So, what if I…showed up like I belong
Let me tell you a story of how I was mistaken for a former collegiate basketball player.
If you laughed hysterically at that opening sentence and yelled “what?!” to yourself, congratulations! That means you have already met me in real life and know there’s clearly more to this story. If you have not met me in real life (yet), then you should know I have the hand-eye coordination of a new born deer born in the frigidness of December. I’m also a strong 5 foot 4 (and a half) inches. Now that you have a mental image of why I thought that was ridiculous, let’s move on to how these shenanigans started.
I received an email thanking me for RSVP’ing to an upcoming basketball game. The subject line contained “winner” in the wording, so I assumed I entered some contest and forgot or I was entered into the contest because I’d inquired about tickets previously. Quietly, I really wasn’t concerned with the details. I had four tickets to the upcoming game and an open invitation to a pre-game social with food provided for the “winners.” It was a pretty awesome deal!
The day of the game comes and I find the location of the pre-game social and I enter a room where the next youngest person is probably 40 years older than I am (feel free to do the math). I caught what I perceived to be a few strange stares. But again, I was the youngest person there by 40 years, I would have starred at me as well! Still, I pressed forward and by forward I mean I went to get food. A few perplexed looks won’t stop me from eating, but I digress.
I sign in and notice there is one other “winner” in attendance as well. At this point I assume the other attendees were donors to the program (seemed logical). I find a seat next to the one person close to my age that has arrived since the event began. Through small talk, I discover she is a “winner” as well. I made a friend! So, I decided to ask her exactly who the group of “winners” were. She politely informed me that this social was for former collegiate women basketball players who completed a full season at the university.
My only response was, “I’m sorry, what?!” Because she was my friend by that point, so I could be casual with her. She then asked (in all sincerity) if I ever played basketball at the university. Y’all, Y’ALL! I wish you could have seen my face. I rather emphatically informed her that “I can’t even reach the top shelf in my apartment, of course I didn’t play COLLEGIATE level basketball!” To the shock of us both, we were trying to understand how I ended up invited in the first place.
But I tell you that story for two reasons:
Because it was absolutely hilarious and everyone needs a good laugh
Because no one questioned why I was there until I started to question why I was there
Point two is the part I want to focus on here. Not a single soul in that room asked me why I was there. I was the only one that began to second guess if I belonged. Why does that matter? Because more often than we care to admit, we get to a place that we asked (begged) God for and then feel ridiculously inadequate and underprepared when we get there. Once we feel inadequate, we begin to overcompensate and sometimes get defensive because we want to prove we belong. We spend all of our energy trying to convince others we “have it all together,” when the only person who questioned whether or not we belong was us.
Question of the Day:
How would life be different if you arrived everywhere like you belong?
Encouraging Verses of the Day:
Each time he said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.
2 Corinthians 12:9, NLT
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
Philippians 1:6, NLT
The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.
Psalms 138:8, ESV
Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
Ephesians 6:11, NASB
