Shalom beloveds!
Why do we downplay our achievements based on how society scales them? A question I never thought I would address and finally find a revelation to. I recently had a conversation with a wonderful woman who works in the property industry. I mentioned that I recently moved into my own place and as a side note mentioned “But I’m only renting”. She stopped me and said “So? There’s nothing wrong with that! Don’t downplay renting a place. I work in the property industry and renters must jump over a lot of hurdles to be able to rent a place. So don’t downplay your achievements. You must be proud of yourself! Renting a house is the same as owning a house”. Then it hit me: we downplay certain things based on this imaginary scale that society places it on. We glamourise owning a home and make it out to be better than renting a home. We glamourise jobs and compare it to others. We say a receptionist job isn’t as important as being a doctor, or working at Burger King isn’t as important as being the CEO of the company. We downplay it by the status or class, bank balance or materialistic value, etc. For many years I did this and in some of that time I was even told by an ex-boyfriend’s mother “When are you going to get a real job? You can’t be a receptionist forever”. Yep! She really told me this on numerous occasions and mind you, she was a seamstress at a factory who didn’t finish school past 7th grade. The audacity! So, when the woman I met (the one who works in the property industry) told me not to downplay renting a home, I had a lightbulb moment and all the negative comparisons and bad connotations on renting, jobs, status, schooling, etc. left me. It simply just exited my system, and I had a mindset shift.
After having this realisation settle in my mind, it was like a switch went on. I finally came to the knowledge of unlearning the downplay of my value based on my class, status, job, material possessions, income, etc. and I finally measured my worth on a scale not of the world. Because the things that I contain were placed within me by the Creator of Heaven and Earth. So, if He trusts it in my hands and sees it fit that I steward them, then I should measure myself by His standards. So, whether you sweep the streets or own the skyscraper on that street, your job matters. Whether you have a master’s degree or barely finished your schooling, your education level matters. Whether you live in a shack or live in a mansion, your home matters. Each is important, you are important. Don’t downplay your achievements. A big thank you goes to, Bernice Roberts, for this treasured advice: it’s no small feat.
Thank you for reading, till next time…
Peace and blessings in Yeshua.
