Under-qualified + Overpaid
Have you ever walked into a room and immediately felt under qualified to be there? Maybe you were surrounded by people who knew more than you, were more confident than you, or were farther along in their journey than you? Well, let me tell you a story when I felt this way.
Late last fall, I was working for an organization called the Institute for Global Engagement- an organization that advocates for religious freedom for all faiths all over the world. I was working for a program that specifically advocated for women of faith using their voice in this context of advocacy, peace-building, policy, etc. (SUPER INCREDIBLE PROGRAM with amazing world changers!!)
One of our big workshops was taking place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. We were to split our two week trip into two parts. The first part was for our own programming and the second week was dedicated to the Religion and Rule of Law Conference which was being hosted as a partnership between our organization and the president of Uzbekistan. (Crazy- I know!) Religious freedom experts, religious leaders, politicians, diplomats, and who knows who else showed up to this conference and lets just say⦠I was pretty intimidated. I was just this 22 year old, recent grad from a suburb of Baltimore who was somehow invited to this shindig in Uzbekistan.
HOW ON EARTH DID I END UP HERE ?ββββββββ
Recap from our programβs trip to Uzbekistan!
I stuck out like the sorest thumb you have ever seen. I was by far the youngest one there. Women were already in the minority and I was tall and blonde. (Which contributed to some hilarious stories about eligible suitors coming my way- so I ended up being the joke of the trip , but hey.. what are ya gonna do!) I definitely didnβt blend in to their middle eastern vibe. Nevertheless, I knew that I had no other choice than to be myself. I could let my feeling of inferiority keep me quiet or I could walk in like I owned the placeβ¦ okay, maybe not that confident but somewhere in between.
The day before the women in our program were scheduled to present some of their research, my program director asked me to be the βhostβ of the program seminar by preparing an introduction for each our our fellows. Talk about nervous!! I had to stand up in front of the entire international delegation and speak at a podiumβ¦ not once, but multiple times. 8 times to be exact. Later that night - we all were invited to the home of the US Ambassador in Uzbekistan. What an honor!
Why am I telling you this story?
Well, other than sharing about a formative experience in my life - I have realized thisβ¦
I WILL ALWAYS BE UNDER-QUALIFIED AND OVERPAID.
There is a reason why society loves a good underdog story. There is something so profound about someone rising from the ashes to victory or the underqualified somehow overcoming the shoo-in. Why does that hit us so deeply? Because it is our spirit acknowledging the truth in our own reality.
WE are all underdogs. Underqualified. Missed the mark. Broken. Whatever you want to call it.
BUTβ¦
We have a God who knows us intimately and is pleased with His creation. He knows our weaknesses. He knows our sin. He knows our insecurities.
Yet, - even when we are completely unqualified - His Son, Jesus - OVERPAID for our freedom from the darkness.
Jesus qualifies me to be exactly who He created me to be. No - I am not an expert. I am not far in my career. I am not qualified to be a lot of the places my journey has taken me. BECAUSE of those factors, He is recognized all the more.
There are so many examples of God choosing the most unexpected people to move some huge mountains. We see it in scripture all the time:
The youngest shepherd to slay a giant and later becomes the King
The orphaned girl who becomes the Queen to save her people from genocide
The man with a speech problem who speaks against a dictator and leads over 600,000 people out of slavery
The fishermen who were asked to start the movement that changed the world forever - the Church
The young woman who was asked to give birth to the Savior of the world
This Christmas, when you look at the nativity scene, I want you to recognize the irony in it. Who were the first people invited to celebrate the birth of Christ? It was the shepherds. The shepherds were considered the loners, the outcasts, the lowly. They were the under qualified, yet the angels appeared to them giving them the greatest opportunity of a lifetime - to know Him.
Our God wants to do the same for you. He wants you to boast in His qualifications and lay down your own for His glory. You will go so much farther - that I can promise you. God has bigger and better plans for you than you could ever fathom, so surrender and watch Him use you.
It has changed my life in more ways than one.
