Castration

Our strength is intended to bring more life and goodness into the world. Whenever this is denied, we’re essentially castrated. Whether by others or ourselves, we must not diminish our strength. Many of us have been robbed of our vitality without realizing it. Sometimes this is done by our family, our peers, and even ourselves.

Family Castration

Jesus observed that a prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his own family. Our family might be our biggest supporter or our biggest critic. They’ve known us for years and have experienced our many ups and downs. However, when we try to better ourselves they might feel we’re being too prideful and guilt us into maintaining the status quo of the family. As such, their guilt castrates us by robbing us of the freedom to discover our true strength and purpose.

Peer Castration

Sometimes our friends and colleagues can hold us back as well. For instance, our growth might trigger their jealousy or envy. If they feel left behind, they might subtly (or not so subtly) attack and demean our efforts to grow. Their jealousy deprives us of the chance to challenge each other and to refine our strength in mutual relationship.

Self Castration

More often than not we probably deny ourselves from offering the fullness of our strength. To be sure, others influence us. But it’s likely our own fears and doubts that hold us back the most. We don’t believe we have what it takes and so we tend to overcompensate, hide, or compulsively seek to appease others. In the end, we castrate ourselves due to our own insecurities – never trusting our true strength to emerge.

The thief of goodness fears your strength and will use anyone to castrate you and deprive you of your God given vitality. Don’t let anyone, including yourself, block you from offering the fullness of your strength.

Photo by J E S U S R O C H A on Unsplash