The first step is always the hardest, making it the most important.
Plato recognized our natural reluctance to take the first step when he said,
“For it is said in proverbs that the beginning is half of every work, but this is, it seems to me, more than half.”
To Plato, getting started, taking the first step, is more than half of the work required to complete a task.
We have many excuses for why we do not take the first step. The timing is not right. We do not have the time, resources, equipment, or skills: you name it. The list of excuses we conjure up to avoid acting is endless!
Ultimately, all these excuses boil down to fear of failure. Fear keeps us paralyzed, unable to break through and take the all-important first step.
I’ve felt that paralyzing fear of failure in my life, and I bet you have as well.
My Call to Ministry
I felt the call to ministry for some time but always managed to shake off the feeling that God had another plan for me besides working at Procter & Gamble.
Then, in 2009, P&G announced a significant restructuring of the company. Once again, I felt the call to leave P&G and devote the rest of my life to ministry. However, this time, the voice in my head was louder and far more insistent.
I debated the decision in my head for weeks. I made my mind up to heed God’s call and leave my 36-year career at P&G, but I still hadn’t talked to my wife. So, I decided it was time to let my wife know about my mid-life crisis.
I bravely selected a noisy fast-food restaurant for the discussion. I wanted witnesses in case there was bloodshed. I nervously laid out the plan to leave P&G and begin a ministry life. She looked at me calmly, still munching on her hamburger, and said, “You must do what God has called you to do.”
Wait, that’s it? I stressed about this decision all this time, worrying about her reaction, and she simply says, “go for it.”
Submitting to God’s call and engaging my wife in the decision was the first step toward my life in ministry. All the stress of my excuses melted away once I cast my fears aside, trusting God and His plan for my life.
Trusting God Melts Fear Away
In the Old Testament, we learn how God promised to build Abraham into a great nation. Then God told Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac (Genesis 22). Can you imagine what was going on in Abraham’s mind as he took his only son Isaac up to carry out God’s instructions? Fear? Reluctance? Questioning God?
We don’t see that in Abraham’s reaction. Instead, we see Abraham’s confidence and trust in God. Abraham tells his servants he and Isaac are leaving to go to make a sacrifice, and they will return.
Abraham had total trust in God and His ability to fulfill His promise to make Abraham’s descendants into a great nation.
In the New Testament, we learn about impetuous Peter. Peter was in a boat during the night with the disciples when he sees Jesus walking on water toward them (Matthew 14). Peter tells Jesus he wants to walk on water with Him.
Jesus invites Peter to join Him, and without a second thought, Peter hops out of the boat and walks on water, joining Jesus.
Peter was not afraid to jump out of the boat and take the first step on the water because he had total faith and trust in Jesus.
Trusting Faith is the First Step
Taking the first step may, as Plato said, be “more than half” of the action. If taking the first step is so difficult for us, what can we do to make taking that first step easier?
The example of Abraham and Peter, along with dozens of others in the Bible, clearly tells us.
We must have faith and trust in God and His plan for our life. Trusting faith is the real first step. When we have that, taking the next step becomes an act of simply doing what God has called us to do!
If you feel God’s call on your life in a particular way and you find yourself reluctant to take the first step, then recognize fear is holding you back. Fear is a sign you lack faith and trust that God can and will enable you to do what He has called you to do!
More Articles
I have written many articles on our obedience to God. You can find them by typing “Obedience to God” in the search bar. Meanwhile, here are several of my favorites.
- #385: Is the Path You Are on the Right One?
- #365: Do You Lead Like an Owner or A Steward?
- #345: Disobedience to God Always Leads to Lost Opportunities
- #299: 3 Take-Aways From the Life of a Harlot
- #277: A Compass Can Only Point You in the Right Direction…
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. What first step are you afraid to take? What do you need to do to get started following God’s call on your life?
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Category: Personal Development | Obedience to God
It all starts with that first step. Thanks for the reminder, Ron, fear often keeps us from reaching our destiny.