Mike Edmisten Follower of Jesus. Husband of Nicki. Father of Ryan & Brock. Communicator of the Word.

Decide Who You Will Be

We're all born with a certain set of personality traits, quirks, etc. But that alone doesn't define who we are.

Some people have preached that, "God wired you this way, so that's who He wants you to be." I've said things like this myself in the past.  That is true to a point, but I'm coming to the conclusion that this isn't always the case.

While God has created us, we are also living with a sinful nature in a fallen world.

Here's what that means…just because something comes naturally to me doesn't necessarily mean that it's a good thing.  Sometimes our nature is the very thing we have to fight against.

Who you are is a decision that you get to make. You don't have to rely on your personal natural tendencies to dictate who you are.  You can decide to be someone different.

I'm a shy person by nature.  I have to combat this to do my job as a pastor effectively.

I have pessimistic tendencies, but I fight them.  If I'm following God's vision for my life, why shouldn't I be optimistic? It's a decision that I make.

Even worse than that, I have sinful tendencies that come very naturally to me. It's a daily struggle to overcome them.

My natural inclinations do not dictate who I am. I don't give them that kind of power or influence.  I get to decide who I am based on who God is calling me to be.

Who are you right now?  Who do you want to be?

Make the decision to be that person today.