When to Say No - Intimidation
In the middle of the word Intimidation is the word “timid” and that certainly described me as a young boy. My sisters said that I would always be hiding behind my mom’s skirt tail whenever we were in public, especially if anyone tried to speak to me. To this day, I’m still a relatively shy person, but I’m no longer intimidated, and here’s why: When I was probably a third or fourth grader, my music teacher heard me singing in music class and asked if I would sing a solo in the Spring Music Program/Open House. I promptly told her no. She persisted, however, and even solicited some of my classmates to try to convince me to do it. I reluctantly and fearfully agreed. From that point on I began to become less and less intimidated and more and more confident. Then my 5th and 6th grade teacher asked me to stay after school early during my 5th grade year and asked me, “Tim, do you realize you’re a leader?” “No,” I responded. “Well you are. This class will follow you into anything, and it’s time you started using your influence, young man.” She was a Believer, and knew that I was, and continued that conversation by telling me that it was time to begin using my spiritual influence among my peers. She told me that if I would step up and begin to lead that God would give me everything I needed to do that. She began to call on me regularly to read Scripture or lead our class in the Lord’s Prayer (you could do that then), and I can honestly and humbly say that, from my 6th grade year forward, I don’t ever remember being intimidated by anything or anyone since.
You see, if we allow it to, over time, intimidation can become a cancer that can cripple us from being or becoming the husband, father, mother, wife or friend that God has intended and destined for us to be. So, if intimidation has your number, whether it’s an individual, a group, or a set of circumstances, I encourage you not to miss this week’s message where we’ll hopefully see how to Say No and put that to bed for good.