We live in a world burdened with the heavy weight of unreasonable stereotypes.
You can’t be an introvert in an extroverted world.
You can’t rest if you really wanna be successful.
You can’t have dreams in a world of realistic demands.
You can’t have a soft heart in a world of hard people.
And, even though most of us will never truly come out and say these things, isn’t it true that we live as if they are all immeasurably true?
We live in a world where we are rewarded for having a strong voice, looked up to for working fifty to sixty hours a week with no rest, and applauded for having a heart that is hardened to the effects of the world around us. After all, isn’t that what constitutes the American Dream? Work hard, speak up, and do it without anybody else’s help - only then will you truly be successful.
These expectations, however, were never intended to be a “one size fits all” because the truth of the matter is, not everyone is energized by an extroverted personality. Not everyone can push through sixty hours of work and remain emotionally available. Not everyone wants to mindlessly invest 100% of their time to realistic obligations and demands or have a hardened heart toward a world of hardened people.
We were not all meant to fit into that unsatisfactory mold - that unreasonable expectation - because we are all fearfully and wonderfully made with unique personalities and abilities gifted us by the Creator of the universe and all that is in it.
1 Peter 4:10
As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
I have struggled with the effects of these worldly expectations all my life. I’ve starved myself because I didn’t look the part, I’ve spoken up or remained silent simply because it was expected of me to do so, and I’ve sacrificed much needed rest and time alone with God or family for countless hours of mindless action just so others wouldn’t look down on me.
But the thing about it is, even then the people around me weren’t satisfied with who I was. Even then, I didn’t seem to measure up.
First, I was an athlete that didn’t have the right body shape, then I was a college student that didn’t have the future strategically mapped. Then I was a dreamer that held dreams far too unrealistic for a world of rational, realistic people, and then a missionary who couldn’t speak.
All my life I’ve fallen short of someone's expectations, and all my life I’ve allowed myself to be unsatisfied with who I am because of it. But who I am, my personality, my outward appearance, and my inward heart, are all a result of who God truly made me to be and fit just right with the purpose He has created me for.
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
So, who am I to question the God of the universe? Who am I to think I should fit into any mold this world has adopted when it is only in His I can truly fit? What I see as weakness, He sees as strength, so why should I live as if this wasn’t true?
1 Corinthians 12:9
And He said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee, for my grace is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
So, the next time you feel as if you can’t measure up to this world's unrealistic standards, I pray you would remember this truth - that you are loved by God, freed from the chains that bind you, and created, exactly as you are for a special and unique purpose that only you can truly fill.
Comments