Roll With It

Naturally, I'm a perfectionist. While this attribute is often noted in job interviews as a positive-weakness of a potential new hire, it has always paralyzed me in my walk with God. I want to get everything right, so I will hesitate to take a step if I'm not absolutely 100% certain it's God's will. Mix that with dramatic and it's a recipe for disaster. Inside my theatrical mind, one wrong move from my character can ultimately ruin the scene transforming the entire play of my life into a tragedy. Therefore, it is better to play it safe, steer clear of risks and avoid changes to my role.

I learned something new and interesting about that word role from the book When God Rescripts Your Life by singer and author Jaci Velasquez. She writes,

There are certain roles that have been established within our society, family, church, community and beyond. Some are God-given (e.g. husband, wife and child) while others have been developed over time in society (e.g. business owner, homemaker and carpenter). Then there are the God-given roles that have been reshaped by societal views. As an illustration, the roles of men and women now greatly contrast with the roles from just 30 years ago. Not as though there were any changes to the Word of God, but to societal perspective. As proven throughout history, it is far better for us to uphold any and every role based on what God says, rather than what society says.

Sometimes when God speaks, it shakes up our perspective and, at times, transforms our role. I've heard of four guys who were just going about their daily lives, functioning in their respective roles as fishermen until the Word of God changed everything. Suddenly, they heard a voice call out, "Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men" (Matt 4:19).

They didn't yet know that this man was the living Word, God in the flesh (John 1:1, 14) and with a simple command and a great promise, they left everything behind to follow Jesus. I wonder what would have happened to Peter, Andrew, James and John if they decided to stay in their societal roles as fishermen, rather than rolling with their God-given roles as fishers-of-men.

For a perfectionist like me, it's very tempting to stay in my lane, safely confined within the walls of my perceived roles as a woman, as a Christian, as a writer, as a sister and so on. But I have to allow God to develop me in every role of my life for His purpose and plans, which are far greater than mine (Isaiah 55:8-9), just like these four fishermen developed into disciples, into witnesses, into fishers-of-men, into apostles and into martyrs. They just had to follow Jesus as the roll of His script for their lives unraveled before their eyes.

Evangelist Victor Jackson recently shared this thought on Facebook that reaffirms this concept:

"The Apostles were not trying to be Apostles, they were trying to be like Jesus. As they were trying to be like Jesus, they became Apostles."

- Victor Jackson (victormjackson.238) July 27, 2020

It's time to stop pressuring ourselves to fit the mold of whatever "role" we think we need to fill. If God is calling you to be a fisher-of-men, don't strive to become a fisher-of-men. Instead, leave behind your net and everything you thought you knew about fishing and strive to follow Jesus. I don't need to strive to be perfect, but I need to strive to be like Christ, who is perfect. What about you? What role(s) and mindsets are you willing to leave behind? As we follow Christ and learn His ways (Matt. 11:28-29), we will fulfill His purpose for our lives. Just gotta roll with it!