Refuse It

Hebrews 11:²⁴ “By faith, Moses, when he had grown up, REFUSED to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” (NIV, emphasis added).

Only the right choices based on the right values would give you the right future. Moses made four major choices that shaped his life and destiny. And the first choice Moses made was he refused to be defined by others. Moses refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. The question is, which will you choose Egyptian royalty or Hebrew slave? Who are you letting determine your identity? Who is determining who you are? Sometimes, we allow culture to determine who we are, and sometimes we allow friends and co-workers determine who we are. You just had your hair done in a certain way, but you get to the office and see your colleague’s own hairstyle and you go to scatter yours because you want it to be like hers. Identity crisis!

Is it the television, social media, or someone you are in relationship with that is determining who you are? Romans 12:² “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God remould your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good…” (Phillips, emphasis added). And this is how we feel sometimes, squeezed into a certain mould. God says, do not allow it, refuse it! 1 Thessalonians 2:⁴ “…Our purpose is to please God, not people. He is the one who examines the motives of our hearts.” You have to play to the audience of One, your purpose is to live your life to please God. If the question on your heart is, “What am I here for?”, the answer is you are here to please God that is the big picture of your purpose. If you are settled with the fact that your purpose is to please God and not people, then the God that sees the heart will free you from the desire to please people.

Will I be approved? Will they accept me? Will I be loved? Will I be accepted? These are some of the biggest fears that man faces today. But when we settle who is going to determine our identity, it makes us resistant to the fear of disapproval, which is one of the greatest fears of mankind. When I settle in my heart that my identity is determined by God and God alone, then I can resist every pressure to mould me into how the world wants me to be. Why? It is because it is settled in my heart that I am a child of God, so I am no longer a slave to fear. Why? Jeremiah 29:¹¹ “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for your good, plans to prosper you and not harm you. They are plans to give you hope and a future.”

God’s plans for you are better than your friend’s plans for you. So, you settle in your heart once and for all not to allow your destiny to be determined by what is popular in culture. That is the first choice that Moses made, he refused to be defined by what people called him. Instead, he chose to be defined by what God has called him.

Prayer (song): I’m no longer a slave to fear, I am a child of God! Amen!