Monday, April 30, 2012

My Own Story

(Written 4/16/12)

These past few weeks have been so awesome for me. The Lord revealed to me something that completely changed my life and brought me closer to him. Through this experience, I’ve learned of the faithfulness of God, that He loves me, that He is immensely Holy, and so many other things (I could probably write a novel about this, and hey! Maybe one day I will), but the one thing I want to talk about is how important it is to really trust in what the Lord is telling you.

When this was first revealed to me, I was like WHAT THE HECK, This is crazy, but then I learned of five other people who were going through the same thing, so right then, I knew that the Lord was up to something good. One day, 4 of us got together to talk about our stories. As I was listening to other people’s stories, I realized that I was beginning to think that my story wasn’t right or true because the other stories were different from mine.

And it was then that I realized this was a lie. My story was 100% true and holy, just as true as the other ones. I had begun to believe that the Lord speaks to everyone in different ways, and that the Lord has a different story planned out for everyone. No one’s life story is the same, so no one’s story is comparable.

It’s just like trying to compare the nutritional value of Swedish fish to carrots. There simply is no grounds for comparison, because we all know that the candy is obviously much more unhealthy than the carrot.

So, how do I know that everyone was created for a unique and specific purpose, and that the Lord works differently in all people’s lives? Here’s some scriptural evidence:

1 John 2:26-27- “I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie- just as it has taught you, abide in him.”

Here, we see that it is clear that the only thing we need to know of the truth of the Lord is from him. We need to be careful about what outside influences tell us, because they could distract us from what the Lord is trying to tell us specifically. This is not surprising according to our purpose, since we were designed to have an intimate relationship with the Lord.

1 Corinthians 12:12-15 – “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body- Jews or Greeks, slaves or free- and all were made to drink of one Spirit.  For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body.”
This passage is explaining that all people have an essential role in the kingdom of God. Some were meant to teach, others to perform miracles, some to heal, others to help, others to be pastors, etc., but all are equally important. This is so essential to remember because often, we devalue ourselves in saying that our role is not as important as someone else’s.

I do my fair share of this in my own life. Something that I struggle with is believing that my major is important. I’m a History major with a Political Science minor. What the heck will I do with that? Often times, I don’t feel as legitimate as those around me who are education majors in a certain field. I feel that since they are education majors, they are going for something more legitimate, and are more likely to get a job.

However, I have to keep telling myself this is not true. I have to trust in what the Lord is telling me to do, and right now, he wants me to major in History. I have to trust that he is going to use this somehow down the line in my life. I also have to trust that after I graduate, he will provide me with a job or some type of purpose to fulfill, whether that job has to do with my major or not.

1 John 3:1- “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.”

Matthew 7:10-11- “Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

To me, this verse tells me that the Lord has created a specific purpose for us and talks to us in different ways because He loves us and we are His children. How awesome is that! If you are a parent, think about how much you love your children. In the same way, the Lord loves us like that, but to an even greater extent because He is perfect and holy. Why would he not want to have a unique and special relationship with us?

I think another huge problem that comes from comparison is low self-esteem. Today, I had a friend text me and ask me to pray for her because she was struggling with her body image. We ended up getting lunch today, and she was able to tell me a lot more about what was going on.

I heard her say that she felt like she was too tall, too big, and not pretty enough compared to everyone else. That broke my heart, because I know that is not true. One of the things I found so important to tell her is that God made her unique, special, and for a special purpose that is different from everybody else in the world. After hearing this today, I came to realize how many people actually struggle with this, and it’s part of the reason why I felt the need to write this.

In conclusion, please believe that you are unique and have a specific life purpose that is different from everyone else. Go out into the world with confidence in the Lord, yourself, and your purpose. Nothing about you or your life makes you more inadequate, it only makes you different than everyone else.

And different is beautiful.

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