God’s Presence Equips Us

BY Jessica Mathisen

I was a twenty-two-year-old, with a diploma hot off the press, and I thought I was going to change the world. With a couple large suitcases and a head full of dreams, I moved to Chihuahua, Mexico to teach a class of ten precious fourth and fifth graders. But the odds were stacked against me.

First, the mission organization I was working with preferred teachers with at least two to three years of experience. I had just graduated from college. And while I was approved as a missionary just three months prior to moving to the field and needed to raise support for my salary, usually missionaries take several months or even a year to do so. Finally, though I studied Spanish through high school and college, I quickly found out how much I had to learn when immersed in a second language and culture. 

The call of God on each of our lives is to know Him and make Him known. Oftentimes, this call means He will ask us to do what seems impossible. When faced with the impossible, the temptation is to do one of two things: run away in fear or muster up our strength to do it on our own as a means of proving something to the Lord. I didn’t know how much I had to learn when I moved to Mexico. However, it didn’t take long for me to realize I was in over my head. After preparing for this move for several months and without any other viable options, I couldn’t run away. But the temptation to do it all in my own strength? That was a daily fight. 

The gift of grace given to us by our Savior shows us that He is mightier than the impossible acts before us. God doesn’t ask us to do the impossible and then leave us alone. He calls us to the impossible and then empowers us through His Spirit as we partner with Him. 

God, in His rich and bountiful grace, provided for each one of my impossible tasks. He gave me mentor teachers to help me learn and grow. Each month I had just enough to pay my bills, eat well, purchase clothing, and save money for trips home. My roommate was Mexican-American and welcomed me into her friend group, immersing me in Mexican culture and helping me attain the skills I needed to learn fluent Spanish. 

So often we want to know every detail of the plan before us. But to walk in faith is to acknowledge that we don’t know it all and surrender to the One who does. When we do, He equips us to fulfill the tasks He entrusts us with in order to bring glory to His name, the only One worthy of praise. Whatever tasks He lays before us are nothing short of anything He hasn’t already done. His victory over death on the cross grants us victory in our everyday life, no matter how impossible the task may seem.