Overcome

This week at church we started a new series. I looked at the title for the sermon and said to a friend..."this is hilarious". Hilarious because it was all too ironic how we had a conversation regarding this topic about 12 hours earlier. Here are the main points of the service:
How do we overcome Inadequacy?
Make the decision to do something!
View Yourself the way God does.
-Learn what God has to say about you.
-Limit the amount of stuff that causes you to compare.

It's amazing to me how easy it is to forget the way God sees me. How often I let other people's opinions overcome my strengths as a Christian, as a friend, as a daughter, and as a woman. It kind of makes me angry and sorrowful, that I don't love God enough. That I would disregard knowing that I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Ps. 139:14), and believe all of the biting comments, dirty looks, and awkward silences that have happened over the years. Don't get me wrong, I am not a very angry person...these things happen to everyone.
I guess what my pastor didn't mention, is that there is something else that needs to happen. Another way to overcome inadequacy. Forgiveness.
I need to forgive those who have hurt me. I need to forgive myself...for not loving myself enough to think that God could love me too. We are all taught that God loves us from the time we were little girls and boys. But how often were we shown otherwise by the actions of our Christian brothers and sisters. Some of the people who have made me feel the most inadequate in my life, have been other Christians and their exegetical snobbery (for those of you who don't know what exegetical means...look it up:))
The further I get into my MFT program at St. Mary's...the more I realize that I want to help empower people. I want to help people find the ambition to perservere, and transform themselves into someone who they are happy to be. Also the further I get into the program, the harder I find it to think about helping people overcome their obstacles without mentioning Christ. I guess this is an issue I will have confront the Big Guy with. "How do I help people...without mentioning you?"