The Confident Woman: Start Today Living Boldly and Without Fear (12 page)

Chapter Seven

THE POWER OF PREPARATION

P
reparation equips us to move confidently. Many women lack confidence simply because they are not properly prepared for what they attempt to do. There could be a variety of reasons for this lack of preparation. They don’t realize the importance of preparation, they are lazy, or they are too busy doing things that don’t help them accomplish their goals and then have no time to do what would help them. Imagine a doctor trying to be confident if he never had any training or preparation. Anyone who is serious about playing a sport always practices and gets prepared. Even as a teacher of God’s Word, I never go to the pulpit without being thoroughly prepared. I study, pray and go over and over my notes. Quite often I don’t even look at the notes while preaching because by the time I stand up to teach they have become such a part of me that they flow out with ease. Knowing I have done my best to be prepared helps me minister with confidence.

Can you really think of anyone who is an expert at something who does not practice and prepare? I can’t. A concert pianist practices, a world class gymnast practices, a dancer practices. All of that practice and preparation builds confidence in the individual.

Moses had a call on his life to deliver the Israelites from bondage where they were being held captive in Egypt. He wanted to get started right away but as he did he killed an Egyptian and was forced to flee from Egypt for many years. Taking action without God’s permission showed clearly that Moses was not ready yet. He had zeal but no knowledge. He was emotional, but not prepared. God led him into the wilderness where he remained for forty years being prepared by God for the job ahead of him.

When God gives us a job to do we often think it will be easy to accomplish. However, most things are harder than you ever thought they would be, they take longer than you ever thought you could endure but they also pay greater dividends than you could ever imagine.

When God called me into the ministry I thought it would happen right away. I did not realize that I had a great deal to learn before I would be prepared for the ministry God wanted for me. I spent every free hour I could find studying God’s Word and reading books that taught me biblical doctrine and principals. I gave myself to my calling. I started saying no to invitations I received from friends to do things that I felt would just be a waste of time for me. Many of my friends did not understand my new zeal. They actually told me they thought I was going overboard and needed to calm down and return to normal behavior. They thought it was strange that I did not want to run around with them all day as I had in the past going to garage sales, home interior parties, make-up-parties, candle parties, etc. I’m not saying there is anything at all wrong with doing those things, but God was calling me to separate myself and get prepared for a Bible teaching ministry. I could never be a success and glorify God if I was not prepared and preparation takes time and dedication. It really wasn’t a sacrifice for me because God gave me an amazingly strong desire to learn, but it was hard for me emotionally to be so misunderstood. I was trying to follow God and my friends got angry and rejected me. I later learned that even that was all part of my preparation.

I taught home Bible studies for five years that consisted of twenty-five or thirty people. I was faithful and received no financial benefits during that time. It was a time of great financial need for Dave and me, but God always provided. Quite often it was last minute and in unexpected ways, but He did provide.

As part of my preparation, God led me to quit my job so I would have some time to prepare. We had three children at the time, plus I was working full time and was quite active in church. It would have been impossible for me to ever have time to prepare had I not sacrificed the salary I made and been willing to trust God for our needs to be met. Learning to trust God in this way was a testing time for me and also part of my preparation for the ministry we now have where we must trust God for literally everything. Trust doesn’t just appear in our lives, but it grows as we take steps of faith and experience God’s faithfulness.

Trust doesn’t just appear in our lives, but it grows as we take steps of faith and experience God’s faithfulness.

Next, I worked under someone else’s authority at a church for five years and learned a lot. They were good years, but hard years. Being under authority kept me from doing the things I wanted to do. It was frustrating but definitely a part of God’s overall plan for my life and ministry. I always say that people need to learn how to be under authority before they are qualified to be in authority. Being a strong-willed type-A personality made it difficult for me to submit with a good attitude to authority I did not always agree with, but, it was very good for me and part of my preparation.

The third phase of our ministry began in 1985 when God told us to take the ministry and go north, south, east and west. We started holding very small meetings anywhere we could drive to and I do mean small. We rarely ever hosted a meeting of even one hundred people in those days. As of this writing, I have taught God’s Word for thirty years. I attended the school of the Holy Spirit. I was prepared, not in conventional ways, but nonetheless prepared by God for the ministry I now enjoy. We travel nationally and internationally. We have offices in thirteen countries and reach approximately two-thirds of the globe by television five days a week. Yes, we have come a long way, but it has taken a long time and a lot of years of preparation prior to each stage of progress.

I have been criticized over the years because I haven’t had formal training in a seminary. People have said, “Who are you to be teaching God’s Word? Where did you get your credentials?” I am qualified because God anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor and needy (Isaiah 61:1). All we need to do is look at some of the disciples Jesus chose and we quickly see that God does not always or even usually call those who seem to be qualified. The Bible says that He purposely chooses the weak and foolish of the world in order to confound the wise (1 Corinthians 1:26–29).

I can say for sure that God will prepare you in whatever way He chooses. It may be formal training and it may not, but God will use everything in your life to train you if you are willing to be trained. It’s sad to say that many people have a great calling on their life but they are too impatient to go through the preparation that is necessary to equip them for the job.

Joseph was a young man with a dream. He dreamed of having authority and being a great man. However, he was young and impetuous and needed some training and preparation. Joseph’s brothers hated him because his father favored him and they sold him into slavery. God used the situation as an opportunity to test and train Joseph. He even spent thirteen years in prison for something he didn’t do, but whatever happened to Joseph during those years definitely equipped him for his God-ordained role in history. God’s favor was on Joseph and he rose to power with only Pharoah himself being greater. He was placed in a position to feed multitudes of people, including his father and brothers during seven years of famine. Your pain can become someone else’s gain. Your mess can become your ministry if you will have a positive attitude and decide to let everything you go through prepare you for what is ahead.

Esther had to have a year of preparation before she was allowed to go before the king. For twelve months, she went through the purifying process, but even more than her physical beauty, her inner beauty showed through, and God used her to save her people from wicked Haman’s evil plot.

Peter had to be prepared by going through some very humbling experiences; he was a powerful man but a proud man as well. The Lord had to humble him before He could use him. Most strong leaders have a lot of natural talent but they are also full of themselves (pride) and have to learn how to depend on God. They have to trade in their self-confidence for God-confidence. Remember that Jesus said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). When He says nothing, He means nothing! We are all like a blade of grass, here today and gone tomorrow. Or, like a vapor or a puff of smoke. We are here and then gone. We dare not think more highly of ourselves than we ought to. We don’t want to think too little of ourselves but not too highly either. We just need to see ourselves “in Christ.” We are nothing without Him and yet we can do everything with Him.

Ever found yourself in a situation where you did not take time to prepare for something at work or at church and you’re expected to do something? Your heart starts hammering, the butterflies in your stomach start flittering and you quietly think to yourself, “I’ll just wing it.” You’re not prepared but you’re thinking that hopefully you can pull it off anyway and nobody will ever know. Even if you do manage to deceive other people, you will know the truth and you won’t feel good about it. Down deep inside you will know that you did not do your best. You might feel relieved that you managed to get through it, but you did it in fear rather than confidence.

Even Jesus was trained and prepared by the suffering He went through. He was literally equipped for His office as High Priest through His times of preparation.

Although He was a Son, He learned [active, special] obedience through what He suffered

And, [His completed experience] making Him perfectly [equipped] He became the Author and Source of salvation to all those who give heed and obey Him.
(Hebrews 5:8, 9)

If Jesus needed preparation in order to be equipped for His job, there is no doubt in our minds that we need the same thing.

As I have already stated, the kind of preparation you need depends on what you are being called to do and your season in life at that time. For many people, schooling is the first type of preparation they get but for others that isn’t possible. A married woman with three small children and a part-time job probably could not leave for two years to go to Bible college or to get a degree in business administration. If you do desire schooling and cannot get it full time you might consider taking some evening classes or even Internet classes. Follow your heart and God will lead you to the right destination at the right time.

If you have something in your heart that you believe you are supposed to do but are unable to do it now, don’t let that discourage you. We hold some things in our hearts for years before we see them manifest. Let your dream incubate in your heart. Pray about it and do whatever you can to be ready when the time is right.

Our youngest daughter Sandra was in full-time ministry with us for fourteen years and then gave birth to twins. She found it impossible to stay in ministry in the same way during that season of her life. She tried part-time ministry with us and even that didn’t work. She was stressed physically and emotionally and was not happy. She realized she had to lay her job down for the season of life she was in but even in this new season, she strongly believes she is still being prepared for the future she has ahead of her. She actually still considers herself to be in ministry because she tries to help and bless people everywhere she goes. It is not as it was, but it is good! It is important that you understand the idea that preparation for what God wants you to do does not have to be formal or conventional training. It is also important that you understand that God does not call everyone into full-time ministry. He may call you into business, government or some other thing, but if you want to do it with confidence you will need preparation.

Even the people who are able to get formal training still need to get some experience. Knowing something in our head and knowing how to apply it practically can be two different things. The Bible says that Jesus gained “experience” through the things He suffered (Hebrews 5:8, 9). God is looking for people with experience in life so ask Him to begin your training and preparation today and you can learn anything you will need for your future. I hate to see young people get out of college and have an “I know it all attitude.” We need to be lifetime learners and we can all learn something every day if we let all of life be a school we attend.

In my case, I was not able to go to college when I got out of high school. Due to the abuse in my home I had to get out on my own and begin making a living for myself so I could escape being mistreated. God taught me everywhere I was. I learned some great lessons about integrity, excellence and honesty in the grocery store and shopping malls. At one job I had, I learned how important it is to treat people with kindness when I was treated unkindly myself. Sometimes the bitter experiences we endure are the best teachers we have in life.

I would like to have gone to college. My teachers recognized I had a writing gift and strongly encouraged me to try for a college scholarship in journalism, but all I could think of at that time was getting away from home and into a position where I would no longer be abused. I am happy to say that God gave me more than I could have gotten on my own in the way of college degrees. I have honorary doctorates from Oral Roberts University and Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. I also have two earned degrees based on the seventy-five books I have written and the knowledge contained in them. They include a bachelor’s and master’s of theology and an earned doctorate of philosophy in theology, all from Life Christian University in Tampa, Florida.

God promises in Isaiah 61:7 to give us a double reward for our former shame and trouble and I am a living witness that His Word is true.

Some people get on-the-job training. They are simply not book people and learn much more quickly by the hands-on method. However we learn, we can be assured that God will prepare us in His own way.

Don’t try to put God in a box by thinking that everyone has to do the same thing. Not everyone who serves God in ministry went to seminary or Bible school. Not everyone who is the president or CEO of a major corporation went to college. God equips some people with very strong natural skills and a lot of common sense. Microsoft czar Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard after his freshman year. Instead of going to college, Truett Cathy started a chicken restaurant with strong biblically-based business principles and Chick-fil-A is now the second largest quick service chicken restaurant chain in the country. Our youngest son did not go to college; he is the CEO of our USA office and does a fantastic job. He has God-given gifts and lots of common sense. He sees things and instinctively knows how to handle them. Part of his training came from just being around his father and me for so many years. It is amazing what we learn in life that we don’t even realize we are learning until we need to put it into practice.

Our oldest son is the CEO of all the foreign offices and world missions. He had two years of college but none of his schooling had anything to do with what he is doing in life now. He also learned the hard way, by working in every department that existed at
Joyce Meyer Ministries
until he made his way to the top.

I encourage you to let everything in life be preparation for the things you have in your future. Let every experience be something you learn from. Don’t despise the days of small beginnings. Those small beginnings are usually all we can handle at the time. God will give more when He knows we are ready. Enjoy every step of your journey. Don’t be in such a hurry to rush through things that you miss the lessons you can draw from each day.