“You formed my parts and put them together while I was still within my mother. I praise you for how awesome and wonderfully you have made me!”

Psalms 139:13-14 (my paraphrase)

God has put us together to bring himself glory and praise. We each have a space to fill, a God-designed space that we fit into perfectly. Filling that space is our life purpose. Most of us dream too small, and those of us who desire big things dream in the wrong direction leading to frustration and feelings of inadequacy. But the truth is, we are perfectly able to do what God is asking us to do, and it will be phenomenal! Why? Because the plan that God has for us is a God-sized plan and can only be realized as we wholly lean into him.

Only you can determine what your space looks like, and it may take a good portion of your life to understand it fully. It took many years, maybe decades, to figure out that God has designed me to speak into the lives of people around me, helping them discern what he was saying to them. As a mobilizer of missionaries, nearly all of what God has made me to be is used. Looking back, I can see that everything else I was involved in was growing me into who I am today. God has been at work.

As you take steps to fill the space God has designed for you, I have some encouragements and some cautions to consider.

Pursue your passions.

God has given you those passions. Keep in mind, though, that what you love doesn’t have to be your job. That works out for some people, but others may say that if your passion becomes your job, it will soon cease to be a passion. Either way, grow deeper into those things that are important to you.

Embrace failure.

Failure is an opportunity to learn and grow that is missed if we only attempt things within our known abilities. It will develop resilience in you which is a critical skill when seeking to fill God’s design.

Avoid comparisons.

Be the best at what God has given you to do and trust that he will use it for his glory and the advancement of his kingdom. Looking to the left and right only takes your eyes off the goal he has set for you. Remember Jesus’ instruction to Peter when he wanted to compare. “You follow me!”

Commit to obedience.

Don’t place conditions on saying “yes” to God’s leading. He knows you and the path he has laid out for you. Walk it with confidence and joy, no matter what you think it will bring.

Accept the impossible.

Try not to put limits on what God can do in and through you. What seems beyond possible with you is well within what God can accomplish.

Be humble.

As God begins to use us in remarkable ways, it is possible to believe that we played a significant role in the success. Give glory to God and be thankful that he chose to use you to bless others. Pride takes you in the opposite direction.

Remember your community.

We are all pieces of God’s whole, members of Christ’s body. We need each other. We are better together. Listening is learning. Giving is growing. Love covers all.

Finding the balance between becoming everything God made you to be and being content with where you are is tricky. Contentment is a good thing and often we strive to be more than we should be but selling ourselves short of what God would like to do in and through us is also not wise. Spend time each day asking God to use you just as he intends to and then follow his leading.