Captive

In life there are times when we may feel inadequate, unloved, unworthy or incompetent. However, we should never allow those feelings to govern who we will be or what we will achieve. Within the boundaries of our own individual talents and capabilities we have the wherewithal to accomplish anything. In order to be successful we must recognize our strengths and our weaknesses. We must allow our fear and anguish to catapult us into the next realm of our lives: moving us forward to a destination far beyond all that we could ever imagine possible. Forgetting our past, let us push passed the negativity, the naysayers, the opposition, and most importantly the enemy unknown.

Mark 3:27 tell us that in order to enter a strong man’s house you must first bind the strong man. In order to bind an individual you must hold them by force, restrain them or tie them up. The strong man is bound so that he will not put up a fight or struggle; thereby allowing the enemy to destroy His house. “The Supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.” (Sun Tzu 1913) The enemy seeks to destroy our hopes, dreams and aspiration long before they come to fruition.

In war, it is good to know your enemy. Great strategists know everything there is to know about their enemy. It has been said that we are our own worst enemy. “All warfare is based on deception.” (Sun Tzu 1913) Many of us are not aware of the predator that lurks within us seeking to devour our hearts, minds, souls, dreams, ambitions and desires. Cloaked in the shadows this predator is cunning, deceitful, wise and the very essence of every individual. With its subtle ways and elusive manner it has laid to waste many people, nations and countries. No one is exempt from its affects. It is the unknown enemy that holds an individual captive; extinguishing the fire of unfilled dreams and potential; never allowing the individual to go beyond the scopes of what that individual believes to be true about himself/herself. Low self-esteem is a deceiver. It blinds us from seeing the greatness that lies within us. The uniqueness bestowed upon us by God himself. Low self-esteem is an eradicator of a person’s fullest potential.

85% of the world’s population is affected by low self-esteem-that is to say out of over 7 billion people in the world, research says that over 6 billion of those people suffer from low self-esteem. No one can truly fathom the depth of the affect low self-esteem may have on one individual person let alone trying to imagine the affect it has on a whole world’s population. Self-esteem affects everyone. It does not discriminate. It does not pick and choose how it will regulate within an individual.

Low self-esteem is a thinking disorder that makes an individual feel unloved, inadequate, unworthy and incompetent. How we feel about ourselves in most cases is what determines our altitude and level of life. Low self-esteem does not fight fairly. “Low self-esteem is the universal common denominator among literally all people suffering from addictions to any and all mind altering substances such as alcohol.” Candito (1996) Low self-esteem has been linked not only to alcohol but to sexual promiscuity, eating disorders, depression, anxiety, gambling, and substance abuse. It can conquer and destroy us by any method it chooses. Its best method of attack comes by using the people who are the closest to us; family members, friends, guardians, teachers, and those who hold day to day influence over our lives.

A baby can be prepared and nurtured for the outside world before leaving the cocoon of its mother’s womb. From the time of birth until the day we are capable of making our own decisions; our self-image and self-perception are being created and established.

If a seed is to become a beautiful healthy flower the seed must be planted, cultivated and watered so that it will grow, produce and fulfill its purpose. When someone tries to make us feel the person we are is not good enough we should use their words as fertilizer to make us grow in character and strength; allowing our fullest potential to sprout up through the dirt becoming a beautiful healthy flower for the world to see. So often, when others say bad things about us we began to give consideration to the words they speak. Allowing what they say to discourage us rather than push us towards our fullest potential. What causes one individual to mistreat another individual with no regards for the injured party’s feelings or self-worth?

As we go through life we do not know the daily struggles of the people we encounter. We do not know the roads they have travelled to become the person that we see. We must be more compassionate towards one another and think that if it were not for the grace of God that person could be me. So many times we judge people by the way they act towards us or should I say by the way it appears they act towards us. No one knows what is truly in the heart of any individual. No one can truly know what is in His own heart. The bible tells us that “the heart is deceitful above all things, desperately wicked: who can know it?” (KJV Jeremiah 17:9) Only God knows the true intention of our hearts. God can see to the very depths of our souls and beyond. There is not one feeling that we experience that God has not felt. He hears our heart’s cries and he is there to comfort us.

When we are told over and over again we are a failure, we are no good: when we are mistreated or when we are constantly criticized and put down, the manner in which we value ourselves diminishes. Low self-esteem binds us and holds us captive. It is contagious and can be passed from one person to another.