"I've got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire, cuz I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me roar louder, louder than a lion, cuz I am a champion and you're gonna hear me roar." It is unfortunate that many people do not find or allow themselves that freedom. We often spend so much time worried about the opinions, words, actions, and judgments of others that we neglect ourselves and the true beauty of what makes us unique. Just because someone likes/prefers things a certain way doesn't that you should allow them to alter you to fit it. Maybe their views need to be less narrow or maybe they don't need you in their life. If they cannot truly love/respect who you are (not just their version of who they think you should be), then you should consider the truth of their love and whether you deserve more... So don't let your voice be silenced in the interest of someone else and to your detriment.
After I did the above reflections a few days ago, I went to a worship service that had a sermon with some resonance of this same message. She spoke about how preachers should be unafraid of the response of the congregation, speaking the truth without fear. She used the example of Pilate who had misgivings about sentencing Jesus to death, but he was swayed by the crowd and was more concerned with keeping the peace and advancing his political career. It was his wife who pushed him to distance himself, because the truth was about to be killed by the masses, and she felt that he should have no part in it. He didn't have the courage to stand up to the crowd, though he certainly had the power and authority.... So he recused himself, washing his hands, but let the crowd do what it wanted and kill the truth.
How often do we let others kill our truth? Worse yet, how often do we join them, throwing our own blows as we are swept away in the mob mentality against ourselves? We sometimes let others have such pull in our lives that we will assist them in our murder. One thing that the speaker said was that when we listen to or go with the crowd, our silence is louder than our voice. It speaks to a lack of value for ourselves and for the majesty of God's creation. It also highlights a lack of proper perspective and understanding of others. If we understood that others tend to dislike what's different out of fear and discomfort with themselves... If we understood that we have the final say over our lives, over who we are, and over our value... If we understood that one of the most important things we can have is love for and acceptance of ourselves, then we can live life in a way that is not bound by the opinions, preferences, judgments, biases, and insecurities of others.
So find your voice and your roar. Even if you are a more quiet, laid back person, don't let anyone define you. We all have value, power, and strength - the problem is that we give it away in the interest of gaining someone else's love. Our focus needs to be receiving our own love and the love of the Creator who loved (and loves) us despite whatever judgments anyone else might have. For someone else to love you, you might have to be a certain way or do certain things. For the Divine to love you and for you to love yourself, you need only be and recognize the beauty that is you.
No comments:
Post a Comment