Two More Thoughts

The problems with taking ourselves too seriously are countless. Afraid to fail, we no longer risk. Afraid that someone will see behind our image, we no longer share. Afraid that we will appear to need help, we can no longer be vulnerable. Afraid to not appear religious enough to some, we can no longer confess. We withdraw into a petty world consumed with emptiness and fear, covered with a thick shell, worshiping an impotent god. The tragic result of taking ourselves too seriously is that in our fear of becoming childlike, in our fear of becoming a fool for Christ, in our fear of being seen as we are, we discover all too late it's impossible to be fully human and fully alive. Tim Hansel, When I Relax I Feel Guilty. The more we clamor to be in charge the more we squeeze the life out of everything that is precious to us. Ignoring Jesus' mandate that he be glorified in our weaknesses, we try to glorify God in the worldlinesss of our strengths by being in control .... sometimes God must wound us to teach us relinquishment. There is a welcome relief when we realize that we don't have to be God. thought from Becky Pippert quoted in The Power Delusion