You Are Before You Are Recognized

Today's post is inspired by today's sermon. I always love finding little nuggets in a larger sermon. Today's nugget of encouragement comes from a story about Michael Phelps. While our guest pastor used the famous Olympian to teach us about shame and honor, I took something else from the image of Phelps on the big screen.

He was before he was recognized.

He was the best swimmer in the world before the Olympic gold medal was presented to him as proof.

He was before the reward.

Phelps didn't just win gold medal after gold medal. The reward and recognition didn't just come on a random Tuesday. He prepared for them. He prepared for his race. He trained his body over and over again for the appointed time in which he would be put to test.

It was in the training, the becoming, that he became. The test, the race, only served as the arena where he proved himself. The medal around his neck and his place on the podium only served as recognition for the preparation that had been done, the becoming that had already taken place. The medal served as Phelps' crown, but he was already king of the pool.

Scripture provides us with the call to prepare, to have endurance, to run the race of life with steadfast faith. Following Jesus is a choice made daily. Obedience is a choice made daily. It is our training, our becoming.

"Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand." Ephesians 6:13

• Prepare for your test by putting on the full armor of God

• Stand firm in your faith when you are tested

"Let us not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."

• Have endurance

• Do not give up

• You will be rewarded

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7

• There will come a day when the preparation and testing are finished and what remains will be glory.

As Christians, we do not have to earn glory the same way Michael Phelps did. It is ours to behold because Jesus died for our sins, defeated the grave, and has given us the gift of everlasting life. As heirs of the kingdom of Heaven, as children of God, we have glory right here and now. We are victorious because God recognizes us as such. Still, there is preparation to step into the glory of the Lord. It's in the preparation that we truly become all that the Lord has called us to be.

I think about all the things that we prepare for, all the titles we wish to claim, all the crowns we wish to wear. And unlike some, I won't tell you not to desire things for yourself. I won't tell you not to desire that promotion, that success, that relationship, that car, that compliment, that recognition for all the work, all the waiting, all the preparation. Instead, I will tell you to first submit your desires to the Lord and then to prepare to receive. And when the recognition comes, recognize Who the reward comes from.

Prepare to be that impactful entrepreneur.

Prepare to be that godly wife.

Prepare and you shall be.

Prepare because you are.

Perhaps this post is a little more feel-good encouragement than biblical wisdom, but there are scriptures to back up these sweet words.

"In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps." Proverbs 16:9

• This verse does not say that the Lord denies or contradicts our plan. He simply directs us along the path until we reach our destination. This may look like encountering obstacles we wouldn't have chosen for ourselves. Hello, preparation. Hello, training. This may look like our desire evolving into something greater and more impactful than we ever could've imagined. Hello, glory.

• The Bible never tells us not to plan or prepare. It simply reminds us to submit ourselves to God in all that we do, and He will intervene in our plan to prepare us for and lead us there in righteousness.

"Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

• This scripture can be both encouraging and discouraging. I questioned what delighting myself in the Lord really meant. I felt like if I wasn't happy and joyful all the time, if I wasn't peacefully surrendered then I wasn't delighting myself and therefore I wouldn't be given the desires of my heart.

• Feeling like I had to be perfect--worship perfectly, wait perfectly, remain surrendered perfectly, be obedient without struggle--made me feel the opposite of delightful. But a mature Christian mentor said delight does not mean without struggle. Delight means remaining obedient, remaining surrendered to Him despite the struggle.

• Delight is an active devotion to the Lord. It is not perfection. It is not the death of humanness. Even Jesus in His manhood struggled with the task set before Him, asked God to take the challenge of the crucifixion away from Him, felt forsaken by God and cried out to Him as He felt abandoned. And yet, Jesus Christ was devoted to His Heavenly Father.

• Devote yourself to the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.

As we devote ourselves to God, He guides our preparation to not only step into His glory but to step into the roles and relationships we're praying for, the roles and relationships that are already written for us, the roles and relationships that are already ours.

He who finds...

She who is...

They who believe receive They who prepare become