What If Our Best Isn’t Good Enough?

by Lois Flowers

Inside:  When we release our current best out into the world, we may open ourselves up to doubt and rejection, but also to the freedom to trust God with the results, whatever they may be. ~

After years of work (and second-guessing), I took a deep breath and hit the “send” button on an email.

I’d done my best on a project near and dear to my heart, and now it was out of my hands.

I thought back to a moment, many months earlier. I was standing at my kitchen island, where I carry out many of my household tasks, when a phrase slipped into my mind.

“Put your offering on the altar.”

Instant Clarity

The moment I heard it, I knew exactly what it meant.

I knew what my offering was, and I knew where the altar was.

As I wrote here, I also understood the deeper meaning.

Once an offering is laid on an altar, what happens next is not our responsibility. We are the offerers, not the fire producers.

The Great Unknown

When we put our offering, whatever it is, on the altar, we open ourselves up to a world of potentially scary possibilities. Rejection. What-ifs. The unknown.

But we also fling the door wide to freedom. Freedom to trust God with the results, knowing His plans and purposes are good and will never fail.

We are not the first people, in the entire course of history, who have placed offerings on an altar without knowing the outcome.

Biblical Examples

The Old Testament patriarch Abraham comes to mind, trekking up the mountain with Isaac, knowing full well that God had told him to lay his only son on the altar. Or Elijah, who had the audacity—in front of hundreds of false prophets—to dump water all around the altar before calling down the fire of heaven to consume his sacrifice.

In both cases, these men presented their offering knowing it could lead to death—for themselves or a loved one.

I’m not comparing us to them or our situations to theirs. But the same God who guided their steps is also guiding ours. That’s a mind-blowing thought, isn’t it?

Our Offerings

Sometimes our offering is our daily work—whatever God has called us to do in whatever season of life we’re in. Mothering, caregiving, teaching, homemaking, fulfilling some kind of professional role.

Each day, we carry out our responsibilities as best we can, relying on God for the strength and wisdom to do it well.

Other times, particularly during seasons of transition, we might not be exactly sure what we are supposed to be doing. We might have an idea—a plan, a dream, a desire. It might have to do with “the ache [we] can’t get rid of,” as author Susan Cain and writer John P. Weiss describe it.

Dealing with Doubts

We proceed one step at a time, sometimes with a strong sense of direction, sometimes not. But even when we feel we are being led down a specific path, doubts can creep in.

What if we heard the still small Voice wrong? What if our best isn’t good enough? How long is this going to take? What if it never happens?

Here’s what I know to be true. We don’t operate in a vacuum. Each of us is part of a greater story, a piece of a bigger puzzle.

We often don’t know the grand design, how we fit in or what the end result will be. Chances are, whatever happens next won’t look exactly like what we expect or imagine.

Like it or not, this is how life works.

Not Good Enough?

Also, if our best doesn’t appear to be good enough—if we’re overlooked or not picked or out outright rejected—it’s not because we’re not good enough.

It’s because whatever we offered wasn’t right, at that time, for whomever we offered it to.

It’s like I tell my soon-to-be college graduate daughter when she interviews for a job and gets the dreaded “we’ve decided to go in another direction” email.

“Then that’s not the job for you, my dear.”

The Best Response

Ironically (or perhaps not), the same message also applies to me, in this new season of figuring out what I’m going to do with the rest of my life. And maybe to you too.

The only response, as we take tentative or bold steps forward, is to pray consistently, “May your will be done, not mine.” That last bit is the toughest part, by the way. My will is plenty strong, but holding on too tightly? It only produces anxiety and rarely ends well.

As I’ve shared here and here, God is the one who opens and closes the doors.

The Way Forward

If there is a way forward—for me, for you, for a particular project, job or ministry—He will be the one who makes it happen. In the end, it won’t be solely due to our hustle, our network, our charisma or even our skills.

Those things are important, some more than others. When we reach a crossroads or take a big step, we can’t just sit back and hope things will happen, after all. We have to move forward in the strength that we have, always willing to learn new skills and grow in potentially uncomfortable ways.

Hitting send on that email was just the first step for me. It was a big step, at least in my mind. But before all is said and done, there will probably be a lot more work and many more emails, very much like that first one.

The good news is this. God knows what we need. He will make a way. He will provide.

And however long it takes, however many fits and starts it seems we are having, we get a front-row seat to watch it happen.

Lois

When we put our offering, whatever it is, on the altar, we fling the door wide to freedom. Freedom to trust God with the results, knowing His plans and purposes are good and will never fail. Share on X If we’re overlooked or not picked or out outright rejected, it’s not because we’re not good enough. It’s because whatever we offered wasn’t right, at that time, for whomever we offered it to. Share on X

P.S. I’m linking up this week with #tellhisstory, InstaEncouragementsLet’s Have Coffee and Grace & Truth.

Leave a Comment

16 comments

Maree Dee April 29, 2024 - 2:57 pm

What a wonderful lesson to learn or, in my case, to keep working towards. Thank you for sharing and your wisdom.

I’m proud to feature your blog post on my Pinterest board for Grace & Truth Featured Posts. You can see your feature here—
https://www.pinterest.com/embracingtheune/grace-truth-christian-link-up-featured-posts/.

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:50 pm

I’m working towards it too, Maree! Thanks for sharing on your Pinterest board …

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Bethany McIlrath April 28, 2024 - 6:31 am

This was well timed for me, my friend! Praying for you as you wait on the Lord to see what’s going to happen with the offering you’ve placed on the altar!

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:49 pm

Thanks for your prayers, Bethany. I’m glad the timing was good for you too! 🙂

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Donna April 26, 2024 - 7:21 am

Beautiful and encouraging post, Lois. And a hard lesson to learn. At times we are eager to offer our sacrifices, but when things don’t go as planned, we become disillusioned. At least that has been the case for me. But over time we learn our part is to offer the sacrifice, it’s God’s part to receive it and do with as HE will.
I think of the many times biblical people offered sacrifices, and God received and used them in different ways. The blessing isn’t always in the results, but in the beauty of the offer.

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:49 pm

Oh Donna … You’re not the only one who gets disillusion when things don’t go as planned! I love your conclusion, though: “The blessing isn’t always in the results, but in the beauty of the offer.” So true, dear friend.

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Lisa Blair April 24, 2024 - 12:41 pm

Trusting, abiding, waiting…all our focus is from our heart to His. Beautiful words, Lois.

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:46 pm

Thanks so much, Lisa. And amen this: “All our focus is from our heart to His.”

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Ruth April 23, 2024 - 4:53 pm

Thank you, Lois. This was especially meaningful to me today!
I appreciate your insights.

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:45 pm

Aw, Ruth … I always love hearing from you, and I’m so glad this post was meaningful to you. 🙂

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Barbara Harper April 23, 2024 - 2:50 pm

That piece on the “ache we can’t get rid of” was so moving to me. And, as Debbie said, this posts resonates with me as well. There’s so much in writing books and blogs about what “must” be done to be published. So much of it does not sit comfortably with me. And, if they’re right, I’ll likely never be published. 🙂 I don’t want to buck the system or sound like an immature person who “knows better” than the experts. All I know to do is seek God’s guidance for each step. And to remember that each “no” is just one more step to the right path.

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:44 pm

I loved that piece too, Barbara. And amen to everything else you said as well. “No is just one more step to the right path.” Such good truth for both of us to remember!

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Debbie Wilson April 23, 2024 - 8:42 am

Lois, you article resonated with me in many ways. Thanks so much.

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:43 pm

I’m glad to hear it, Debbie. 🙂

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Michele Morin April 23, 2024 - 8:38 am

I’m going to hold this lesson close to my heart in this writing life. Thank you!

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Lois Flowers April 29, 2024 - 8:43 pm

You’re very welcome, my friend. 🙂

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