WEEK TWO: BROKENNESS

Growing up in a family that owned a small grocery store, we had many types of canned goods on the shelves. There were vegetables, fruits, coffee, etc., and each one had some sort of label on it. That label let us know what was in that container, but every once in a while, that label would come off, leaving the can unmarked. And even though we could be confident what was in the can based on size and price, we could not sell that item without the label on it. So inevitably, it would come off the shelf and into our pantry. Occasionally, we would forget to mark the can…and after it had been in the pantry for a while, we would forget what exactly was in there. Then not wanting to be wasteful, we would open the can (expecting corn or peas) but on several occasions, what we got was not what we expected. Labels on products are a big part of our everyday lives; they are important in helping us choose what and how we might use something. They are beneficial and helpful, but labels put on people are too often detrimental and hurtful.

In Luke chapter 8, we are introduced to a woman named Mary Magdalene. Luke simply introduces us to her by name, but then identifies her as the woman who had seven demons cast out of her by Jesus. Prior to encountering Jesus, we can imagine the labels and ridicule she must have faced in her town. We can be fairly certain that there were names she was called, reputations she was hung with, and she was most likely ostracized by the community around her. Even after encountering Jesus and being delivered, the only thing we know (outside of her name) is that she had seven demons. So, what if Mary had only lived up to the labels she had been given? What if she had accepted what people said about her and stayed where she was instead of being impacted by Jesus?

What labels define you? Too often the labels we are given by other people become the calling card of our lives. We accept them and live up to them, becoming exactly what they say we are. They can produce fear and embarrassment which can lead to isolation, depression, or worse. But we don’t have to stay there. What if the very thing that you are labeled is exactly what God wants to use to work through you? Mary Magdalene could have remained the woman who had seven demons, but instead she allowed Jesus to change her life and became the very person that Jesus first appeared to after his resurrection.

You have a choice: you can remain where you are, labeled by a world that wants to consume and destroy you, or you can move from that label into new life. Jesus can take our brokenness and our labels and turn them around. Simply surrender the past to him. Jesus offers us not just a second chance, but a completely new identity…and all you have to do is walk in it.