God responds to shameless audacity and strong-willed tenacity search for Him

This week, I had the opportunity to share a class presentation about Gladys Aylward, a British missionary to China. What stayed with me was her willingness to follow God even when others questioned whether she was capable.

Gladys had little formal education, and her time in missionary training ended with the discouraging assessment that she was not suited for the work. Yet her desire to serve remained. Her journey was far from easy, but she went on to care for people in China in ways that continue to inspire others generations later.

Her story left me wondering how often we mistake someone’s limitations for the limits of what God can do through them.

Less than two days later, I was sitting around a table with some students when one of them let out a deep sigh.

“Guys, I don’t know how I feel about taking Bible classes anymore. I don’t think this is for me. I’ve done so badly on my papers.”

She looked close to tears, and my heart sank. Something meant to help her understand Scripture had become a place where she felt she did not belong.

I wondered how many others were carrying that same feeling.

Since coming to America, I have met people whose knowledge of the Bible amazes me. They can recall passages, explain difficult ideas, and ask questions I would never have thought to ask. I admire that knowledge, and I have learned so much from people who study Scripture carefully.

But I will be honest: sometimes I have felt intimidated too.

I once overheard a student say, “The Bible has its own people, the Bible majors. That’s not me. I’ll just read mine on my own.”

That stayed with me. Somewhere along the way, this student had begun to feel that understanding Scripture belonged to a particular group of people.

There is so much value in studying the Bible deeply. Good teaching can help us understand its context, wrestle with difficult passages, and grow in wisdom. Yet I hope our classrooms and churches also communicate something clearly: there is room here for the person who is still learning how to begin.

A disappointing grade can show us where we need help with an assignment. It cannot measure our worth, our love for God, or the whole of what He is doing in our lives.

And college students are carrying a lot.

For many, this is their first time living away from home, finding a church, and thinking through beliefs they have inherited from their families. They are making friends, managing expectations, and wondering who they will become. Then a Bible class introduces questions they have never considered, and suddenly familiar answers feel less simple.

We should meet that season with patience. Sometimes a question is an honest attempt to understand. Sometimes doubt is spoken aloud because someone hopes there is a safe place to work through it.

I want us to become people who can listen without rushing to judge, who can say, “That is a difficult question. Let’s explore it together.”

I also know how easily faith can begin to feel like another thing we are supposed to perform well.

We know we should pray, read Scripture, attend church, and love God. But when those things become a way of proving ourselves, we can grow tired. We may keep saying the right words while quietly wondering why we feel so distant.

One of the most comforting truths about God is that we can be honest with Him.

He already knows us deeply. He knows the questions we hesitate to ask, the distractions we struggle with, and the days when prayer feels difficult. We do not have to put together a more impressive version of ourselves before approaching Him.

We can say, “God, I want to know You, but I feel overwhelmed.”

“I don’t understand this.”

“I need help.”

There is room for those prayers.

We will never fully comprehend everything about God. That can be humbling, especially when we want clear answers. Still, we can keep learning. We can ask thoughtful questions, receive guidance, and trust that what we do not yet understand does not make us unwelcome in His presence.

Gladys’s story reminds me that we do not need to have every qualification or every answer before taking a faithful step. We can learn along the way. We can receive help. We can grow through setbacks without allowing them to become the final word over our lives.

So, to the student discouraged by a paper, the young person trying to find a church, or anyone who feels behind in their faith: keep making room for God.

Read the passage again. Ask the question. Talk to someone patient and trustworthy. Pray in your own words, even if they are simple.

And remember that His love comes before your achievement. You do not have to become the smartest person in the room to be loved by Him.

My prayer for my generation is that we will grow in both understanding and love. That our learning will make us more compassionate, our churches will make room for honest questions, and our friendships will help us keep seeking God.

He is a good Father who is wise, patient, and attentive. You can come to Him as you are, with much still to learn and a heart that is finding its way.

There is room for you at His table.