Your destiny is you

​I am not one who believes in destiny. At least not the way destiny is often referred to, which is usually a predetermined course of events or an inevitable future.

I don't believe in predetermined. I don't believe in inevitable.

I believe we are all given gifts and passions and callings and a holy guidance. Beyond that, I believe we are given a lot of freedom to make something out of those God-given ingredients.

I think when we get to believing there is someplace I am supposed to be right now, or someplace I've been scripted to ultimately land, that is a recipe for feeling less than.

For feeling imperfect.

Because the truth is, when we believe there is a predetermined course of events in our life, and we get to measuring our progress, we usually aren't measuring ourselves against where God predetermined us to be, we are measuring ourselves against where we think other people think we should be.

And sometimes, even worse, we are measuring ourselves against who and where other people already are.

Too often, we believe God has predetermined our course. Yet, we measure our imperfections against the people around us, not against any plan God might have set for us.

I am one who used to measure life that way. I am one who was often burdened by the weight of those imperfections.

But today, where I am IS my destiny. And where I am is on a path shaped by my own actions and choices. There are actions and choices along that path I'm not proud of, and some I proudly wouldn't change for anything in the world.

But all of those choices, they are mine. My destiny, it is mine.

Life can get to feeling very defeating if you think you're supposed to be at some point in a script. Whether that script is someone else's script for your life or God's script, it's a script that leaves you living inside a box you never feel quite worthy of living in.

It's quite different to believe that where I am today is not where I could be. It's quite different to believe that where I am could be making better use of my gifts and passions and callings and a holy guidance. It's quite different to believe I COULD be doing better and not that I SHOULD be doing better.

Could suggests a destiny I can create. Should suggests a destiny I'll never be able to fulfill.

As we point ourselves to the new year, and maybe we are thinking about our 2024 destiny, commit to having an absolutely imperfect year.

But be sure to measure those imperfections against who you could be, and not who you should be.

Be sure to measure those imperfections against where you are and not some idea of where you have been scripted to be.

And know every single day that where you are is your destiny. If your destiny feels like it's less than it could be, change it.

Because you can.

Your destiny is you.