero will become a self-fulfilling prophecy that will ruin your life. It works like this.”

He goes on, “You’re slugging away at a menial job that pays poorly and saps your energy. The salary covers the bills but nothing more. Your God-given abilities languish like unwatered roses. But then you read of a job opening that capitalizes on your skills, maximizes your abilities. So in a moment of uncharacteristic courage, you submit your application. The employer invites you in for an interview. That’s when the mentality of the Tribe of the Too Smalls returns. ‘I’ll never impress them,’ you moan. ‘I’ll look stupid in the interview. They’ll ask questions I can’t answer. I’ll never get this job.’ A mouse in a lions’ den has better odds of success. You flop miserably and descend yet another level into the basement of self-defeat.”

Max continues, “Fear of insignificance creates the result it dreads, arrives at the destination it tries to avoid, facilitates the scenario it disdains. If a basketball player stands at the foul line repeating, ‘I’ll never make the shot, I’ll never make the shot,’ guess what? He’ll never make the shot.”

Max then says, “Even more, you are disagreeing with God. Questioning his judgment. Second-guessing his taste. According to him you were ‘skillfully wrought’ (Ps. 139: 15). You were ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’ (Ps. 139: 14). He can’t stop thinking about you! If you could count his thoughts of you, ‘they would be more in number than the sand’ (Ps. 139: 18).  Why does he love you so much? The same reason the artist loves his paintings or the boat builder loves his vessels. You are his idea. And God has only good ideas. ‘For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago’ (Eph. 2: 10 NLT).”

“You are his idea. And God has only good ideas.”  He does.


Would you let him right now reinforce in you the reality that you are his idea, and you are a very good one?
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