When I was younger, I prayed and asked God for wisdom, and then things got harder. A man who owned a number of T.V. stations asked me, a totally green and novice pastor’s kid, to go to Hamburg, Germany to be a news anchor and cover a big expo event. Excited about the opportunity to see Europe and to be on television, I gladly accepted the invitation. However, when I arrived, I discovered that something strange happened to me every time I got in front of the camera. Though I was usually quick with a word or a joke, I became totally intimidated and could not stop messing up. I would do take after take, and at one point, the whole crew got upset and went to lunch because I kept flubbing. As you can imagine, this was extremely humiliating, and I wanted to give up and go home. Nevertheless, I woke up day after day, gave it one more try, and although it never became effortless, it did get easier. However, after that experience, I figured television was definitely not for me. 

Strangely, years later, I was asked to be on T.V. again, this time on TLC’s show “The Messengers,” in which I was to be a judge of other people’s speeches. Though I did better this time, the show did not do well overall, and once more, I was disappointed and felt like a failure. Little could I have imagined that only a few years later the Crystal Cathedral would face hard times and I would be asked to preach on Hour of Power. It wasn’t until that point that I understood why God had called me to previous television experience and why those opportunities had failed: He was preparing me for my bigger calling. 

Friend, on this New Year’s Eve, I ask you to take a moment and pray for wisdom in the new year, then believe in faith you have received it. Thank God that He is using every circumstance in your life to prepare you for even greater things, and remember that sometimes you have to fail in the areas you will ultimately master. No matter how hard it gets, Jesus has your back, so rest in His sufficiency this year and you will go far!