Conversation ceases. A pool of eyes follows you to your seat. Time unfolds at a snail’s pace as you take in the atmosphere. A ripple of nervous energy races up and down your spine. Is this the place of acceptance? Rubbing a crease, you bounce your legs up and down. Will warm smiles or icy stares meet your gaze?
Your imagination takes the reins and runs wild, breaking free from all barricades. “You come from _____?” “You went to that school?” “Your family comes from ___________?” “You grew up there?” “You studied at that university?” “You work there?” Is that pity or scorn? Do you assume judgment awaits every word that proceeds from your mouth? You shrink further into your seat and wonder why you tried.
Drape grief or trauma around your shoulders and the elephant in the room grows until it squeezes your very breath in the corner you hide. Is it inevitable? Are you bricked into that corner for the rest of your life? Treading the water of past mistakes? Floundering in a flurry of accusations or your own assumptions? The answer is a resounding NO!
Our legacy is not determined by circumstances, position, birth, education, or wealth. Choice decides our legacy.
“God chose us in Christ to be holy and blameless in God’s presence before the creation of the world. God destined us to be his adopted children through Jesus Christ because of his love. This was according to his goodwill and plan.” (Ephesians 1:4,5 CEB)
The Creator of all set his sights on us, his creation. Now it’s our turn to respond to his invitation. Will we entertain lies that say we don’t belong or measure up? Or lies that location and family heritage deny us access? Will we say yes to our Creator and lay down those man-made burdens? Assumptions keep us from stepping into the brand-new life Jesus Christ has for us. Faulty thinking blockades our growth. ‘I can do it on my own’; ‘no one understands me’; ‘I’m better than most people’; ‘I’m not all bad, I’ve done enough good things’. The Father invites us to enter a relationship with Him.
Perhaps you wonder if a relationship with the Creator of all transforms anyone else. The angel of the Lord declared Gideon a mighty warrior. God met him hiding in a winepress from the enemy. David was the youngest of seven boys. God made him a king of mighty men. Ruth, a despised barren Moabitess widow, becomes a beloved grandmother. Nicky Cruz, gangster turned preacher. Tamara Wanner, timid and bullied, becomes a recording artist and writer. There is no end to the possibilities of transformation when you enter a relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ, which is empowered by the Holy Spirit.
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