Who Am I?: When the Assignment Feels Bigger Than You
“But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?’” — Exodus 3:11 (ESV)
A note from Blake: I wrote this years ago, when I first sensed God nudging me to publish my writing and felt completely unqualified to do it. I almost kept it to myself. I’m sharing it now because of what came next: by God’s grace, I’ve written this devotional nearly every weekday for 11 years, and what began as “daily scribbles” has grown into a podcast, social media videos, and a 400-page book on parenting. I don’t say that to impress you — I say it because God kept the very promise at the heart of this piece: He was with me the whole way. If you feel too small for what He’s asking, I hope this gives you the courage to take the step.
Have you ever sensed the Lord asking you to do something you feel completely unequipped to do? I’m living in that tension right now.
Here’s my dilemma. I sense the Lord encouraging me to publish some of my writings — yet I feel totally inadequate to do so. The loudest voice in my head says, “Who in their right mind would want to read what I have to say?” I have no special qualifications. No degrees. No formal training. Nothing to offer, it seems, but my daily scribbles.
And there’s a trap waiting on the other side, too. When I try to shake off inadequacy, the only way forward seems to be convincing myself I’m adequate — that I really do have something worth saying. But then I recoil. Isn’t that just pride? Am I making myself out to be some great writer people ought to read? I don’t want to come across that way, so I retreat to “just keep it to yourself” — and the whole cycle starts over. Inadequacy on one side, fear of arrogance on the other, and me stuck in the middle.
Then I read Exodus 3:11 and realized I wasn’t alone in feeling this way. God appears to Moses in a burning bush and gives him an assignment that dwarfs anything I’m facing: go to Pharaoh and lead an enslaved nation out of Egypt. Moses’ response? “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Exodus 3:11, ESV). That’s my exact question. Who am I? Compared with standing before Pharaoh, publishing a little book seems small — but the feeling is the same.
Here’s what stopped me, though. Look at how God answers. He doesn’t say, “Moses, you’re more capable than you think.” He doesn’t hand him a résumé or offer a pep talk. He says six words that change everything: “But I will be with you” (Exodus 3:12, ESV). That’s the answer. Not “you’re adequate.” Not “you’re qualified.” Just “I will be with you.”
Do you see what that does? It dismantles the whole trap. “Who am I?” was the wrong question all along. It was never about whether I’m adequate or whether it’s arrogant to think so. The assignment was never resting on me — it rests on Him. I don’t have to manufacture confidence, nor do I have to shrink back into false humility. I just have to trust the One who promised to go with me.
That changes how the work gets done. When God gives an assignment, He doesn’t leave us to summon the strength on our own — He supplies it. We’re the hands and feet, but He’s the one who energizes, empowers, and enables the whole thing. The task gets completed through us, but by Him. So the goal was never to feel ready. It’s to move, trusting that the God who called me will be with me the whole way.
Which brings me to something I can’t ignore. This devotional you’re reading? It’s the first step. I’m not writing about obedience from the far side of it — I’m taking it right now, in front of you, still feeling every bit of the inadequacy. Who am I to publish this? Wrong question. Is God with me? He said He would be. So here it is.
I still don’t feel adequate — but I’ve finally stopped asking who I am, and started trusting Who goes with me.
Big Idea
God never gives an assignment without supplying what it takes to complete it. He doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.
Questions to Ponder
Are you in a situation where you sense the Lord nudging you toward something you feel ill-equipped to do? What self-sabotaging messages play on repeat when you consider it? When you ask “Who am I?” what would change if you let God answer as He did for Moses — not “you’re enough,” but “I am with you”? What’s the one next step of obedience in front of you?
Application
With your journal in hand, name the assignment you’ve been avoiding — the one you sense God nudging you toward, even though you feel unqualified. Write down the voices that dissuade you: inadequacy on one side, fear of arrogance on the other. List out what they say. Then write Exodus 3:12 across the top of the page: “I will be with you.” Ask God not to make you feel adequate, but to help you trust His presence. Then take one concrete step this week — however small. You don’t have to feel ready. You just have to move with the One who goes with you.
Before the Lord — a daily devotional by Blake S. Crawford. Read more and subscribe free at blakescrawford.com/before-the-lord.