Life has a way of changing us. At one point we saw a better version of ourselves; outgoing, excited about our dreams, and grateful for our family. We saw the best in people, excelling in what we do, positive, and hopeful. Then something happens… “But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way… Matthew 13:25
You went through a disappointment, and you lost a little joy. You made a mistake and lost a little sense of value. People do you wrong and you lose a little passion. Your dream doesn’t work out and you lose a little confidence. You look up and wonder, “Where did that better version of me go”?
God didn’t create us to step into a better version of ourselves and then end up in defeat, insecure or lonely. That is the enemy trying to sow tares among our wheat! You may have lost touch with that better version of yourself, the good news is that you can get it back. You can go back to who God made you to be. The real you is still there. The joyful you, the passionate you, the confident you and the victorious you can come back.
One reason Jesus came was to recover what was lost, to restore what was stolen, to heal what was broken, to give you beauty for ashes, joy for mourning. What you have lost is coming back. God is about to do a new thing. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted… Luke 4:18-19
He is not going to leave you disadvantaged. He sees what you have been through, and He is going to make up for it, He is going to breathe new life, new passion, new opportunities and new vision. You haven’t seen the best version of yourself yet. It’s still in front of you.
However, there is something you have to do. You can’t sit on the sidelines, feeling sorry for yourself; I have made so many mistakes, and why did these people do me wrong”? As long as we have a defeated mentality, we are going to get stuck. You have to get back in hope, stir up your faith, start believing again and start dreaming again.
In the scripture, Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, and they had this magnificent place to live, with beautiful flowers and peaceful streams. God would come out in the evenings and talk with them. They were so happy, confident, and secure. They were excited and grateful for what God had given them but something happened! (Genesis 3)
God had told them not to eat the fruit from a certain tree, but they got deceived and did eat anyway. When they did, immediately they felt guilty, they knew they had done something wrong. Their consciences came to life. They recognized they were naked, and they were ashamed and embarrassed, so they ran and hid, and put on some fig leaves to cover up…
When God came to visit in the garden that evening, He said “Adam, where are you?” God wasn’t asking this question to find an answer, He already knew where they were. He was asking to make Adam think, “Where are you?” not just physically, He was talking about his state of mind, his attitude, and how he saw himself. (Genesis 3:9)
He was saying, “Adam, where is the real you? Where is the you ( Adam) I created, the joyful you, the confident you, the valuable you, the peaceful you? Where has that better version of you gone? God is asking us…
“Where is that good and joyful version of you before the disappointment, before the breakup, before the mistake, before the business slowed down? Where is the passionate you, the friendly you, the kind you, the positive, hopeful, generous you?”
But too often, like Adam, because of mistakes or disappointments, we lose that person. We can look back and think, “Hmmm, I used to be so passionate about life, I used to have big dreams, I used to feel valuable and secure, I used to take holiness very seriously, I had a great personality, I don’t know what has happened to me”.
You may have lost touch with a better version of yourself but God is going to bring that person back. Nothing that has happened to you has taken the real you away. Adam said, “God, when I heard your voice I was afraid so I went and hid”. How many of us are hiding because of what we have done or what happened to us?
Hiding our potential, hiding our personality, hiding our smile? You have so much to offer, but the way many people handle hurts and failures and disappointments is to isolate, disengage, turn their feelings off, push down any emotions, not pursue any dreams. They show up at work, but they are not there.
They have great ideas, but they never share them. They are in the house physically with their family but they have checked out emotionally. The pressure, the hurts, the mistakes have caused them to go into a defence mode where they don’t participate, they don’t answer the phone, interact with friends or share how they feel.
NO MORE STEPPING BACK!
The enemy would love for you to live disengaged, hiding your gift or hiding your feelings. God is saying, “I created you to fulfil divine destiny, to blossom, to enjoy life, to be a blessing, to love, to laugh” No more stepping back! However, it will never happen if you are Hiding behind mistakes, hiding behind hurts or hiding behind injustice.
“I wasn’t treated right, pastor, that is why I decided to take a step back. I went through a breakup, they hurt me, and that is why I’m not passionate anymore”. Or “My spouse and I, don’t get along, she doesn’t respect me, and that’s why we don’t spend time together”. The enemy is using that to keep you in hiding, feeling hurt, insecure, no enthusiasm.
Here is a key: God can’t heal what is hidden. He is asking you to come out, to get back engaged, but He is not going to force you. You have to make that choice to come out of isolation, come out of fear, come out of shame, come out of regret, come out of failure and get back to a better version of yourself.
Failure is an event, not a person. You don’t have to go into hiding, it’s not who you are, you are not a failure, you are a child of the Most High God. Any person who has ever done anything significant has had some failures, disappointments and setbacks. That is not the time to disengage or give up on your dreams. If it didn’t happen your way, that means God has something better coming.
When Adam made that mistake, he went into hiding but noticed how God came looking for him. God could have said, Adam, you had your chance but blew it. He never gives up on us. Even when we hide, even when we lose the person He made us be, He keeps coming after us, saying, “Where are you? I miss you, I can restore you”.
God is not done with you, what He started He will finish, but you have to do your part: come out of hiding, come out of shame, come out of guilt and get back in hope. Your family need you fully engaged. Your children need you healthy and whole. Your friends need you, not the partial you, but the full you, the loving you and the friendly you.
Maybe today, you are even committed, faithful, and blessed, but you have lost a better version of yourself. Something happened that has taken your joy, limited your vision, and stopped your creativity. Now you have settled in that area, not being passionate about life. God is saying: come out of hiding and go back to who I created you to be.
Get your fire back, get your dream back. No more isolating, stepping back, being there but not engaging. And yes, I know things can happen that aren’t fair, you don’t understand it, but God sees it and that is not how your story is going to end. Your new day has come.
I decree and declare: that the better version of you that you lost touch with is coming back. The confident you, the joyful you, the passionate you, the valuable you, the successful you, the holy you, the victorious you and even your best is coming in Jesus’ name.
The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”’!
