Come As You Are: You Do NOT Have to Feel Ready to Obey God

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” — Psalm 46:1 KJV

There is a lie I think a lot of us quietly believe, “I will obey God when I feel ready.” When I have more experience. When life settles down. When I know exactly what I am doing. When the kids are older. When I have more money. When I feel more confident. When I am finally sure I will not fail.

But what if God is not asking you to feel ready? What if He is simply asking you to trust Him?

Come As You Are...Not As You Think You Should Be

When I say come as you are, I do not mean that God calls us to remain exactly where we are forever. I mean that we do not have to clean everything up, figure everything out, overcome every fear, or become some perfectly polished version of ourselves before we can say yes to Him.

God already knows who you are.

He knows the parts of you that feel confident, and He knows the parts that are terrified. He knows your responsibilities. He knows your limitations. He knows your past. He knows what you are carrying today. And He is still able to lead you.

Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

Notice that Scripture does not say God becomes our strength once we become strong enough ourselves. He is our strength.

That changes everything.

I Definitely Did NOT Feel Ready

I am a homeschooling mom of two boys. That alone keeps life interesting. There are lessons to prepare, children to raise, a house to manage, meals to make, responsibilities to juggle, and approximately 47 things happening in my brain at any given moment. And somewhere in the middle of all of that, God began leading me somewhere I never would have confidently declared myself “ready” to go.

Marilyn Jeanne Designs did not begin with me sitting down one day and saying, “Obviously, I am completely prepared to build a Christian media company.”

Not even close.

MJD has grown and changed as I have followed God one step at a time. There have been moments when I questioned myself. Moments when I wondered whether I was qualified. Moments when I could not see how all the pieces would fit together. Moments when I had an idea of what I thought the business was supposed to become...only for God to redirect me.

Yet here I am. MJD has become a Christian media company focused on helping women recognize their calling, walk in obedience, share their stories, publish their words, and use their God-given gifts.

Not because I finally reached some magical level where I felt completely ready. But because I kept taking the next step God placed in front of me.

And I am still learning to do that.

Sometimes Obedience Looks Smaller Than We Expect

We often imagine obedience as one enormous, dramatic leap of faith. Sometimes it is. But often, obedience looks much smaller. Send the email. Write the first paragraph. Start the page. Make the phone call. Pray about the idea again. Have the conversation. Apply for the opportunity. Share the testimony. Ask for help. Say no to something God has been telling you to release. Say yes to something you've been avoiding because you're scared.

You do not necessarily need the entire blueprint. You need enough faith for the next step. God is perfectly capable of revealing step two after you've taken step one.

But What If I Am Scared?

Then you are scared. And you can still obey.

Fear and obedience can exist in the same moment. Courage is not pretending something doesn't scare you. Sometimes courage is looking directly at the fear and deciding that God's direction matters more.

That doesn't mean we recklessly chase every idea that enters our minds and label it “God's plan.” We pray. We search Scripture. We seek wisdom. We pay attention to God's character. We allow Him to correct us when necessary. But once God has made something clear, repeatedly asking Him for another sign can sometimes become a spiritual-looking way of avoiding obedience.

That one stings a little, doesn't it? I have been there too.

Sometimes we are not actually waiting on God. Sometimes God is waiting on us to move.

You May Never Feel 100% Ready

If you are waiting for the day when you feel completely confident, qualified, financially prepared, emotionally prepared, organized, fearless, and certain…

You may be waiting a very long time. Because following God requires faith precisely because we cannot always see what comes next.

We want guarantees. God often gives us His presence instead. And according to Psalm 46:1, that presence isn't distant. He is “a very present help.” Right here. Right now. In the uncertainty. In the messy beginning. In the homeschooling chaos. In the business growing pains. In the unanswered questions. In the season where you're still figuring out what your calling even looks like.

You don't have to manufacture strength you don't have. You can lean on His.

Maybe Your Next Step Isn't the Whole Dream

Maybe you're feeling a pull toward writing a book. That doesn't mean you need to have twenty chapters written by tomorrow. Open the document. Write the first page.

Maybe you feel called to start a business. You don't need a five-year empire mapped out tonight. Learn. Pray. Research. Take one responsible step.

Maybe God has been nudging you to use your story to encourage another woman. You don't need thousands of followers. Start with the woman already in front of you.

Maybe you don't even know what your calling is yet. That's okay too. Your first step may simply be getting quiet enough to ask: “Lord, what would You have me do?” Then being willing to listen when the answer isn't what you expected.

Come As You Are...Then Let God Lead You Forward

“Come as you are” isn't permission to stay comfortable forever. It is an invitation to stop believing you have to become someone else before God can use you. Bring Him your fear. Bring Him your questions. Bring Him the idea scribbled in a notebook. Bring Him your messy schedule. Bring Him your ordinary life. Bring Him your lack of confidence. Bring Him your willingness.

And then follow.

You may look back someday and realize that the woman you thought needed to be “ready” before she could begin became ready through the process of obedience. I know that has been true for me. I still don't have everything figured out with MJD. I'm still learning. I'm still growing. I'm still listening. I'm still being stretched. But every time I look at what God has allowed this company to become, I am reminded that I didn't have to know exactly how we would get here. I just had to keep following Him.

And whatever God is asking of you right now, the same is true for you. You don't have to feel ready. You need to know Who your refuge is. You need to know where your strength comes from. And then you take the next faithful step.

Come as you are. God can work with willing.

You Don't Have to Figure Out Your Calling Alone

If you are trying to understand what God is calling you to do (or you already know but fear, comparison, overwhelm, or uncertainty keeps getting in the way) I would love to invite you into our FREE Facebook community.

It's a space for Christian women who want to identify their calling, recognize what may be stunting their growth, and encourage one another as we learn to walk out our obedience in real life.

You don't need a polished business. You don't need a finished book. You don't need all the answers.

Come as you are.

Join us inside the free community and let's keep taking the next faithful step together.