Know Who You Are Not!
In the New Testament as John was baptizing and the people said, "are you the Christ?"
Without missing a beat John said, "no I'm not!"
Friends, it's important to know who you are but but also who you're not.
Sometimes in this game called life we try to be who we are not. However, God made you who you are because he needs you to be who you are... that's why you are who you are.
When you feel yourself getting overwhelmed with expectations of what other people think you should be remember this:
You are custom engineered by God with his finger print in your DNA code.
At times in life all of us get stuck between expectations and reality. We know what and who we are "expected to be" however there is a gap between expectation and reality. This gap causes anxiety and depression as we realize we are not who we are "supposed" to be.
When this happens we feel insignificant which triggers uncertainty. When we are uncertain we lose focus and become fearful as our perceived importance in life dramatically drops. This causes disappointment which turns into regret. Regret turns into bitterness causing us to become stiff... etc.. This happens when our sympathetic nervous system reacts sending a signal to our brain to chemically release adrenaline and cortisol causing us to be in a state of "fight or flee" to protect us from the insecurity that ensues... The result of this can be devastating to the person experiencing it as he/she tries to cover the gap and the uncertainty with sarcasm, negativity, drugs, non moral relationships etc..If this situation isn't identified and dealt with sooner or later it will surface causing devastation.
So what do you do to get back on track?
You drop, tuck and role out of it just like a fireman does when he/she is on fire. Think of the gap and the insignificance factor as a fire you must role out of. Emotions, regret, bitterness, unforgiveness harsh critical words etc... are meaningless when you are on fire. The only thing that matters is getting out of the fire to safety. Now that you are safe you are suddenly significant and certain again closing the gap of expectations and reality.
Our drop, tuck and role is our humbleness before our maker as we bow our heart, mind and soul to Him as He gets us out of the fire.
Now that we know what caused the fire we must identify who caused the fire? When we take 100% of the responsibility we will have 100% control of our situation. 99% will not get it done! It must be 100% or we will continue on the road to destruction.
RP
Sent from my iPhone
Please disregard any spelling errors as this e-mail is sent from my IPhone which can also include errors from the auto correct feature as well.
Rick Ponder
7060 Koll Center Parkway, Suite 300
Pleasanton
California 94566 USA
Tel: (925) 931 1300
Toll Free: 888.553.8555
Fax: 925.931.1363
