“I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me.” -
- Philippians 4:13
Elephants can
easily weigh more than 10 tons and stand as high as 13 feet tall. Their trunks are agile enough to pick up a
single blade of grass, yet strong enough to rip branches off a tree. These lumbering giants typically care very
little about obstacles in their paths since few are any match for their
gigantic size. Keeping an animal like
this in captivity could be a challenge, especially for a poor farmer on the
plains of Africa. But in reality, it’s
pretty easy.
When an
elephant is born, the owner ties the animal to a tree or post with a strong
chain. During those first few weeks, he continually
attempts to free himself. But as a baby,
his efforts are just no match for the chain.
As the elephant matures, his attempts to break free become less frequent. He learns that his brawn is no match for the durable
restraint.
There’s an
elephant inside each of us – a brilliant person of enormous power and
capability. Like elephants however, we sometimes hang onto a belief that we can’t do something,
because we failed at it once before?
If you don’t
believe you can achieve something - you’re right. ‘Winners’ don’t believe they’ll fail. If they do fall short, they try again without
fear. But if you believe you can, you're
well on your way to success.
We can’t rip
branches off trees with our noses, but we’ve learned to overcome those
deficiencies with dozens of other neat tricks – like language, planning, and God’s
grace.
There’s a
magic word that can break those chains. One
little word is really all it takes. The
magic word is “yet!” Adding it to the
end of any statement that limits us will break the chain.
Try it: “I
can’t make the volleyball team . . . yet!”
“I can’t swim a mile . . . yet!”
“I haven’t made any new friends .
. . yet!”
By adding
“yet” to the end of these statements, you can then explore what’s needed to
change it. Think about what actions you’ll need to take in order for this constraint
to no longer exist. It isn’t enough to
just know that you could change your circumstances – you need to actually take
action to do it!
Okay, over to
you – have you ever busted through a constraint that you realized was only
binding you because you believed it was?
Lord, help me not to just metaphorically “break” the weak chains of
false belief – but help me forget it was ever there. I’m smart, talented, and capable of doing
anything I set my heart to. Plus, I have
You who gives me courage! Amen
