May 28

Scripture focus: No tengas otros dioses además de mí. Exodus 20:3 Nueva Version Internacional

According to Sigmund Freud, addiction tears us asunder, one part of us desires freedom and another wants only to continue the addictive behavior and erodes self-esteem.

I can’t speak with any authority on the nature of self-esteem, but I have experienced the hopelessness that arises within me when I am consistently inconsistent. I fail repeatedly to live in freedom. This kills my self-respect. I have no idea what it does to my self-esteem!

There was a day when this inability to manage self was considered part of the human condition, a reason to turn to God, and ask for mercy and grace. Today it’s considered a sign of weakness. Aren’t we supposed to be able to achieve anything we set our minds to achieve?

My friend who is Catholic tells me that some people, worried about the concept of self-esteem, decided to remove the word “wretched” from the hymn Amazing Grace. I was so stunned I forgot to ask her what they replaced it with. My mind immediately spun to all those attempts to clean up foul-language in movies with bad voice-overs. (My kids always loved to read the lips – which I think totally defeats the purpose of the movie “enhancements.”)

Here’s the deal, in any language, we are wretched at not having other gods before GOD and yet, we were created to find our way back to Him. This is a conundrum. It leaves us feeling wretched. Whether this truth causes a bruise to our self-esteem or self-respect – it’s the truth.

We will never be as fulfilled as the moment when we have no other gods before GOD.

Lord, fill us with the grace and mercy to love you.


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2 comments:

becoming said...

Thank-you for the truth. You are 100% right--we sometimes don't want to hear it, but look where believing lies has gotten us!

May 28, 2010 at 7:09 AM
I Might be Wrong said...

I have never seen self esteem. I have heard that adults, teachers, and community is responsible for helping children and others to have good self esteem. For me self esteem is all about me feeling good about myself and trying to make other feel good about themselves. It kind of sounds like co dependency. For me self respect is grown from doing the next right thing for myself and others even when at that moment it might not feel good. My self respect is born in a respect for His word, respect for myself, and respecting others as I respect my self. I guess I could simply state for me it is the difference between Self Ego and Self Love. On a different thought: Where do you think all these Hurts, habits, and Hangup come from? Do you think they just happen? Think again. They come about because we want your own way, and fight for it deep inside ourselves. We lust for what we don't have and are willing to kill to get it. You want what isn't ours and will risk everything dear to us even our own deaths to get our hands on it. (Been hanging with James!) For me that is loving without the One God. Blessings everyone

May 28, 2010 at 7:24 AM

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