Gems of Knowledge

Today’s One Year Bible Verses: 2 Chronicles 21:1–23:21, Romans 11:13–36, Psalm 22:1–18, Proverbs 20:7

---

God Knows What He Is Doing

Last night, I was feeling discouraged about the slow growth of this ministry. I found myself wondering if maybe I needed to be different. Maybe I’m too serious. Maybe I’m not funny enough, witty enough, or entertaining enough to reach people the way I hope to. I was throwing myself a pity party and questioning whether who I am is enough for what God has called me to do.

Then this morning, I opened my journal to the Gem of Knowledge I had previously written down for today:

“Because I love you, I will show you the way. Don’t wish you were different. Just be who I made you to be, and you will see the greatness of it in time. Amen.”

Wow.

God’s words addressed exactly what had been weighing on my heart. I had been wishing I were different, and there was His reminder: Don’t wish you were different. Just be who I made you to be.

Maybe you need that reminder today too.

It is easy to look at other people and notice the qualities that seem to make them successful. Someone else may be naturally funny, outgoing, charismatic, creative, or confident, and we wonder if we would be more useful to God if we were more like them. But God didn’t accidentally give you your personality. He knows who He created, and He knows how He intends to use you.

Paul reminds us in Romans just how far God’s wisdom exceeds our own: “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!” (Romans 11:33, NLT). We see what is happening today and try to judge the entire plan by it. God sees the whole story.

We see that truth in 2 Chronicles too. Jehoram turns away from God, Ahaziah’s reign is cut short, and Athaliah attempts to destroy the royal family and take the throne. From the outside, it looks as though everything has fallen apart.

But hidden away was a little boy named Joash.

For six years, Joash was protected in the Temple. He wasn’t sitting on the throne or accomplishing anything anyone could see. Most people didn’t even know he was alive. Yet God’s plan was still unfolding.

When the time was right, Jehoiada brought Joash out, placed the crown upon his head, and declared him king. Athaliah’s wicked reign ended, and the line of David continued as God had promised.

Hidden does not mean forgotten. Slow does not mean unsuccessful. What seems insignificant today may be part of what God is preparing for tomorrow.

Psalm 22 gives us another glimpse of how little we sometimes understand while God is working. David cried, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Psalm 22:1, NLT). David could not have known the full significance of those words or that centuries later Jesus would speak them from the cross. What David experienced in his present pain became part of something far greater than he could see.

The same may be true for us. We measure ourselves by what we see today, while God is working with a much bigger picture in mind.

Maybe the thing you wish were different about yourself is something God intends to use. Your quiet nature may make someone feel safe enough to open up. Your seriousness may help you speak truth when someone desperately needs it. Your tenderness may help you notice the hurting person everyone else missed. God can use your personality, your experiences, and even the things you’ve struggled to appreciate about yourself for His purposes.

Of course, that doesn’t mean we never need to change. God continually corrects us, matures us, and makes us more like Jesus. But there is a big difference between allowing God to transform us and wishing He had made us somebody else.

Proverbs 20:7 says, “The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them.” (NLT). We don’t need to manufacture a version of ourselves we think people will like better. We need to walk faithfully with God as He shapes us into the person He created us to be.

So today, I’m taking this Gem personally. I’ll keep learning, growing, and changing wherever God tells me to change, but I don’t need to become somebody else for Him to use me.

And neither do you.

You may not see yet what God is building through your faithfulness. Joash couldn’t see it while hidden in the Temple, and David couldn’t see the full significance of his pain in Psalm 22. Sometimes we simply have to trust God in the middle of the story…especially when it gets hard.

Because He loves you, He will show you the way.

Just be who He made you to be, follow where He leads, and give Him time to show you the greatness of what He can do through the life He uniquely gave you.

You are perfectly made for your calling.💎

---

Action (5 Minutes with God)

Take 5 minutes to be with the Lord today. Ask Him:

• “Lord, what do You want me to know about this personally?”
  • Journal what He gives you through His Holy Spirit.
• Then ask, “What do You want me to do?”
  • Journal what He reveals – then do it!

Trust Him with your life. Keep growing, keep following, and give God time to reveal what He is building through your faithful obedience.

---

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for speaking to me exactly when I need it. Forgive me for the times I compare myself to others and wish You had made me differently. Help me distinguish between the things You want to change in me and the things You want me to embrace. Teach me to trust Your wisdom when I cannot yet see what You are doing. I don’t want to imitate someone else’s calling or measure my faithfulness by someone else’s results. Show me the way designed for me, refine me where I need refining, and give me courage to faithfully be the person You created me to be. I trust that in Your time, I will understand more of what You were doing all along. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

To read more 5 Minutes with God devotionals click here.