Be Careful Not to Forget!
“You need to forget about growing up poor. I have and you should too,” said a man that I once thought I loved. I stared at him as if he’d suddenly grown a third eye in the middle of his forehead. “Forget where I came from, how is that even possible?” I wondered. It would have been easier for me to keep my eyes open all day without blinking. “Since I live in a nice neighborhood now and have an education,” he said with a smug smile, “I’m above all that!“ Shaking my head, I firmly told him, “Well, I’m not, nor do I ever want to be!” I was tired of trying to explain to him how my modest childhood had a been blessing to me, not a curse.
Growing up in an low-income area called, “Inglewood” in Statesville, NC wasn’t always a bed of roses. However, that experience gave me an appreciation of how far the Lord has brought me and my family. When I think about how far my Momma, brother and I had to walk to purchase groceries and/or use the laundromat, I’m grateful. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve turned it out praising the Holy Father that my mother no longer has to walk home from work in the wee hours of the morning. I believe one of the most dangerous things we can do as believers is to forget where the Almighty has brought us from. When we do, we begin to look at His gifts as “I deserve it” tokens. Basically, we start to tell ourselves things like, I have a huge house because I deserve it. My wardrobe is expensive because I deserve it. I have good health because, you guessed….I deserve it! As I’ve said many times before, I like nice things as much as the next woman. Nevertheless, I do know that every thing I have is only by the Grace and Mercy of God.
Zechariah 4:10 NIV warns us, “Who dares despise the day of small things…” Even Madam C.J. Walker, the first African-American Woman Millionaire in the U.S., was once quoted to say, “I am not ashamed of my past. I am not ashamed of my humble beginnings.”
All in all, my friend, it doesn’t matter what type of upbringing we may have had. It is what we dwell on that is most important. In other words, we can either choose be stifled by a limited past or be inspired by a limitless future.
