I remember the first time I was asked to pray in front of a group. I panicked. I thought about actually grabbing my family and bolting toward the door of the church screaming. The random thoughts running through my mind ranged from “you don’t know your bible well enough to pray”, to “you can’t pray like the other women of the church” and finally “your prayer won’t make any sense”. Prayer, in my mind, was personal. How was I supposed to have a conversation with God, with all these people listening. It wasn’t until later I grasped the full understanding of corporate prayer and Matthew 18:20 “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

During my private prayer is where I asked God for boldness in all areas of my life. I desired to be bold in my faith and knowledge. In return, He has put people in my life to push me outside of my comfort zone. I also prayed that God would sharpen my gifts in the areas of coaching and speaking, as a result He has given me Christian messages to speak to the congregation. God is answering my prayers and giving me the courage I lacked so many years ago. I believe that once you pray over your gift, God will bless it that much more.

I am now taking on another new bold journey. In the next couple of weeks I will be teaching Sunday School for the very first time. As usual, when I am asked to do something of this magnitude, my old enemy, fear, tries to creep it’s ugly little head up. However, today is a new day, so those same old tricks no longer work. I’ve accepted the ask and am preparing to teach from the book of James. God has gifted me for a purpose. As I study and prepare to teach, I am continuing to pray for boldness in this lesson. One thing I am confident about, is that if God provides an opportunity, He will also provide what we need to be successful.

Bolder Sisters, have you ever been asked to take on a task that had you completely frightened? How did you handle it?