Sunday's lesson in church was on being known. It mostly centered on the desire to know and be known by your spouse, but eventually worked its way into being known by God. There were two things about the lesson that got me to think.
First, I want very much to be known for who I am rather than who I portray. That is actually part of the point of this blog. I hate people having the wrong ideas about me. Even more, I hate when I feel I have no choice but to let people have the wrong ideas about me.
This is something that I think is one of the main strengths of Golden's and my relationship. We are continually trying to find out everything about each other.
Second, and more important, was a statement made toward the end of class. The author of the book we are studying makes the statement that unless we feel lovable, we cannot accept God's love for us. When I read the book that sounded right, but then in class I thought about a passage of Scripture that seems to dispute that claim. I think I have resolved the paradox in my head now, though.
Here is the complication. I know that I have seen people in the past unable to accept God's love due to how wretched they feel about themselves. I also know that I have seen more people who feel they don't need God because they feel quite lovable. To complicate things further, when we say that God is love we are pulling from a passage that claims that God's love for us is so strong that He sacrificed for us while we were sinners (and probably not too lovable).
You'll have to forgive any inappropriateness in this analogy, but I think through it I understand the solution. I think that God is probably a little like a woman who sees an attractive man with what she deems horrible personality defects. Both God and the woman see the potential and make the determination that, "I can change him!" The difference between God and the woman is that God really can properly change him.
If that is the case, then in order to accept God's love we need to feel that we have the potential to be lovable.
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Is it possible to describe a personal blog without it sounding self-absorbed?
The title Off the Bridge is to reflect that I created this blog in part due to peer pressure. When I created and named it I did not anticipate still using it years down the road.
I generally post my thoughts on topics that have been floating around in my head in the previous days. I hope you find something interesting. In any case, thanks for stopping by.
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11 comments:
Vernal and I were talking about how we have heard before that "you need to love yourself to be able to love God or others" and have always had a problem because it seems new-agey and self-absorbed.
We like how the guy in the book took the focus off the self and put it on others. He said that his wife teaches him that he is lovable and that helps him better interact with God. He viewed that if a person believed that they were not worthy of love, unlovable, that they would have difficult time accepting God's love.
And that we need to teach, show, demonstrate to others that they are lovable as Chirst said to love one another.
Doesn't loving yourself include having self respect? If you love yourself, then you won't let people take advantage of you. I don't consider that being self-absorbed.
I have showed love to two friends that I had in college that really didn't want anything to do with God. I think they have both softened. One friend sends me spiritual email forwards now.
Respect Yourself.
Don't settle for second best, baby.
Yeah, I know it is not really being self-absorbed - it just sounds silly if you tell someone that (spoken in a cheesy christian women's conference speaker's voice) "you need to start by loving yourself."
forrest... do you attend cheesy women's conferences often? Hmmmm...
I think its more a matter of respecting and valuing yourself because we are made in God's Image. "...and He saw that it was good..." Some teachings that are only about "self-focus" do cause imbalance.
The main thing is to remember you do have to take care of yourself in a healthy way in order to take care of your responsibilities. For example, on the airplane they tell you to secure your own oxygen mask first before assisting others.
I think that principle goes a long way in alot of areas. I see this happening right before my eyes in watching my children growing up.
I really like the point that we need to help people feel more lovable. I'm not always so good at that.
remember, love in any language straight from the heart pulls us all together, never apart.
do you attend cheesy women's conferences often?
No, I just see the posters or ads in magazines and assume that is what they'll say.
I do sometimes here them on the radio in their cheesy voices. :)
Never ASSUME anything...you know why too...but I don't want post a "bad word" on here...LOL!
I don't get it. Can you please explain why I should not assume.
Never ASSUME anything....it only makes an ASS of U and ME! =D
There.
Sorry, T! I try to watch my language on my comments, because ya'll don't know me as well as she does!
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