I’ve had many people try to put ridiculous and insane labels on me and one of them is -
GOLD DIGGER
This one - I will keep.
They usually spewed this label - with venom - a put it in a negative context. Think of the Kanye West song which says -
“She take my money when I'm in need
Yeah, she's a triflin' friend indeed
Oh, she's a gold digger way over town
That digs on me (uh)
Now I ain't sayin' she a gold digger. . . “
Usually the label “Gold Digger” refers to a woman who is taking a man’s money without a care for his well-being and she doesn’t respond in turn - from an emotional standpoint that is. This is purely a transactional relationship.
The hilarious part about applying this label to me is that I married purely for love in my first marriage and we were broke for the first 14 years of our marriage - but we had love and three beautiful children! One of my most favorite dates was walking to a park and sitting and talking for hours into the night. The glorious part about that date is that we didn’t have cell phones so we actually paid attention to one another and were present.
But I digress.
Today, I cherish the label and title. Because at the school that I attend - Bethel School of Ministry - we are taught to be Gold Diggers. We are taught that everyone has GOLD inside of them. The Gold represents a person's unique talents, skill sets, gifts, and unique identity.
Most Christians (and people in general) are good at identifying the “dirt” in someone’s life - the "sin" or ugliness or shortcoming or the thing that trips someone up - their weakness. Right now, my backyard is covered in dirt - legit. It’s not hard to “see” the dirt - it doesn’t take talent or even hard work. People already know what their struggles are - we don’t need anyone to call it out and identify it.
BUT - what most people don’t know is their gifts, talents, skill sets, and treasures. People struggle to identify the “reason” that they are here on Earth and their value. People struggle to find the GOLD that is buried underneath the dirt.
So as GOLD DIGGERS - we are taught at BSSM to identify, call out, and bring to the surface people’s treasure. We often go on “Treasure Hunts” where we walk around a town or specific area and speak life into people and identify their treasure.
When I went on a mission trip to Denmark we were given gentle but loving instructions. We were told, “Don’t Bible beat people over the head, Don’t tell them ‘Turn or Burn’ - simply love the people and affirm them - Call Out Their Treasure!” Most people don’t receive the affirmation and encouragement they need to focus on the go-forward and have hope for the future.
This world will certainly tell you of your shortcomings, where you have failed and missed the mark or missed the KPI that is intentionally set too high so that you will always be chasing that proverbial “carrot” or you’ll always be given another hoop to jump through that is set way too high so that you always feel “not good enough” or lacking in some regard.
God forbid that we ever allow people to feel worthy or good about themselves (I say this sarcastically!)
Of course we should affirm others!!
People are amazing and beautiful. I challenge you to be a GOLD DIGGER and remind others of how incredibly talented, beautiful, amazing, and unique they are. Call out the GOLD in their life, because I can guarantee that most likely - they can’t see it about themselves.
So I proudly wear the label of GOLD DIGGER and encourage others to join me in this worthy endeavor!
Comments