One early morning, I was listening to a message from a popular preacher. He shared a story I haven’t been able to shake off since.
God had given him a simple instruction: Go to the hospital and pray for the sick.
Instead of obeying immediately, he called his friends to fast and pray with him.
You see, God didn’t say to fast first. He didn’t say to gather intercessors. He simply said, “Go.”
But because the preacher felt he needed to be more “spiritually competent” to operate at that level of anointing, he delayed.
The more he prayed, the more doubt crept in:
What if the sick don’t get healed? What if… what if…?
So instead of going, he found himself driving to church for the end-of-year Crossover service. The pastor officiating preached a powerful message on doing exploits for God, one that stirred and energized him. Feeling fired up and ready to obey, he picked up his Bible and left for the hospital.
When he got there and explained his mission to the nurse on duty, she replied,
“To pray for the sick, or for the healthy? Everyone who was sick here yesterday has already been healed. This might sound strange to you, but Jesus came last night and touched them. You can check the wards if you’re in doubt.”
And sure enough, when he checked, the wards were empty. All the sick patients had been discharged.
As he left the hospital, he wept bitterly, asking God for forgiveness. And God said:
“If I told you to go, it’s because I had already gone ahead of you. They were healed, but no one got saved, because I needed someone to preach salvation, and I found no one.”
That story pierced me because it reminded me of a season in my own life.
For the longest time after my divorce, I felt unqualified to speak about marriage or relationships. Who was I to counsel others when my own marriage had failed?
When I finally returned to counseling, I told my team that I only wanted to handle premarital cases. But guess who showed up for my very first session? A couple married for five years, on the brink of divorce.
I prayed before we began, as I always do. And as they started talking, the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to three key issues in their marriage. I asked one question, and the atmosphere shifted. The wife had been doing most of the talking, while the husband sat in silence. But at that question, he leaned forward and said, “Okay, I’ll talk.”
Then he added something that has stayed with me:
“As soon as you prayed and asked that question, I felt a connection. I knew you were the one I could open up to.”
They had seen three counselors before me. But God had reserved their restoration for that moment. For that room, for my voice. Not because I was the most qualified, but because He had sent me.
So let me ask you:
Has God given you an instruction you’ve delayed in answering because you feel unqualified? Have you measured yourself against man-made standards and found yourself lacking?
Hear this truth: If God sends you, He has already graced you.
You are not going in your strength; you are going in His.
Philippians 2:13 reminds us: “For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose.”
It’s God who plants the desire.
It’s God who empowers the doing.
And when you realize that, you stop moving in fear and start stepping out in confidence.
You go boldly, in the name of the One who sent you.
To the one who doesn’t feel enough, the one who has been second-guessing the call, waiting for the right timing, the right words, the right version of yourself, this is your reminder: just obey.
You may not feel ready. You may not feel worthy. But the One who called you already went ahead of you.
He’s not asking for perfection; He’s asking for obedience.
The grace you’re waiting to feel will meet you as you go.
Please note: delayed obedience is still disobedience.
So take that step. Send that message. Start that thing.
Not because you’re sure of yourself, but because you’re sure of Him.
Go, He’s already there.
P.S. This letter is not a call to move based on your own feelings or assumptions, thinking you can act just because you heard something. It’s a reminder that your confidence should never come from your own wisdom or strength, but from the One who sends you. When you are certain that God has spoken, don’t let fear or feelings of inadequacy hold you back. Move, knowing that grace will meet you in obedience.
With all my love,
Your sister on the journey obedience,
Nkiruka