Missing Out…

Am I Missing Out on God-given Opportunities?

A BLOG by Shane Pruitt

We all go through difficult days, times and seasons. No one is exempt.

However, when we’re going through these rough situations, our world tends to get very small, with us at the center of it. We’re actually foolish enough to think that we’re the only ones in the world that ever has a bad day.

“No one understands what I’m going through, and if they did, then, surely they’d react just like I am.”

This reaction, of course, often includes a lot of griping, pouting, sighing, complaining, bellyaching, and a Facebook post or two.

Usually when I’m having a rough go-at-it, my shoulders slump, my head droops, and my eyes focus in on staring at my own navel. While I stare at my own navel, time continues and opportunities are all-around me that I completely miss.

What kind of opportunities? People-opportunities.

God often uses difficult situations in our life to bring a blessing to someone else, but many times we completely miss out on those opportunities. It’s like God lobs us softballs to hit, and the bat never leaves our shoulders because we’re so consumed by the difficulty at hand. There are so many opportunities to impact people that we never even see. They literally fly right by us while we’re looking down.

A recent conversation with my wife, Kasi, brought these things to mind.

Our son, Titus, who is adopted from Uganda, was having a routine surgery that ended up being anything but routine. He was in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for three days. This blindsided us. Focused on the circumstances and the situation left me completely bummed.

However, Kasi shared with me later on that she’d had four separate conversations with nurses and doctors about adoption, our involvement in ministry, and global missions! In fact, she was able to help one particular nurse find information on medical missions so that she could be involved in God’s global plan as well.

What? Our son is in ICU, and God is using you to bring Him glory by encouraging others? That doesn’t make sense! I’m the “paid Pastor” here, and all I wanted to do was use that time in the hospital to moan, groan, and mope.

Wow! God may have been lobbing me some of those same opportunities, but I never saw them. I missed them. Struck-out! My focus was on the situation, and not on the truth that God is in control, and He is using this for His glory. There must be gospel-opportunities here.

Thank God that Kasi’s focus wasn’t on her navel, and she actually saw the opportunities coming her way. She was able to swing because she was ready. The focus was right.

Another example comes to mind: Steve Webb. I love and miss this man, dearly. He battled leukemia, and ultimately won because he is with Jesus now.

The battle raged on for over two years. In the last four months of his life here on earth, he had lost a lot of weight. He was in a hospital room, knowing of the possibility that the end was near, and obviously experiencing a lot of physical pain. If anyone had a right to complain, gripe, focus on himself or quit, he did. But that is far from what Steve did.

Steve realized that his suffering brought with it many opportunities to point to Jesus and to be a blessing to others.

It was at this time that we’d just planted C3 Rowlett. The church was barely a few months old. There were many Sundays where I’d wake up with a lump in my throat and a pain of nervousness in my stomach getting ready to go preach to our baby congregation. Grabbing my phone I noticed a missed call and a voicemail. It would be Steve Webb praying for C3, me, and for the gospel to boldly go forth.

That doesn’t make sense! I don’t understand that! Want to talk about fair?

Here is a man physically dying who is praying for me, and praying for others that he doesn’t even know. I’d give anything to have those prayers still recorded. Oh, how I would cherish to hear those prayers prayed over me again every Sunday before preaching multiple worship services.

He didn’t miss opportunities to glorify God and to bless people! His focus was right. Love Jesus and use situations to identify with others.

Why do I get it wrong so often? How many opportunities have I missed because I was staring at my own belly-button feeling sorry for myself?

Jesus never promised us easy. He never said, “Come, follow Me, and every thing will go exactly how you want it to.”

But He did promise, “I’ll never leave you, or forsake you” (Hebrews).

Lord, keep my eyes off of myself, and my circumstances. Keep my eyes instead focused on you. Please, remind me daily that “you got this,” and that it is not my job to worry. You’ve called me to glorify you with this life, and to be a blessing to others. Thank you for reminding me that the best way to minister to other people is to meet them where they are, and I could never do that if I didn’t go through difficult situations myself. Thank you for the opportunities that you send my way.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” – 2 Corinthians 1:3 – 4 (ESV)

“I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.” – Philippians 1:12 (ESV)