Knowing Your Worth in a Bad Situation

“The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” John 10:10

 Every now and again, we find ourselves lamenting the outlook of a bad situation. When we feel like we are stuck in a bad situation and are unable to feel the presence of God’s hand moving us out of it, it is not at all unusual to relegate our experience to being one that “gets the best of us.”
              If you are a fan of R&B (rhythms and blues) and you know the singer Gladys Knight who was accompanied by the Pips, then you might remember a song from her repertoire in the 1970s, “I Got to Use My Imagination.” The song begins with these words: I’ve really got to use my imagination/To think of good reasons/to keep on keepin’ on.”  It is the next set of words that punctuates an identifiable emotion that many of us can relate to: “Got to make the best of a bad situation/Ever since that day/ I woke up and found/That you were gone.” For Miss Knight, she was lamenting the familiar pain of a love interest who left, and it had her feeling some kind of way.
  

          For some of us, we might be lamenting the fact that our joy is gone. Our hopes are gone. Our zest is gone. And it’s gone because, in the midst of doing good works, we have found ourselves in a bad situation. I’ll take it one step more and say that it is not at all unusual to feel like God has left us in that bad situation to fend for ourselves or to complete some task before we are released from it.
            I was recently having a conversation with a friend and shared about how all too often I encounter persons who are in bad situations, seemingly trying to get out, yet at the same time believing that God is not yet ready to release them. In fact, some of these persons have been in chronically work-abusive situations for three, five and even ten years, insistent that God wants them to remain a little while longer. These persons are demoted, devalued, belittled, dismissed and yet have grown to believe that this is God’s desire for them.
              It seems to me that these persons have allowed someone else to negotiate their value and worth, and they are acquiescing to it. What I want to say to them and to you is: know your worth, even in a bad situation…especially in a bad situation, because if you don’t, you will continue to equate your bad situation as being God’s desire. And the last time I checked, Jesus came to give us life and to give us a life with abundance.  
              It is the thief – the enemy, the devil, satan – that comes to steal and kill and destroy. If your joy is gone, God didn’t steal it. If your hopes are no more, God didn’t kill them. If your zest is no longer present, God didn’t destroy it – the enemy did. If you are in a bad situation that only gets worse, have you considered that it is because the enemy is there and God is telling you to leave there, wherever there is? God does not devalue you, does not belittle you and is not dismissive toward you. Stop equating that with somehow being God’s will for your life. Stop believing that.
              If you are in a place with people in decision-making positions who are not obedient to the word of God, who are following their own agenda instead of God’s agenda, and who are adamant about what they want rather than responding to what God wants, then your worth is at risk.   
              Yes, there are times when God calls us to stay and fight in these bad situations; yet what I have learned is that God calls us to a place and God calls us away from a place. Consider that God sent you there for a season, to accomplish a specific task, to learn a particular lesson, to shake things up a little bit, and that God is now telling you that your assignment there is complete. I think that sometimes we believe that God wants us to singly resolve every problem in a place, when that was never the plan. There were situations happening before we got there and there will be situations happening there longer after we are gone. God already has persons lined up who will tackle the next task.
          It is not your job to repair the entirety of the bad situation. You’ve done your part. If you are at the point where your worth is being devalued, please understand that this is not God’s will; it is a sign and indication that you need to pray for discernment and courage to leave from that situation.
              Let me put it in simpler terms. If you have been demoted, had your salary cut yet tasked with more job duties, then your worth has been negotiated. If you are suffering the stresses of being in this situation, and it’s attacking your health, your worth has been negotiated. If your good works are not being celebrated, recognized nor highlighted, your worth has been negotiated. And finally, if you are afraid to believe God for better, for life abundant, and for a place where you can utilize your gifts for good works, then your worth has been severely negotiated.
              The same door that God opened for you to walk in there, is the same door that God is opening for you to walk out and leave. Now is the time to start praying with more intentionality, to be specific in your prayer life of what you desire from God, to start trusting God and listening for the move of God, and to believe that God wants a better satisfying life for you!