Mustering My Gumption

Here's what I want God to do: I want him to make life easy. "Make all the scary things -- all the things that evoke fear in me -- take care of all that, God. I'll stand over here, you just let me know when it's safe to come out. Go get 'em, God!"

Here's what God wants me to do: He wants me to move towards the things that make me afraid. "Until you take the first step, I will not meet you with my power. Your fear will never go away as long as you stand there on the banks waiting for me to part the Jordan River."

He says, "Put your foot in the water first. Then the water will part."

He says, "Go talk to Pharaoh, and I'll meet you there."

He says, "Go back down the mountain the way you came and face down Jezebel and Ahab. It's nice that you want to come up here and talk, but you have to go back the way you came and face the stuff you're afraid of. I'm not going to airlift you out of it."

If I could just muster the gumption to make a move I know what will happen: I'll grow in my confidence that there's nothing I can't handle as long as I handle it with God. I'll grow stronger and wiser and more confident. My fears will recede, and I'll be more effective in living in the fullness of life that God has provided for me.

But mustering gumption is harder than it sounds, isn't it?