Some events have made deep and lasting impressions, especially on young lives, that carry over into adulthood. The effects of bullying from others who you think you will never measure up to, the individual who is held in high esteem. When you make mistakes, it seems to validate the negative things that have been said about you, as if you can see that person and hear their voice.
Other people can sometimes see a person’s potential better than they can themselves. It’s easy, at times, to devalue your contribution when you focus and measure yourself against other people’s talents and gifts. I have been around people who couldn’t see their own value, which made it challenging to encourage them to dig a little deeper for a breakthrough!
I have observed some situations in a person’s life that can make or break them, through their choices. For example, a person can take those negative words that were spoken and use them to propel themselves over the walls that others have erected to hold them back. Or, on the other hand, those negative words can imprison a person to the extent that they succumb to guilt, depression, addiction, and sometimes crime.
Today, you may know someone who had a difficult childhood, which has affected their attitude toward themselves and others. If you listen carefully, you can hear the pain in their conversations and how they habitually put other people down to lift themselves up. A good practice is to acknowledge your brokenness and to bless the other person’s life, thereby disarming them.
I believe that we were all created with the potential for greatness and to be the best human beings and friends we can be, even to the very broken. I’m so grateful that I have lived and am living to reach my fullest potential to love, forgive, accept, and encourage others to do the same.
It can be easy to be critical of others when you have had better opportunities and people in your life who held the door of Second Chances open for you. This occurred to me, rather than people giving their business cards, why not give Second Chance Cards to people who need a little grace?
Regardless of past failures, each day that we wake up is a day to make a difference. Let’s not allow the past to determine our future. It’s a New Year and a New Day to discover how God desires to bless us.
Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
As always, please join us in celebrating Life at the Villages Community Chapel in Cribari Auditorium this Sunday at 10 a.m. to be encouraged by the Word of Life and enjoy coffee and cookies with friends. The chapel is a place where needs are met, faith is affirmed, and new friends are made. You can view our worship services on YouTube at www.villagescommunitychapel.vgcc.club