It was third grade. My tiny self combusted with exhilaration…I made the cheerleading squad!
That launched me into back-to-back cheerleading seasons, from elementary to middle school, then high school. I seemed to “fall into” it. I surely wasn’t the best of them. Still, I felt right at home, applauding and praising my team. It felt effortless!
A dilemma developed in high school. Varsity cheerleading issued an ultimatum – choose either cheerleading or marching band. The powers-that-be deemed it impossible to participate in both activities during football season.
Surely this predicament feels juvenile today, but for a 16-year-old, it felt gargantuan. I loved both!
In band since sixth grade, I had never dropped below the top three of all clarinets. In fact, I often earned first chair. Those marching months each autumn taught me much about music and myself. My brother and I were in band together. I made lifelong friends there! What to do?
During this season, I began dating a guy off-and-on who eventually became my husband. To say that he is remarkably gifted in music and songwriting is the ultimate understatement. He said, “You’ll use what you learn in music for the rest of your life. Not so much with cheerleading.” He wasn’t wrong. An examination of the long game seemed to favor marching band.
Yet, the pull towards cheerleading wouldn’t let me go.
It didn’t hurt that our football team won the State Championship every year. Banners hung all over town. We made headlines every week! But, something bigger than that, bigger than I could understand at the time, lay heavy in this decision.
What did I realize as I got a little further down the road? Cheering people on, encouraging folks to get up and try again…THAT’S what The One who made me wove into my very DNA! My passion to help people find their truest selves and fullest purpose came straight from the manufacturer…God Himself!
I LOVE helping people get unstuck to run this race with victory in their sights. You could call it my “unfair advantage.” It’s the element of my life that feels natural and normal. I do it without putting forth much energy. It’s just there.
What is your unfair advantage? Yes, you do have one!
What special something about yourself do you take for granted? Truth is, you may not even recognize it because you’re too close to it; but it’s there. God wired you with giftings and graces that don’t come easy to others. You do it without thinking, while they try harder and still miss the mark.
It’s time to bring that gifting out of the closet, dust it off and use it to make a difference! (I promise, if God gave it to you and you use it for His Glory, you WILL make a difference!)
I know people with impressive callings. I’m not them. I know why I’m here, why God positioned me in cheerleading squads all those years. It became training for my life! I was made to cheer people toward the end zone, believing they CAN and WILL get there.
I’m doing that right now with YOU! I’m reminding you that YOU have something worthwhile to contribute that others around you cannot. If you tuck away your truest self for safe keeping, you’ll miss your purpose AND shortchange those God has placed around you.
I’m not here to impress you, but I AM here to inspire you. Inspire means “to breathe life into.”
Let me breathe HIS life into your worn-down, worn-out self. You’ve been stuck entirely too long. I declare, by God, you won’t stay stuck another day!
It’s time to live bold and bountiful and use all God has given YOU! From there, your life will reverberate with significance! I’m sure of it! For comments or prayer, please contact Dr. Lanier at HopeCommunityChurch.tv.
