Women of Faith - Building Your Strengths: Who Am I in Gods Eyes? (And What Am I Supposed to Do about it?)

If God sends us on strong paths, we are provided strong shoes.

Corrie Ten Boom

Girls, let me just say it right up frontyes, you do have gifts! And yes, you are stronger than you think!

Whew! That feels better.

For some reason we gals have trouble embracing these truths. Many (most) of us underestimate our value and our strength and we buy into the cheap lie that we were on holiday when the gifts and grit were handed out. Hardly.

Take me for instance... every year I have to turn to my friends to be reminded that I am a competent speaker. No kidding. I have been speaking for over thirty years and I still get the knee-knocking jitters. Youd think by my age Id be more confident. But these are the thoughts that bounce through my brain: What if my message isnt well received? What if I forget what I was going to say? What if Im just too old and blather on? These doubts become battering rams against my best intentions.

The thing that helps me survive my own insecurities is understanding my God-given gifts and strengths, rehearsing Gods faithfulness, and receiving my friends affirmation. As an ex-agoraphobic, I know what its like to feel three ribbons short of a gift. I was certain I had been overlooked. I didnt realize my gab was a gift. Because its a funny thing about giftswe usually dont consider ours as unique or as stunning as someone elses gift, because whatever ours is, it comes so easily to us that we dont get the big deal about it.

My timid friend Carol is a wonderful artist, but for years we couldnt convince her of it. Art naturally flowed through everything she did (decorating her house, cooking a meal, loving her family, painting life on a canvas), so she didnt get the gift part for a long time. Then one day she signed up for an art class at a large art supply store and after the first class they hired her to train their instructors. Not their students mind you, but their instructors. She was dumbfounded. We, her friends, gloated. And you know what happened when she began owning and living her gift? Not only did she grow as an artist, but she grew stronger internally.

Somehow gifts and strength work that way. Its as if one blesses the other. Theres just something about finding out where we fit into the rhythms of the universe that is deeply satisfying and that infuses us with confidence in the way God has created us. Gifts and strength add to our life purpose.

Just as surely as God pressed the stars in the heavens to be His light-holders, He has positioned us with gifts to shine for Him. So dont be shystep up and acknowledge the generosity of God toward you by functioning in your strengths. And dont let your fragile self-esteem (we all own one) keep you from the healing joy of your divinely-inspired placeas Gods gift holder. Shine, my friend, shine!

Remember: Yes, you do have gifts! And yes, you are stronger than you think!

From one who knows,

Patsy Clairmont

Theres something profoundly beautiful in the timeworn face, cotton-soft hands, and deep, searching eyes of an elderly woman. Each wrinkle stands as a monument to one of lifes joys or tragedies. Each age spot is testimony to another year of experience and grace. When you look into the richness of her eyes, you see the events of years, both devastating and delightful, that have shaped the woman she is. In her you see wisdom, patience, and strength.

But strength is not reserved for the elderly, is it? Margaret Thatcher, as one of the United Kingdoms most prolific Prime Ministers, had to maintain a firm stance to ensure the safety and status of her country in the world during the Cold War. Angelina Jolie is not only the essence of physical strength, with toned arms and a daring spirit, but she has shown that it is possible to balance both motherhood and a successful career while also crusading to make a difference in the world. And you probably know countless others who have looked tragedy in the eye and refused to succumb to the alluring darkness of self-pity and despair, but instead have risen up and celebrated life and hope in one way or another.

As Frederich Nietzsche said, What does not destroy me, makes me stronger. Becoming a woman of deep strength is not an easy thing. It can be a journey fraught with difficulty and frustration, if not deep sadness and heartache. But the satisfaction and contentment that comes from knowing that you have access to the unending wells of divine strength are truly a gift from God.

So step back, take a deep breath, and look closely at your life. What has made you stronger? How have those things given you strength? If you can identify these movements in your spirit and see the ways that they make you strong, you can more effectively use your strengths to be a woman whose life ultimately glorifies Jesus Christ.

My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Psalm 73:26

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

Isaiah 40:29 NIV