Albert Einstein did not speak until he was 4-years-old and did not read until he was 7. His parents thought he was “sub-normal,” and one of his teachers described him as “mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in foolish dreams.” He was expelled from school and was refused admittance to the Zurich Polytechnic School. He did eventually learn to speak, read, and even do a little math but first he had to overcome the lies that he was told.
“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” — Judges 6:15
Do you hear that recording of doubt replaying over and over in Gideon’s head? “I’m from the weakest family in the smallest clan”; “I’m too small for the job”; “Why are you picking on me Lord?”. Gideon must have heard growing up that his family was labeled as being weak, small in number, and thus he was not going to amount to much. To eliminate excuses from our lives we must first look at overcoming those voices of doubt that perhaps you have been told by people close to you that you couldn’t do something, you weren’t smart enough, or you didn’t have what it took to be successful. Thomas Edison, Winston Churchill, and Walt Disney all hurdled those same obstacles. We see later that not only did Gideon save Israel they pleaded with him to become their king. We serve the God of the possible when we first scale our own walls.
Labels serve as traps and lock us within our beaten down comfort zones. As a result you work within a smaller box and often fail to take the action necessary to achieve your goals and objectives that God has set up for you. If you don’t muster the courage to overcome the voices in your head, you will never really know what God is capable of. It’s not about you and your qualifications but simply your willingness to trust and obey.
God has equipped you. You are good enough. God made you with a purpose. Stop holding yourself back. Burn the tape– no more excuses.
Reflection |
What is your tape that you need to burn?