“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12

The Wizard of Oz begins with a house falling on a witch and a little girl named Dorothy going on a journey. Dorothy follows the Yellow Brick Road, reaches the Wicked Witch’s castle, throws the bucket of water that splashes her, is given the broomstick of the melted witch, and returns triumphantly to the Wizard’s Emerald City, broomstick in hand. Then Dorothy finds out from Glinda the Good Witch that, the whole time, all she had to do was click her heels to get where she wanted to be.

Believe God

Maybe you’re on a journey and you’re all worried about “I have to do this . . . I have to do that . . .” to get to where you’re supposed to be.

No. All you have to do is believe God. Why? Because you have everything you need to do what God’s called you to do. God will never call you to do something that he hasn’t prepared you to do.

As church leaders, we must come to this realization so that we may help others within our church to believe it, too. Ephesians 2:10 says we are created “for good works, which God prepared beforehand” for us to do. As leaders, we must empower church members to find these works and do them.

Many of your church members are being called to do great things, but they never get to because they’re too busy hunting for the witch’s broom. Or maybe they’re still in the flying monkeys’ clutches, or lost in the poppy field. They must learn to click their heels, to believe in God.

At the Rock Church, Theresa, a former stripper and escort, helped start the JC’s Girls ministry, which reaches out to women in the adult entertainment industry. Tamela, who experienced leukemia first-hand, runs the Rock’s Cancer C.A.R.E.* ministry, which helps others through their cancer journey in any way possible. Perri, who was raised by a single mom, leads the Never Knew a Father’s Love ministry, which is dedicated to reaching those who grew up, or are growing up, without a loving father figure.

These are just three stories of people who realized all they had to do was believe God. The Rock Church sponsors more than 100 ministries, all led by individuals like Theresa, Tamela, and Perri who responded to God’s call.

Imagine what the universal church could do if everyone truly believed God.

God Empowers You

God has prepared each of us for a specific purpose. There will be pain: you’ll hurt today, but you’ll be okay tomorrow. It is God who empowers us to do something individually and as a church. God is the one who works with or refines your passions to help you do something.

We are all called to respond—to do something. We are called to do something, but not everything.

As leaders, we must lead, but we must remember that we aren’t told to do everything. God has called people to specific tasks, and we must encourage them to pursue these tasks -- to put on their ruby red slippers and click their heels. 

We all have Christ, and we must learn to click our heels in belief. 

This post originally appeared on ChurchLeaders.com. Miles will be speaking at our upcoming 2012 Resurgence Conference in October. Early Registration ends next week, so be sure to sign up now to get the best price.