Don't be Afraid of Greatness, Embrace It!

Have you ever not wanted to ask the question because you were afraid of the answer?  I do this at work sometimes when I know that by asking a simple question, it will ultimately lead to more work for me.  But that work most always provides more opportunity to succeed and grow in my job.  But all I can think of immediately is the struggle its going to bring and the time its going to take to accomplish it.  Its hard for me to look past that and see the success that comes at the end of it, or the benefit it brings. I've found that I'm not alone in this either, some of the biggest names in the Bible did the exact same thing.Look at Moses (Exodus 3).  God was calling him to do a great thing, but he was afraid of what might happen and made excuses and reasons he shouldn't be the one to go.Look at the story of Jonah (Jonah 1).  God called him to do a great thing, and he ran away fearing what would happen.Look at the story of the Rich Young Ruler (Mark 10).  He actually asked the question of what he could do to get eternal life, and when he received the answer from Jesus we wouldn't do it because it required him to sell all he had.Look at Peter in the New Testament (Luke 22).  Peter wanted to continue to follow Jesus, but when trouble came up, he denied Jesus 3 times.  Ultimately afraid of the repercussions of admitting to being a follower of Christ.In all these stories God was looking to do a great thing in each of their lives, but each of them made an excuse or found a reason not to do it.  Now you may be thinking, Moses, Jonah and Peter are all a big deal and God worked through them anyway.  You're right, but look at the story of the Rich Young Ruler, who doesn't even have his name in the bible as a result of his unwillingness to follow Jesus. I imagine if he had dropped everything and followed Jesus, he would have been up there with the 12 disciples in terms of God using him throughout his life.  And look at Jonah, well...I don't want to get eaten by a fish to realize God's plan for me.God only calls on you to do great things.  He is incapable of doing anything that is not attached to something great.  The greatness may not be able to be seen by you immediately, but rarely are we able to fathom how God works or think multiple steps down the process like He does.You have to trust in what God is doing, that if you take that step He is going to catch you and do something great with you.  Its like those "trust falls" I used to do at any summer camp I went to. You would stand on a platform and fall backwards trusting that your friends would catch you.  Do that with God and he wont just catch you, He will propel you forward into something great!Greatness is not something to be afraid of, its something to embrace!