Don't Shrink

You were made to SHINE.  Seriously, you were made to shine.  You were made in the image of the Creator of the Universe, who shines so brightly, that the Bible says in heaven we won't even need the sun.  You were fearfully and wonderfully made by the Divine glorious Creator of everything beautiful.  You were made to bring GLORY to GOD.  You were made to be an image bearer of the most glorious, incomprehensible beauty...  so let me ask you this???  Why aren't YOU?  

Why aren't you running wild in your beauty and gifts?  Why am I not living in the glory I was created to live in?  When did we stop?  Why did we stop?  More importantly, who are we hurting by NOT living up to our fullest potential?  When did we give up on our hopes and dreams?  When did we lose our passion?

I can tell you when I lost mine...  There was this moment in my life that I was on top of the world.  I was doing the thing I was made to do and I was loving it.  I LOVE to teach.  I LOVE women's bible studies.  I LOVE to motivate women to love Jesus with all of their hearts and encourage them to trust Him completely and some people say I'm pretty good at it.  It's the burning passion in my soul.  It's the thing that lights me up inside and something I know I was made to do.  Anyway, I was really doing my "thang" and in the groove, running my race and it felt AMAZING, but just when it was really feeling good and I was hitting my stride, I made fatal mistake...  I looked around.  

I looked around at the other runners and I started comparing myself to them.  "She's better than me, she's smarter, she's funnier, she had a degree, she this, she that".   Then I looked at the people in the stands and heard the remarks from the people on the sidelines and that sealed my fate.  I stumbled, lost my confidence and took a fall and I stayed there.  Limping off the track I began to tell myself I'm just not good enough.  Eventually, I gave up on all the things I loved, because of some phantom voice, who told me I wasn't good enough.  

Forget the fact that I was made for this.  The burning in my soul that compels me to do this thing tells me I was made for this.  My love for women tells me I was made for this.  My passion for yelling on the roof tops anything I am learning about God, love and life, all drive me to do this thing.  The only thing that mattered was this belief that I latched onto and it began to control my life.  Eventually, I kind of just gave up on me.  The belief that I wasn't good enough saturated into every area of my life.  My thoughts became a constant rumination of all that I'm not.

Recently, I've learned this concept that I will call "the mirror" and it goes like this...  people are a mirror for us.  In other people we are able to see things that reflect back to us about ourselves.  Some things are good and some things that we would do well to work on.  Sometimes, we may see things we envy and that clues us into the fact that we are not living up to our potential in that are of our lives.  Other times, we may see things that motivate or challenge us to strive to reach our goals.  We can be inspired by others if we allow the mirror to have it's desired effect.  

Lately, I have see the mirror effect in two of my sons...  they are both gifted athletes (that's not the mirror part) 😉 and I can say that because their physical abilities didn't come from me.  They have both been told on numerous occasions, they have been blessed with athletic ability and they have potential to go far on the field.  When they were younger they both shined on the field, but somewhere along the way as they have gotten older and more aware of "other people" the light has dimmed a little in their eyes.  I can tell they are starting to believe that little lie of "not enough".  I can see it when they come off the field feeling like they could have done better.  I can tell they have lost confidence and don't believe in themselves as much as they used to.  It's hard to watch because I know the potential that each one of them has.  

It's also sad because losing confidence isn't just about them...  Football is a team sport and when anyone on the team isn't playing their position to the fullest potential, it effects the whole team.  There are 10 other players on that field that need them to play at their best.  When everyone is playing their position to the best of their (GOD-given) ability's  YOU WIN GAMES.  

It's the same in this life that we are living for Jesus...  we are in this together and when everyone is walking in their gifts and calling...  GOD IS GLORIFIED!  We are made to bring GLORY to GOD.  When the sun does what it was made to do it brings glory to GOD.  When the moon does what it was created to do, it brings glory to GOD.  When we do what we were made to do and we do it with all of our hearts, as unto the LORD, we bring Him glory.  When we are do it together we win games.

Thinking about this reminded me of the story of David and Goliath.  For 40 days the army of Israel lined up on one side of a valley, dressed in battle gear and shaking in their sandals, wondering who would fight the giant.  Forty days in a row they got up, lined up in battle formation and did nothing.  Every man from the King to the armor-bearer was paralyzed by fear.   Until David, a teenage shepherd, showed up to check on his brothers.  

David was stunned by what He saw...   The army of the LIVING GOD was standing there being mocked and insulted by a Philistine barbarian. You know the story so I won't rehash it here, but the part I want to concentrate on is what happens after David steps up and slays the giant.

"David ran and stood over him.  He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the sheath.  After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword.  When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead they turned and ran.  THEN THE MEN OF JUDAH SURGED FORWARD WITH A SHOUT AND PURSUED THE PHILISTINES TO THE ENTRANCE OF GATH AND TO THE GATES OF EKRON."  

When David believed God, he didn't doubt himself.  When David believed God, he didn't fear the giant.  When David believed God it didn't matter what his brothers or the king said...  When David believed God he knew that all things were possible.  If all things were possible then that meant God could use a shepherd boy to slay a mighty giant.  And when David believed God, he inspired a whole nation of men to believe God too.  He inspired them to get in the fight and defeat their enemies.  He inspired them to live a life of purpose for the GLORY OF GOD.  He inspired them to walk in the promises that they had been given.  

The same goes for you...  When you believe God and you walk in the purpose and passions that God has placed your heart you will inspire others to do the same.  You will inspire people to fight their battles and defeat their enemies.  When you shine, other people shine.  

"And WHATEVER you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the LORD Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."  Colossians 3:17

"WHATEVER you do, work at it with all of your heart, as working for the LORD and not for man..." Colossians 3:23

So here's my question for you...  in what area are you shrinking?  Where are you not reaching your full potential?  Why?  What thoughts and beliefs are keeping you from being and doing all that you were created to do?  And lastly...  who could you inspire if you decided to go all in and overcoming your self-imposed limitations???