"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." Jeremiah 1:5
Oh how I cringed the first time I read this Scripture! Over the years I had battled the thought, “If they only knew me, they wouldn’t like me.” I wasn’t a bad person but I struggled with a bad image of myself, which kept me from feeling like my life had purpose. My mom always told me God had a plan for me but the resounding voice of doubt, because of my insecurities, kept me from really embracing her words of truth. Then one day when I was praying this Scripture came to mind.
At first I didn’t give it much thought but then I realized God was trying to tell me something very profound! The very thing I was afraid of, someone really knowing me, was the very truth He wanted me to embrace, so I could discover the purpose for my existence. He had an assignment preordained for me in life, but unless I believed He knew me and accepted me, without judgment, I wouldn’t be able to accomplish that assignment.
Then when I read the part of the scripture that says, “Before you were born I set you apart” I really struggled because being set apart hadn’t been a great experience for me in life. I was a spirited child who constantly found myself being “set apart” from my classmates because of my disruptive behavior. After spending time in prayer I asked God to reframe the negative feelings I had about His Words to me due to my previous life experience. I knew that in order to discover my appointed assignment in life, I had to accept that He knows me and loves me despite my shortcomings, and that He set me apart for an assignment before I was even born. And I had to believe that being known and being set apart is a positive, not a negative.
It is important for you to allow God access to the areas of your life where you feel inferior, afraid, or self conscious. In order for you to complete the assignment God has for you in life, you have to let Him speak His truth to you, regardless of what your reality presents as truth. Your reality is only partial truth and it has been designed to enhance the experience of fulfilling your assignment in life. Whatever your struggle, whatever your pain, God knows it intimately and if you will allow him access to it, He will turn it into a great tool to be used in completing your assignment.
Set aside some time today to spend with God and reflect on this Scripture. Ask him to remove any shadow of doubt that is hindering you from being able to embrace “being known” and “Being set apart” as a positive. When you are willing to release your preconceived notions and limited understanding of your reality, it opens up your mind to receive God’s truth. As you make this choice and take action God will give you wisdom and understanding and He will begin to reveal your assignment in life. You may need to do this exercise over and over until your mind accepts His truth as your true reality!
Prayer: Today I choose to believe by faith that you know me, accept me, and love me, for who I am. I believe by faith that being set apart is a gift from you to embrace, and I refuse to accept the negative beliefs about myself anymore. I believe by faith that you have an assignment for my life and I am willing to do what it takes to accomplish it. I praise you for creating me in your image and for setting me apart to do complete an assignment that you prepared for me to do before I was even born. Thank you for my life and I will choose today to believe your words of truth! Amen.
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