You Were Created to Do Good Things
/
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”- Ephesians 2:10
What Am I Good At?
I fidget nervously in front of everyone. My mouth is dry and I’m all awkward, lanky arms and legs in my eighth-grade speech class. I shuffle through my index cards to make sure I have them in the right order. Who do I focus on? I smile big and start my speech. Once I get going, I feel calm. “This isn’t so bad,” I think. I finish my three-minute speech and scurry back to my chair, grinning to myself, thinking, “I could do this again.”
Fast forward six years to my Oral Interpretation Class in college. An Oral Interpretation class is part speech and part theater. My handsome, young, professor is energetic and our class requires collaboration and discussion. I’m an eager student, ready to soak up all the knowledge and technique. I present a work by Edgar Allen Poe, and my professor gives me an outstanding critique. I’m hooked.
I’m not nervous in front of people now. Speaking comes natural, like riding a bike or skipping down a sidewalk. I feel at ease, confident, and completely energized. For the first time, I understand what I’m good at. I continue taking Speech courses and eventually graduate with a double major in Mass Communication and Speech Communication.
I’m backstage at the Spring Women’s Conference, set to take the stage with two other women for a Q and A session. The room is filled with 350 joyful women. We take turns passing the mic and answering random, non-preplanned questions from the audience, and it’s the most fun I could ever have. We’re laughing, crying, and encouraging each other in the Lord, and I know it’s exactly what I’m created to do.
You Were Created for This
Have you thought about what God created you to do? Your personality, strengths, and giftings were placed in you by God, and it’s your job to figure out what they are, so you can use them. There is only one you, and only you can do the work He has prepared for you.
Ephesians 2:10
It’s amazing to me to realize God has prepared things for us to do, way in advance. Before you were formed God had plans for you. He’s made us who we are, with our certain skills and giftings with a purpose for us to use them. The highest calling we have is to use our gifts for God’s glory. We will feel most alive when we partner with God to do those good works.
We find our significance when we understand what God has created us for. I have a desire to speak and encourage. I feel completely alive talking to a room full of women. How about you?
What makes you feel most alive? Is it research, accounting, decorating, making art, or music? Is it planning, strategizing, counseling, or caring for others? The strengths and skills are varied as the color wheel yet very specific to you.
There are strength tests, personality tests, and gifting tests which all help you identify what you’re good at. Take notice of what brings you the most joy, or what comes naturally to you; that’s an indication of the work God has for you. You will feel the most significant when you are living and moving out of the strengths God has placed in you.
Dear Papa, I thank you for the way you made me with my personality, strengths, and giftings. Open my eyes to see them and help me be willing to use them for Your glory. Help me not be afraid to use them and explore the possibilities available based on how You created me. I want to partner with You in the good works You’ve prepared for me.
Still struggling?
Maybe this will help.
I’ve included a free guide to help you understand your identity in Christ as a beloved daughter of God. Click on the image below and leave your name and email so I know where to send it.
Beloved Woman’s Manifesto
