USE YOUR LEFTOVERS. (4 UNIQUE KEYS)

It is time for you to use your leftovers. What are you going to do with what you have left? What’s your story? We all have a story and a past, but it is what we do with our now that either gets us to the other side or leaves us stuck in the past. So what are your leftovers? Everyone has that moment where they get to a crossroads and thus have to make a choice that determines the trajectory of their life. Maybe you are at a crossroads right now and you know you want to see a change in your life. But it seems like the only way you are going to experience it is by taking on a new path. Could it be that the only way left is to try something new?

• •  So maybe you are wondering, how then do you change that belief? 
  • What steps can we take? 
• Accept the ugly truth that stinks.
• Do something about it
  • Now what?
• God always wants to bring redemption into your life.
• Do not allow your circumstances to make you question your value.
• In your season of hiding and isolation, perfect your craft, whatever it is.
• Conclusion 

Maybe you have lost everything, or so it seems, and deep down you know the only comeback you have is to start over. With that in mind, what will you do with what you have left? Maybe you feel stuck and are looking at what you have and it seems like it would never amount to something. Today I want to encourage you to use what you have, believe that it can grow, and despise not the humble beginnings. God will use what you have right now to get you where He wants you to be.

We all have moments we’d rather not recall whether it’s because they are shameful or painful. But I love the fact that we have a wonderful father who always wants to use the very things we want to avoid to create beautiful stories and chapters that bring redemption into our lives and bring Him glory, too. What things are you afraid to confront? Isn’t it funny how we try to layer the good things on top of the bad because we think the bad thing will stink less? Maybe an example will explain it better. So let’s say growing up people labeled you as a failure because your grades were not as good as the rest. Because of this, you decide to go and do the tough courses on campus just to prove them wrong.

Now don’t get me wrong, advancing in your studies is great, but why are you doing it? What’s the motive behind your actions? Is what you are doing now something you will want to do 20 years from now? Are you trying to prove a point by covering up the ugly truth that stinks? And why do you believe it? Because the truth remains that people will always have an opinion of you. But why are you allowing their words to taunt and haunt you? Could it be that deep down you believe that what they are saying is true because you think so, too? If someone told you the sky is green, chances are you will disregard it because you know the truth is the sky is blue.

Because they taught you in school that the sky is blue and it’s been drilled in you it is in fact blue, you have no problem believing it. The same applies to our lives, too. The reason you believe what people say about you is that you say the same thing to yourself, too. What do you believe, about yourself? The truth is that the reason why words hurt sometimes is that we have believed the same deep down. Whenever you find yourself hurt by someone else’s words, I want you to know that it’s because you believe it deep down. You only get hurt by words that hold truths you believe deep down.

So let me ask you this: what beliefs do you hold about yourself? What words and opinions have you allowed to dominate your mind? And I want you to ask yourself this: where did those beliefs come from? What made you question yourself so much that you started believing what others are saying about you? More importantly, how can you change that belief? The truth is that you can change because the mind is a powerful tool that can be renewed. God created your kind in such a way that it could renew its thinking by changing the neural paths you so wished. So are you ready? Let’s get to it.

 So maybe you are wondering, how then do you change that belief? 

Let me ask you this: who would you be if you stopped allowing your past mistakes and failures to define you? What version of yourself would you want to be? One of the beautiful aspects of being human is that we can always reinvent ourselves. You don’t always have to get stuck in the past and accept things as they are. You have the power to change and become who you want to be.

And that’s why God has given us free will. We have the choice to be anything we want to be and the only person limiting us is us. But before you and I can get to the point where we reinvent ourselves, we have to look at ourselves in the mirror and make up our minds that we are going to change. Also, we have a God who loves redeeming us and has no problem bringing us into our destined future. The question, however, is whether or not we want to experience transformation and reinvention.

What steps can we take? 

Accept the ugly truth that stinks.

Yes, I failed in this area. I have this weakness and I am struggling in this area. Accept it and stop running away from that truth. Face it and decide to do something about it. You have a problem Xyz, let’s say it’s the fact that you have no job and you have placed your identity and self-worth in it. Face it, do not deny it. The first step is always acknowledging what you are dealing with. Confront that ugly fact. Yes, it stinks, but instead of running away from it and trying to cover it, confront and acknowledge that it’s something you are dealing with. Denying it will not make it go away. So what ugly fact have you been running away from? Write it down.

Do something about it

Once you have acknowledged that, now resolve to do something about it. So with A, the leftover is that the person is unemployed, it obviously sucks, but what then can the person do to get themselves out of that predicament? What skills do they have that they can use to start something? What are their passions, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats? Do a swot analysis.

Everyone has something they can do at any and every given point in time if they only do a self-analysis. What circumstances have you overcome or are you overcoming that you can advise others to overcome, too? Again, let me remind you that even on days when you feel like you are running on empty, there is always something inside you that you can use. So look within. There is something you can do. Granted, you might have to start at the very bottom. But if you hold on to it, you will see the fruit of your labor.

When a seed is hidden beneath the ground, it has to use what it has inside and the environment to produce energy for it to grow because it cannot get the sunlight it needs. So look around you, what can you use in your environment? And what has God placed inside you that you can use to create a business or an opportunity? Every person we look up to started their purpose by using their leftovers. What I mean is they used the lemons handed to them to create lemonade. I love the response that Joseph gave his brothers after he revealed himself to them. He told them that what you meant for evil, God meant for good. There is no experience, trauma, or circumstance that God can’t turn around for your good. How will you partner with Him to see the good come to fruition?

Now what?

God always wants to bring redemption into your life.

And even when He allows bad things to happen, He always has a redemptive plan. And even when you can’t see it, your abilities and purpose are always inside you. Even when Jesus was on the cross, He was still the Messiah, which is why the thief on his side asked Him to remember Him when He got to heaven.https://biblehub.com/luke/23-39.htm Your purpose is within you even when you are in the wilderness. The Israelites were still the chosen nation, even when they were slaves in Egypt. Joseph was still favored even while he was in prison. Your current situation should not define you because, although it doesn’t look like it, you are still chosen, favored, and loved by God.

Do not allow your circumstances to make you question your value.

Remember, a broken crayon still colors. It just looks different right now. But its purpose is still there. Just because you are hidden now doesn’t mean you can’t fulfill your purpose. There is always a season of hiding that we all go through because that’s where we are launched into our promised land. Jesus was unveiled at 30, but He did not allow his season of hiding to make Him doubt His purpose. He in fact maximized it and learned as we see at age 12, He stayed on in the synagogue because He wanted to learn so much that his mother and father had to come back looking for Him. 

Joseph too, developed and harnessed his skills while he was in prison. Paul maximized his time in prison by writing letters that were used to reach the Gentiles. So although he had some limitations, he did not allow them to hinder him from fulfilling his purpose. Do you know what your purpose is?

In your season of hiding and isolation, perfect your craft, whatever it is.

Draw close to God. Develop a relationship with the Holy Spirit, build your prayer life, and hide in the word because when God says it is time for your unveiling, you will not have time to get ready. Don’t be like the 5 foolish virgins who did not carry extra oil. Stay ready so that you do not have to get ready. The truth is that the wilderness season will end. But let me ask you this, will you be prepared for the role that God assigned you? How will you use your leftovers now so that they can benefit you in your promised land? You have something to give, don’t give up.

Conclusion

Do you feel you are in a season of hiding? Does it feel like the past is haunting you? Let me encourage you to embrace that past and confront it. Acknowledge that voice that keeps whispering to you and bring it to the light. Take it to Jesus, hand Him your leftovers, and tell Him your struggles. He wants you to bring it to Him because the very thing you are ashamed of He will turn around and use it for your good.

God never waits for you to be perfect because it is your story that will encourage someone else to change and be better. The story of the woman at the well brought so many souls to Jesus not because she was perfect, but because of the transformation that people saw in her. If you allow Him, God will use the very thing that people used to disqualify you and turn it around to bring Him glory.

God doesn’t want the perfect areas. He wants to use the broken areas, those areas that stink and make you cringe. The mistakes you don’t even want to remember. That is what God wants to use, and that is the very thing that will launch you into your purpose. Do not let the enemy lie to you by telling you that God cannot use you. He can and will use you. This is your moment to shine. Let God use the leftovers to create a beautiful story that is yours. It is your story. Do not let people silence your voice because that is not all you are. There is so much more inside you that God wants to reveal for His glory. Use your leftovers.