Somebody has spoken over your life and what they said wasn’t good. Maybe it was a parent, a teacher, an ex, a boss — somebody who looked at you and decided to put a ceiling on who you could become. And if you’re honest, some days you still hear their voice louder than you hear God’s.

It’s time to change the channel.

God told Jeremiah something powerful in Jeremiah 1:5 — “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.”

Before anyone had a chance to label you, limit you, or leave you — God already knew you. He already called you. He already set you apart for something that no one else’s opinion can cancel.

The enemy knows that if you ever fully believe what God says about you, you become dangerous. So he uses people, past mistakes, and painful memories to keep you living beneath your identity. He wants you confused about who you are so you never walk in what God called you to do.

But here’s the truth — you are not your worst moment. You are not the name they called you. You are not the rejection you experienced or the door that got slammed in your face.

You are chosen. You are called. You are covered.

David’s own father didn’t think enough of him to even bring him in from the field when Samuel came looking for a king. But God looked right past every brother in that lineup and said — it’s the one they overlooked.

God specializes in choosing the ones the world passes over.

So the next time that old voice tries to tell you who you’re not — remind it of who God says you are. His Word is the final authority. Not their opinion. Not your past. Not your feelings.

You are who God says you are. And that’s more than enough.

-Terrence Burton