In my last blog post I talked about the labels you may be putting on others but in this post I would like to talk to you about the labels you may be putting on yourself. We all talk to ourselves everyday. We probably talk more to ourselves than we do to other people even if we do not realize it. As you are reading this you are probably thinking do I really talk to myself that much? Well you are proving that theory already if you thought anything like that.
My question is what kinds of things are you saying about yourself to yourself? What label have you put on yourself? Some of the labels could be I am no good. I do not deserve anything good. God can’t love me. Everything I do is bad. Nothing I do works out. I am a loser. I am fat, I am skinny, I am shy, I am talkative. I am not _______ or I am not _______. What have you labeled yourself as?
There is a label you have on yourself and the only way to rid yourself of that is to give it to Christ. It is the only way. We live in a society of labels but we do not have to live within those labels. The only label you should accept is that you are radical for Christ or something to that nature. Granted you may disagree with me there if you don’t believe what I believe in.
God didn’t make any junk. We are all worthy of him if we just bow to our knees and ask him either into our lives or back into our lives. God wants only the best for you. He does not want you labeling yourself with bad things. That only leads you to do careless things that you will eventually regret.
The more you put labels on yourself the more in bondage you become. Christ didn’t come for us to be in bondage but to set us free from all bondage. When we come to Christ we are free. It is we who may not accept this freedom but once you lay it all on the line to God, he will take care of it for you.
Labels limit what you can do. I see people all the time who say things like that is just not me. I am not __________ and you can fill in the blank. What I have realized is that once you come to Christ you are a new creation, meaning that all things are new. So that means what you thought about you now can change if you allow God to work in your heart.
Don’t let who you think you are to stop you from becoming who God called you to be. I see people say I am shy therefore God can’t use me in a speaking capacity but that is so far from the truth. If God wants you to speak to groups of people, he will guide you to that even if you think you can’t.
God isn’t looking for your ability, he is looking for your availability. If you are available then God can and will use you in a mighty way for his purpose. Many people put limitations on God because of their perceived labels that they have put on themselves. I am asking you to remove your labels and come completely naked to God and allow him to use you in whatever way he chooses without you interfering with him.
Ask God to give you the courage to lay your labels at the foot of the Cross. Ask him to guide you to where he is leading you and you will follow. Ask him to give you the wisdom to know when you are putting limiting labels on yourself so that you can drop them at his feet.
Be Inspired or Be Left Behind!
Chris Benton