23 May 2010
Becoming Yourself
It must just be the circles I have been moving in but I seem to be coming across a lot of people who are spending a lot of time and energy trying to work themselves out.
The journey of individuation is a very important one, but its one that the bible takes a counter-intuitive approach to:
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. Mark 8:35
The same sentiment is expressed in Matthew 10:39, Matthew 16:25, Luke 9:24 and Luke 17:33. Jesus seemed pretty keen to communicate this idea.
I like the way the message puts it:
Calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you? What could you ever trade your soul for? Mark 8:34-35
C.S. Lewis was one of the great thinkers of the modern era. He said something that I found very helpful and challenging:
The more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become – because he made us. He invented all the different people that you and I were intended to be……. It is when I turn to Christ, when I give up myself to His personality, that I first begin to have a real personality of my own.
I wonder whether the journey to working yourself out may in fact more about letting go than anything else.
Great post and great thoughts!
On the subject of faith, someone said to me recently that we all want miracles in our lives, but we don’t want to be in a situation where we need a miracle.
It’s a great paradox.
God bless,
Darren
Darren Poke
May 23rd, 2010 at 10:02 pmpermalink
I’ve been battling with this stuff recently – so thanks Matt – really helpful.
Hope you and yours are well.
God bless
Andy
Andy Prosser
May 24th, 2010 at 12:56 ampermalink