Are You A Branded Person?
Palitha Jayasooriya
Psalm 139:13
Introduction:
"When they let me out of prison, I held my head up high
Determined I would rise above the shame
But no matter where I'm living, the black mark follows me
I'm branded with a number on my name
I'd like to hold my head up and be proud of who I am
But they won't let my secret go untold
I paid the debt I owed them, but they're still not satisfied,
Now, I'm a branded man, out in the cold"
The above lyrics, the reflections of a former prisoner, were taken off a hit-song recorded by Country star Merle Haggard, titled 'Branded Man'. Merle certainly knew what it was like to be a 'Branded Man', since he spent time in prison, including the dreaded San Quentin Prison.
I don't know what it is about humans, but we seem to thrive on placing 'brands' and insults on people. We hear terms like loser, failure, cheat, addict, gossip, prison bird, fat, ugly and more being used on people. Partners use insulting names on each other, with much regret later. And, parents sometimes use brands like fool, idiot and stupid on their children, snuffing out the light inside them in the process. Sadly, many times we accept the branding put on us by others and live our lives believing that lie!
Proposition: Always refuse to accept any form of insulting names that people 'Brand' you with.
Examples from My Personal Life:
Here are some challenges I went through in my personal life:
1) I was very sick and a chronic asthmatic for most of my childhood and teenage years. In our society, I'm sure some people would have branded me as a child who had brought bad luck to the family. Thankfully, my parents didn't think so.
2) I struggled with exams in my schooling days and many times, either my parents or I were at the receiving end of branding (jokes cracked), about such failures.
3) I married late in life and sometimes had to hear unkind remarks people made in fun over this; especially at weddi ...
Palitha Jayasooriya
Psalm 139:13
Introduction:
"When they let me out of prison, I held my head up high
Determined I would rise above the shame
But no matter where I'm living, the black mark follows me
I'm branded with a number on my name
I'd like to hold my head up and be proud of who I am
But they won't let my secret go untold
I paid the debt I owed them, but they're still not satisfied,
Now, I'm a branded man, out in the cold"
The above lyrics, the reflections of a former prisoner, were taken off a hit-song recorded by Country star Merle Haggard, titled 'Branded Man'. Merle certainly knew what it was like to be a 'Branded Man', since he spent time in prison, including the dreaded San Quentin Prison.
I don't know what it is about humans, but we seem to thrive on placing 'brands' and insults on people. We hear terms like loser, failure, cheat, addict, gossip, prison bird, fat, ugly and more being used on people. Partners use insulting names on each other, with much regret later. And, parents sometimes use brands like fool, idiot and stupid on their children, snuffing out the light inside them in the process. Sadly, many times we accept the branding put on us by others and live our lives believing that lie!
Proposition: Always refuse to accept any form of insulting names that people 'Brand' you with.
Examples from My Personal Life:
Here are some challenges I went through in my personal life:
1) I was very sick and a chronic asthmatic for most of my childhood and teenage years. In our society, I'm sure some people would have branded me as a child who had brought bad luck to the family. Thankfully, my parents didn't think so.
2) I struggled with exams in my schooling days and many times, either my parents or I were at the receiving end of branding (jokes cracked), about such failures.
3) I married late in life and sometimes had to hear unkind remarks people made in fun over this; especially at weddi ...
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