Here’s what I know: there are at least five BIG reasons the best-of-the-best get stuck. I introduced number one here and number two here. The third reason is this…

Reason #3: You rose higher than your sense of self would allow you to stay.

Let’s talk about your ego. ;) Your sense of self is your ego. We tend to think when someone has an ego they think too much of themselves but by definition the ego is your sense of self. Your sense of self can be under-inflated, over-inflated, or just right. 

Having an over-inflated ego is dangerous. But having an under-inflated ego isn’t healthy either. 

If your ego is too low you will experience a fractured sense of identity that will cause you to automatically opt out of getting what you want. 

Here’s how:

Your ego is driven by the belief in your heart. Whatever you believe on a heart level your ego will seek to make real to you, whatever the cost. It is like the thermostat of your life, making sure you don’t get hotter or colder than what you believe about yourself. Your ego is constantly working to make sure you do not rise higher or sink lower than your sense of self.

Let’s say that the promotion you worked for finally comes. We will give it a temperature of 70 degrees. Let’s also say your self-image is set at an internal 65 degrees. When you step up to lead in your new role, your ego will automatically turn the AC on to cool your life back down to 65 degrees.

It’s called self-sabotage. 

Jesus said something in Matthew 13:12 that on the surface makes God out to be a tyrant. Check this out:

“Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.”

For years I read this scripture wondering why if God is sovereign, why would He take away what I have if I already have so little? Seems harsh.

If we are not careful we will attribute scriptures in the Bible to God that were never about Him. This verse is one of those. Jesus never said it was God doing the giving and taking here. He was talking about the Law of Sowing and Reaping. When we sow any belief, good or bad, it will multiply. If we sow the belief that we are in lack of resources, finances, time or opportunities, we will find a way to destroy even the little resources, finances, time or opportunities we do have.

This is the ego doing its job–making sure we experience equilibrium in life. 

When we have a low sense of self and rise to positions and opportunities that threaten to raise our sense of self higher, we will tear it all down and then some. 

Have you noticed a pattern in your life where, just when the door is finally wide open for you to walk straight into your dream, some sort of disaster or distraction keeps you from going in? If that is your pattern, it's very likely you are self-sabotaging. 

It is tough to admit we are the problem.

Our ego tells us it must be God closing the door on us so we take the next
shiny off-ramp that conveniently lowers the barrier of entry so we don’t have to face our low sense of self. 

This is a very destructive off-ramp to take. It is the Blaming God off-ramp, Blaming Him for closing doors when in reality, He put the ball on the tee and all we had to do was swing and knock it out of the park. 

When we are on the Blaming God off-ramp we don’t see the ball is teed up in our favor because our thermostat won’t allow us to see anything beyond our limiting belief about ourselves.

Whenever we blame God He is forced to leave us to our own devices. When left to our own devices, The Law of Sowing and Reaping will work in lock step with our self-sabotage causing us to lose everything, including what we had before we started the journey!

Getting what we want out of life requires that our internal thermostat is set to believe we are up for the challenge, made for it, that it's our time and we already have everything we need for success! If you’re struggling with your sense of self, it's time to review exactly what Jesus died to give you and what is true about your new nature, not your old nature. It’s time to get real about your limitations and ask yourself some questions:

“What do I need to believe about myself in order to recognize my opportunity and take my land?”

“What do I need to believe about God in order to recognize my opportunity and take my land?”

Do some soul-searching and be sure to shoot me an email at christy@christynarsi.com and let me know how it’s going!!

Love y’all so much!