Walking into a room and feeling a drastic shift in your mood? No matter how prepared or passionate you are, you can’t seem to shake the sense of dread. Perhaps this isn’t something that you’ve done (or failed to do), but something we’ve picked up along the way.
That doesn’t seem right
No matter how much work is put into preparation, we cannot fulfil our calling if we allow a tainted environment to influence us. The reality is, it takes a great deal of determination to remain undisturbed by the world around us.
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans chapter 12, verse 2).
The scripture in Romans reminds us to remain unchanged by the world around us. We are not called to conform to our environment. Nor were we called to allow the world we live in to confuse or taint or perception of reality.
Rose-coloured glasses
Entering an environment does not mean you have allowed the surrounds to place rose-coloured glasses over your eyes. Removing them, means we do not see the way we are told to see, but we can be who we have been called to be. Who are we called to be?
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.”” (Matthew chapter 5, verses 13-14).
We cannot hide who we are, or be altered by the world around us. Light cannot be anything other than light. In a world living with forced perceptions of reality, we are called to see clearly and be seen for who we are, not who society wants us to be.
What is mine?
If that’s not mine, then what is? How do I define the negativity that has attached itself to me when I know it doesn’t belong to me? When we walked into that room, we allowed something, we picked up something that was not ours to pick up. It often takes time for us to unravel what threatened to smother us in the first place. Graciously, we have been given a reminder of who we are, and the identity we carry!
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1 Peter chapter 2, verse 9).
Ultimately, who we are and what is ours are mutually exclusive. We cannot take ownership of anything (emotions, material possessions, absolutely anything) that is not our own. We cannot pick up something, whether consciously or not, that belongs to someone else.
Ours is that of praise, of a life lived in the light, or magnifying Yahweh. We have been called for a life that is bold, unafraid, courageous and identified by the mark of the Creator in our life. What isn’t mine, will not be carried on the journey with me. It needs to be acknowledged as belonging to someone else and released – making room for the continued expression of the character of Christ in us.
Negativity. Unsettlement. Confusion. Fear and discord. That’s not mine! I choose a life of praise, thankfulness, growth and light. A life fully embracing all that Christ has for me and striving to grow in it more every day!
Hailing from South Africa, Crystelda is an avid nerd and an unapologetic dreamer. With a BSc. Biological Sciences and BCom Hons in marketing, she has launched the Christian lifestyle blog - Selah Blogger and is the joint winner of the 2019 International Theology Award. The blog can be found at https://selahblogger.wordpress.com/ and her previous articles may be viewed at https://www.pressserviceinternational.org/crystelda-naidoo.html