"I'm the kid who always gets in trouble, so I must not be chosen for anything good."
How it sounds in your head: Teachers call home, I'm always in the principal's office, my parents are exhausted with me. Other kids seem to have it together, but I'm the troublemaker. God probably uses the 'good kids' and just tolerates me until I straighten out—if I ever do.
"But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty."
-- 1 Corinthians 1:27Source: World's system that labels kids as 'good' or 'bad' based on behavior, contradicting God who chooses the foolish to shame the wise.
Authority figures' constant correction feels like evidence you're defective. When you're always the example of what NOT to do, it's hard to believe God would choose you FOR anything.
Jacob was a DECEIVER and a MAMA'S BOY who STOLE his brother's blessing through elaborate lies and disguises. God didn't say 'get your act together first'—He CHOSE Jacob over 'good' Esau, wrestled with him, renamed him ISRAEL, and made him father of the twelve tribes.
I REFUSE the lie that being the 'troublemaker' disqualifies me from God's purposes. IT IS WRITTEN that God CHOOSES the foolish and weak things to shame the mighty—He picks the ones the world rejects. Jacob was a deceiver, Moses was a murderer, Peter was impulsive, Paul was a terrorist—yet God used them to change history. IT IS WRITTEN that I am God's WORKMANSHIP, created in Christ Jesus for GOOD WORKS He prepared BEFORE I was born. My calling isn't based on my discipline record; it's based on His CHOICE before the foundation of the world. The Father doesn't see a troublemaker—He sees a SON with a DESTINY. I am CHOSEN, CALLED, and EQUIPPED right now.
The Father doesn't use you AFTER you become 'good'—He uses the 'troublemakers' to prove His power works through weakness. He's not waiting for your behavior to improve; He's already put His Spirit in you and assigned you world-changing works.