I love what I do.
I love having the opportunity to work with individuals; finding out who
and what they were created to be. The downside of what I do is the first
hand witnessing of the emotional wounds people allow others to inflict on them.
Much like many of the remarkable people I work with, for too long I
allowed people to label me. Nothing is worse than when we allow another
to put a label on us - saying what we can or can not do or who we are or are
not. There are times when the label may be positive, such as words of
encouragement. However, the negative labels do the damage. The
worst part about it is you can not stop them and you can not prevent them.
A newspaper editor once
told a man named Walt Disney he wasn’t creative enough, that he lacked in
imagination. An acting teacher once told a young girl by the name of
Lucille Ball that she didn’t have any acting skills; it was best she try a
different profession. Winston Churchill was held back in the sixth grade
because he wasn’t smart enough. Well, we know all know how Disney,
Lucille Ball, and Churchill turned out! The common denominator in the triumphs
and victories of these individuals was the ability to remove the negative
label.
Before heading out on
the Professional Bowlers Tour in 1997, more people than I choose to remember
told me I would fail. I was told I wasn’t good enough and there wasn’t
any chance I could “compete”. Those were the labels people attempted to
put on me. I was already insecure, but at the time I did not realize it’s
just how the enemy works - keeping you from reaching your highest potential.
Discouragement, intimidation - the words become like seeds and if you
dwell on them they will take root. Winning on the professional level
helped hush those critics! Then came the labels of addict and junkie.
Once again I had to work hard at removing the negative labels and it has
never been easy. The thoughts play over and over again in your mind like
a skipping record. “You don’t have what it takes.” Getting the
label off is much like taking a Clinton/Gore bumper sticker off a car today.
You peel it, you need water, soap, and it still never wants to come off.
Finally I removed the label and was able to put new ones on. My
favorite is “I can do all things”.
Wrong labels will keep
you from living the life you are meant to live. You are not who others
say you are, you are who YOU say you are. People will always say you
aren’t good enough, too old, too many faults. Do not live another day
allowing someone else to define who you are. I have worked with so many
individuals who wear the labels others have given them and love their life
accordingly. They become who someone says they are, when the truth is
they are strong, talented, and valuable!
What labels are holding
you back? Maybe a teacher, coach, loved one, or even a parent spoke
something to you. Now is the time to remove the label. Others
do not control your destiny - you do! Stop giving vindication to the
comments. It simply is not the truth and once you realize this, the label
will no longer have an affect. The only way anyone can limit you is if
you wear the label. So many people continue to wear labels such as
divorced and live with the thought they will never find anyone. Or the
label of overweight and live with the thought they will never be in shape.
So many have listened to someone label them as addict and live with the
thought they will never break the disease. You will become the label you
wear - it is inevitable. It is why so many people struggle with addiction
because they wear the label of addict. If you think you are an addict,
you have already lost the fight! Change the label to you are clean, you
are in recovery. Do not live another day wearing a label someone else put
on you, write your own label. Just because someone spoke it over you does
not mean it is the truth. You have the right gifts, the right
personality, the right skin color. You are not an accident. You
were made perfect by your Creator to do what it is you were meant to do!
You were not created as just one of the six billion people on Earth or
created just to be average. Your smile, your gift…..all of it was made
for your destiny. Nobody else can offer what you offer! If you
continue to think you are just average, you will live an average life. If
you are going to be all you were meant to be, the first thing you must do is
remove the label. Nothing that has happened to you or spoken to you
should keep you from your destiny. No matter what mistakes or situations
you have been in, shake off the self-pity, quit dwelling on what mom, dad, or
your cynical husband, or wife has said to you. People can call you
whatever they like. You are not what people call you, you are only what
you answer to. Remove the label and watch the bondages disappear!
Stay hungry!
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