How to Respond Undaunted When God Calls You

Editor’s note: The following is a report on the practical application of Christine Caine's book, Undaunted: Daring to Do What God Calls You to Do (Zondervan, 2012).

Too often, Christians sense God calling them to do something to help people in need, yet fail to take action because they’re afraid they won’t be able to handle the task. But whenever God calls people to do something, He empowers them to do it.

God is looking for people who will help redeem this broken world and are undaunted by the challenges involved in doing so. Here’s how you can become one of those people:

Let go of excuses. Identify what’s making you feel daunted by the prospect of saying “yes” to God when He calls you to help others: a lack of training, strength, money, time, energy, confidence, or something else that’s causing you to hesitate. Then recognize that those aren’t valid reasons to say “no” to God, because God has promised to provide whatever you need to do what He calls you to do. Decide to stop making excuses for not moving forward when you sense God calling you to do something. Instead, pray specifically about each issue that is causing you to feel daunted, and ask God to help you overcome it.

Invite God to fill up your soul with His love. Embrace the love that God offers you, knowing that He loves you completely and unconditionally, and opening yourself up to fully receive that love. When you do, God’s perfect love will cast out fear in your life, and you’ll be motivated to share His love with people in need.

Listen to God over the voices of other people. When other people try to limit you or undermine the confidence that God wants you to enjoy, choose to listen to God’s voice over theirs. Know that God has made you in His image and chosen you to do what He has uniquely designed you to do to help redeem this fallen world. Keep in mind that God has prepared good works of eternal significance for you to do, and that He has also promised to help you successfully do that work. Reject the negative labels and limitations that others impose on you, and choose to trust God to help you fulfill His important purposes for your life.

Pursue healing for past pain. Talk openly and honestly with God about the ways you’ve been hurt in the past, and how that pain of that is causing you to feel daunted about responding to His calls. Ask God to guide you through the process of healing from your pain so it won’t prevent you from doing what God wants you to do. Rely on God’s help to forgive people who have hurt you every time the memory of their hurtful behavior causes you to feel anger, mistrust, or bitterness. Trust in God’s promise that anything that people meant for evil, He can use for good in your life. Confess your disappointments to God, and ask God to give you the faith you need to respond to disappointment by continuing to entrust your future to Him. Seek comfort and encouragement in your church and with friends and family members who care about you. Read and meditate on God’s promises to you in the Bible. If you’ve suffered a broken heart or lost dream, help others get over theirs, and in the process, you’ll experience healing, too. Keep in mind that God will often use the suffering you go through to prepare you to minister to others who are going through a similar type of suffering. So, for instance, if you’ve grieved the death of a loved one, God may call you to help other grieving people. Expect God to bring good out of your pain.

Overcome fear. Don’t allow fear to run rampant through your life, or it will cause you to miss out on the opportunities to serve that God intends for you to step into. Ask God to give you the will to faithfully say “yes” to His calls, even in the face of fear. When you move forward even while feeling afraid, God will be with you every step of the way, helping you – and gradually, you’ll grow less afraid and more confident. Shift your focus away from circumstances that scare you and toward God, with whom all things are possible.

Say “Send me!” to God. Just as God sent Jesus into the world to rescue you from sin and secure your salvation, God wants to send you into the world to help rescue other people who are lost and need to both hear the Gospel and see it in action helping them with their needs. Since you were once lost and are now found, you’re part of God’s search-and-rescue team for others who need those in the light to help them in the darkness. Commit to doing your part.

Ask God to awaken you to the needs He wants you to help meet in the world. Pray for God to bring suffering and injustice to your attention and give you the compassion and courage you need to do something about it. Look at the needs right around you, and every day, do what you can to help meet them (from being kind to your spouse to helping an elderly neighbor with yard work). Look at the needs throughout the world, and ask God to help you discern which causes you should help with, and how you should do so (such as through volunteer work or contributions to charities and advocacy organizations). Be flexible enough for God to interrupt your schedule when He wants you to pay attention to a particular service opportunity. Ask God to help you notice and care about what matters most to Him.

Take the first step, and then keep walking wherever God leads you. Whenever God calls you, respond right away rather than waiting around. Pray immediately for the spiritual strength you need to take action, and then move forward, trusting God to guide and empower you. Start where you are, with what you have, however you can. Then you’ll experience the joy of seeing God work through your life powerfully to help others in need and redeem the world.

Adapted from Undaunted: Daring to Do What God Calls You to Do, copyright 2012 by Christine Caine and Equip & Empower Ministries. Published by Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Mich., www.zondervan.com.  

Christine Caine is no stranger to suffering. Overcoming childhood abuse and later in her thirties finding out she was adopted, Christine has embraced God’s love to find hope and healing. She is director of Equip & Empower Ministries and co-founder of the anti-human trafficking organization The A21 Campaign. Christine and her husband, Nick, live with their two daughters in California and Australia. Visit her ministry’s website.

Whitney Hopler is a freelance writer and editor who serves as both a Crosswalk.com contributing writer and the editor of About.com’s site on angels and miracles. Contact Whitney at: angels.guide@about.com to send in a true story of an angelic encounter or a miraculous experience like an answered prayer. 

Publication date: October 1, 2012