Hello Greatness,
For every thing God asks you to step into, there would always be an attack on the move. Sometimes this attack come very subtly in a way we may not even recognize it. One way it usually come is through suggestions. I like to call it the “Garden Of Eden conversation “which is aimed at doubting everything God has told you. It seeks to puncture out every desire you have to obey by sending in a possibility of failure even before any attempt.
One person that comes to mind is Moses. This was one guy who doubted everything. As I read through Exodus 13, I saw how Moses was paralysed by this syndrome in relation to the instruction tied firmly to his assignment. His early response to all what God had told him was “what if”. Fear is the spirit that powers this syndrome. Where fear is dominant, Faith is crippled.
Fear can be acquired or inherited. In Moses case, his fear was an acquired from his previous experiences. Moses went through a lot of trauma. He faced rejection from both his biological family and adopted family. I can imagine Moses crying out his eyes after he was weaned and wondering why his mum would hand him over to another woman. II am not sure how old he must have been, but I know he was old enough to subconsciously feel that sense of rejection.
Life in Pharaoh’s palace couldn’t have been so easy. Remember, Moses was Hebrew-born, raised in the very household that oppressed his people. Walking into rooms of Egyptian princes who likely saw him as an outcast must have left deep emotional scars on him.
Many times, we interpret life through our experiences, whether good or bad. To overcome the “what if” syndrome, we have to truly heal from the very core of our broken souls. This syndrome is characterized a lot by second-guessing. Below are some instances:
– When you undermine your God-given abilities and doubt your calling in the face of a big opportunity.
– When you undermine your God-given abilities and doubt your calling in the face of a big opportunity.
– You hide under logical excuses to preserve your internal fear.
– Panicking and withdrawing from doing big things or taking risk because of the fear of failure.
When the Lord gives you an instruction, trust that He has figured out everything and found you worthy to carry it out. Instructions are often time based. They work on “Kairos moment” such that you have to carry them out immediately or never. The what if syndrome delays by procrastinating God-inspired steps.
When you keep pushing till tomorrow what you should do today, or keep putting off that inner nudge until you can no longer feel it, you allow the devil to succeed in stealing an opportunity that may never come again. When God lays on your heart a task or an assignment, the first thing is to ask is for strategy and steps. The more the doubt, the more you have to invest in your faith by digging deeper into His Word and prayer. You may not always have a hundred percent green light, but if you pay close attention to your spirit man, you will notice a deep assurance backed up with inner peace.
Let that peace be the compass and your protection from the “what if syndrome.” Let the word He gives you be the shied you need to fight the “what ifs.” Many of the “what ifs” are in the mind realm at the level of your soul. That is why if you do not work in the spirit, many of the things God has told you will be resisted by your fear of “not enough” and “failure.”
Every assignment God gives you will be bigger than you. If you wait to figure it all out, you will never step into business with the Lord. God’s thoughts are far than ours. He operates at the level of “far above.” To be able to work with him, you have to move from the human realm to his realm of far above where all impossibilities are made possible.
There was no way Mary, a virgin who had never met a man, could have borne a baby. In the human realm, that would have been impossible, but in God’s realm, nothing is impossible. The “What if” syndrome can be overcome by walking in the Spirit. The flesh has no ability to obey God because it is carnal. It relies on the five senses to interpret what God is saying to you, which will always make it impossible to fully understand. You can never understand the things of the Spirit with your five senses—what you see, feel, taste, hear, or touch.
For every assignment there is enough grace available to ensure it is done. The bible says “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” Because we live in the earthly realm, doubt always attempt to gain entrance by knocking but the door must be open to Faith in order to occupy and shut out doubt.
If Moses had not overcome his “what if” and obeyed God, he would have been replaced. He would have stood before God (when he crossed over to the other side) with regrets, seeing what he could have become and the exploits he could have done for God. For every assignment God has given you, He isn’t expecting you to do it with your strength. All He needs you to do is to release your child-like faith, trusting Him.
A lot of times it is about the obedience to His instructions that matters and who we become as we obey. Even if it turns out you heard his voice wrongly concerning the assignment, in His informed mercy and love, He is able to work it all for your good because he sees your heart and weighs your intentions and motives.
So what is stopping you from stepping in or stepping up. Is it fear or doubt?
It is time to take on the shoes of faith and start to confront those obstacles. Go in for those opportunities in faith and absolute trust that faithful is He who has called you, He will surely do it.
Your Coach,
Dr. Kenny
