Catalyst Track: Shaken // Day One

Whatever obstacles you are facing, whatever struggle you have with not fitting in, whether you feel you aren’t pretty enough, strong enough, big enough, fast enough, or smart enough, know that God created you perfect. You are wonderfully made. You are skillfully made. You are not an accident. You are not a mistake.

In this 3-day track, Tim challenges us in a challenging topic that seems to come up frequently in life – identity. As a leader, having a solid understanding of identity can frequently feel under attack as you launch that new product, receive feedback about your sermons or run your team meetings.

But it’s vital to continuously be reminded of the true reality of your identity so that you can lead from a place of strength.

Maybe you thought you had identity figured out, but you’ve struggled with worry and envy. If that’s true, take the next couple of days to look at your own heart and behavior and be reminded of truth.

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Day 1 – Purposefully Made

I have never woken up once in my life saying I wanted to be normal, aver­age. I never wanted to be like anyone else. I always wanted to be special. Much of this outlook stemmed from my parents’ constant encouragement as long as I can remember. They repeatedly told me and my siblings,

“God has a special plan for you.”

               “You are not like everyone else.”

               “You are unique.”

Having this ingrained in my head helped to lay a solid foundation of identity in my life. I never saw the point of being normal. Now, I know not all parents are encouraging or supportive. But just because we may not have been told how special we are from our family doesn’t mean that we’re not; we just might have to work harder to believe it.

It’s time to circle back to our identity in God. He created each of us in a unique way for a reason. We are each different in how we look, how we think, how we create, how we process information. We also have different life expe­riences, good or bad. If you were born with a disability, if you experienced a traumatic upbringing, if you don’t have the same social graces as Mr. Popu­larity down the hall, if you struggle with a learning or a physical disability, it can be tempting to say things like

“God must have made a mistake.”

              “I want to be someone else.”

              “I wasn’t created the way I should have been.”

God would disagree.

I like to think of parts of the Bible as a collection of love letters He wrote for His children. One of them powerfully paints a picture of how wonderful we are, of how special He purposely made us. In this psalm, the writer reflects on this truth. Read it out loud as if you wrote these words.

 

For You [God] formed my inward parts;

You wove me in my mother’s womb.

I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Wonderful are Your works,

And my soul knows it very well.

My frame was not hidden from You,

When I was made in secret,

And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;

Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;

And in Your book were all written

The days that were ordained for me,

When as yet there was not one of them.

How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!

How vast is the sum of them!

If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand. (Psalm 139:13-18)

 

REFLECT:

1.What are those parts of yourself you tend to criticize?

2.How does knowing you were purposefully made impact the way you view those frustrations?