The Fear Of Being Average

Dear Praise Family,

Last week my family and I were serving at Tuscarora for Teen Week. Teen Week is a week-long teen camp (I know, a misnomer, right?) designed to be a retreat for students to get away from their everyday lives, cut out distractions, and allow the Lord to speak. Every year, our prayer is that God would show up mightily and allow our students to hear of His amazing grace, and this year He has certainly done that! What is amazing about God’s Word is that when it is preached, it doesn’t just speak to the students who come, but to all that are listening, including me.

This year, our theme was “Fear Not” and each session focused on many of our common fears: the fear of death, the fear of rejection, the fear of being alone, and the fear of failure. While all of those themes struck a chord with me, none was louder than the fear of being average. At first glance, this doesn’t seem like something to be afraid of, but as this message was preached, I realized just how often this fear rears its ugly head in my own life.

It seems like there is always something in life that we want to be the best at or at least above average in. It is common to teach our kids to try their best in school, to get the best grades, to get the highest SAT scores, so they can get in the best schools, so that you can get the best jobs, all while beating out the competition and standing above the rest. It is in our nature to want to be better than others, whether it is at school, work, in our hobbies, with our finances, or whatever else it is that you value in life.

If I’m honest, this fear of being average certainly affects me in all of these areas. I can’t tell you how many times the thought of being “average” has haunted me. It is in something as silly as wanting to be the fastest mountain biker on the mountain or the best basketball player on the court. I don’t want to be average; I want to be above average. This fear follows me into other, more significant areas of my life, too. As a dad, I don’t want to be average; I want to be the best! I don’t want to be an average pastor; I want to be the best around so that people will want to come to my church and I want our church to grow because of it!

But the fact of the matter is, I’m average. And that scares me. I’m not the best at any of these things. There are better athletes, better dads, and certainly better pastors than me. For that matter, there are better husbands, better carpenters, better writers, better planners, better leaders, and the list could go on and on.

I am average. Being average isn’t something for me to fear because God didn’t come to rescue the best. He came to rescue those who know that they aren’t the best! Realistically, He came to rescue the worst; those who recognize their sin and those who know that their good works will never be enough. Second Corinthians 12:9 says, “My [Christ’s] grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” And my weakness is ever before me. But the apostle Paul also writes, “Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” It is Christ who strengthens us!

So, I’m average. You may be, too. But in Christ, God graciously gives to us so that He can use our average selves to do great things for His Kingdom!


Sincerely in Christ,

Pastor Evan