Defeated, Helpless, and Hopeless

Isaiah 64:8New International Version (NIV)

8 

Yet you, Lord, are our Father.

    We are the clay, you are the potter;

    we are all the work of your hand.

Isaiah 43:18-19bNew International Version (NIV)

18 

“Forget the former things;

    do not dwell on the past.

19 

See, I am doing a new thing!

   

Hebrews 12:1b-2aGood News Translation (GNT)

1…So then, let us rid ourselves of everything that gets in the way, and of the sin which holds on to us so tightly, and let us run with determination the race that lies before us. 2 Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross!

Fixed vs Growth Mindset

Being Frustrated vs Being Enlightened

Looking into the eyes of a student who has given up on themselves can rip my heart in half.  They feel defeated.  They feel helpless.  They feel like a failure.  I will continue to believe in them and I will differentiate the instruction until I’m blue in the face, but unless they make the change within, no learning will occur.  They have a hardened heart.  I don’t give up on them.  I will continue to believe in them. I will continue to mold their minds pushing harder at times when they are ready to be pushed, but being very cautious when they are needing a delicate touch.  Because in those moments they are very fragile and can break.  

I came home after a day of being defeated and really had to sit and reflect.  I felt less than perfect.  I was frustrated and had a fixed mindset.  I had a choice to either stay that way, have a hardened heart OR I could reflect on why I was feeling this way.  In the midst of my reflection, because I chose not to sit and wallow, I realized that God wants me to grow.  He is molding me into HIS image.   He continues to believe in me.  He continues to mold my heart.  He continues to push when I need to bend and hold me delicately when I am fragile.  So, daily He is the potter who wets His hands, molds my heart, and creates me in His image.  He wants our hearts to grow and be enlightened.  Then we can reflect His beauty through us and our master piece we call life.  He is my teacher and I am His student.  

 Big Daddy Weave’s song “Jesus, I Believe” speaks belief on a deeper level than what I can put into words.  Even the impossible is HIS reality.

Be Blessed!