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MARCH 23<br />
CRIPPLING SELF-DOUBT<br />
“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.<br />
And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” (Gen 1: 31)<br />
My spiritual journey consists mainly of developing, in God’s light, in God’s<br />
grace, three essential relationships, all interrelated: 1. My relationship<br />
with God; 2. My relationship with myself; 3. My relationship with other<br />
people. Today I’m thinking about the second one, my relationship to<br />
myself.<br />
The above-cited passage in the book of Genesis reminds me that, as part<br />
of the whole picture of His creation, God sees me, as well as all other<br />
people, as “very good.” This “very goodness” exists as a whole, within the<br />
interrelated whole of Creator and creation; of “every thing that He had<br />
made.”<br />
I begin to realize my dignity and my “very goodness,” that is, I begin to<br />
see myself as God sees me, when I maintain my connection to Him daily,<br />
shedding His light on all my aspirations and actions. When I separate<br />
myself from God, on the other hand, I am left with a crippling self-doubt,<br />
like Adam and Eve who realize they’re naked in the garden. There’s<br />
suddenly a sense of shame and a loss of trust in God, in themselves, and<br />
in each other. Because it is God’s grace that is the “glue,” so to say, that<br />
keeps the whole, interrelated “very goodness” of creation together.<br />
Today let me renew the God-given “very goodness” of myself, by renewing<br />
my connection to Him. His grace removes my human shame, my human<br />
self-doubt, and clothes me in His dignity. Let me move forward and grow<br />
with Him and in Him; in His wisdom, His courage, and His divine-human<br />
dignity.<br />
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