Can You be Anything You Want to be?
Can You Be Anything You Want to Be?
I recently finished reading a great book, Pinocchio Parenting: 21 Lies We Tell Our Kids, by Chuck Borsellino. Guess what one of the top lies is that parents tell their kids? “You can be anything you want to be.” Have you heard that phrase before? I have. Did you hear it growing up? I did. If you have kids now, have you ever told them that? I sure have. The phrase you can be anything you want to be sounds so good, doesn’t it? But this idea has a big problem: it’s a lie!
The truth is, you can’t be anything you want to be. However, you can BE everything God created you to be. The bummer is, most people don’t take the time to discover who they are and when they do, they let lies from the past limit their potential. It’s time to stop listening to lies and embrace the truth about you! The truth is…you are a masterpiece! That is really cool if you ask me.
When you were born, you were given a specific set of gifts, talents, and passions, and a unique personality. Then, as you grew, you went through a series of experiences—some good and some not so good. Perhaps you even had a few devastating moments. All those things are tools God uses to make you into the unique you he’s had in mind from the start. But you’ve got to let go and let the master makeover artist do his work.
We must give every aspect of our lives—our past, our present, and our future—to God so that he can guide us. In the weeks ahead, I’ll ask you a few tough questions because I care about you and want to see you living the life that God intends for you—a life that many want but few take the time to strive toward. Although I truly desire to see you find freedom in who you are and what you do, what matters most is that God wants this for you. He designed you to be you and wants you to trust him with your life.
As you think about making this fresh start and renewed relationship, I must ask you a critical question—one of the most important you’ll ever have to answer: where is God in your life right now? There are only three real possibilities. He is either:
1. Outside your life
2. Inside your life, or
3. At the center of your life
When God is outside our lives, he has no chance to finish his good work. When God is inside our lives, he’ll control only what we give to him. However, when God is at the center, given full access, he can begin his work of restoring our broken lives.
So I ask you again, where is God in your life?
The Bible says, “God made my life complete when I placed all the pieces before him. When I got my act together, he gave me a fresh start. Now I’m alert to God’s ways; I don’t take God for granted. Every day I review the ways he works; I try not to miss a trick. I feel put back together, and I’m watching my step. God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes” (Psalm 18:20 MSG).
Could you use a fresh start with God? Do you feel like your life is an unfinished puzzle? God wants to put it back together—and only he knows where all the pieces go. He wants to rewrite the story of your life, but you’ve got to recognize that he has always been its author. The psalmist David knew what that felt like when he wrote, “Count yourself lucky, how happy you must be—you get a fresh start, your slate’s wiped clean” (Psalm 32:1 MSG). If you want your slate wiped clean, you’ve got to give God the eraser. Are you catching the drift here? Give it all to God . . . that’s what you do when you surrender.
Cheering for you!
Erik
(adapted from the book Only You Can Be You! )
