When crippled by feelings of Inferiority ******************************************

Frequently in these modern times one hears the term "inferiority complex" bandied about. It describes the low sense of worth some people carry around with them, the consequence usually of ineffective parenting. Parents-even good parents-can sometimes give their children the idea that they love them for something: if they work hard, if they come up to their expectations,if they are very clever. Children then come to see their worth in terms of how well they perform rather than who they are. A low sense of worth may blight a whole life and at its worst can develop into self-rejection, even hate. Most people learn how to cope with the problem by keeping away from situations in which they might be shown up as inferior, and thus live their lives at a lower level than God intends.

Whatever forces have gone into shaping our thoughts and ideas about ourselves (and we must be careful not to hold bitterness or resentment against those who nurtured us), those who believe in God must stand before Him and draw the estimate of ourselves from Him. However little worth there may be in our nature, God put worth upon us by dying for our salvation. No one is to be despised (not even by himself or herself) when they were dear enough to God that he shed His sacred blood. That is the ground of our worth, the solid, sufficient and only basis for it. And it is the same for everyone.

This last statement must be allowed to soak into our minds,for it only when we see that worth is not something that is earned but something bestowed that self-despising can rooted out of our minds. Be encouraged.

"O Father, help me see myself as You see me-a child of God and a joint heir with Christ. Your Son displayed no inferiority and now that I am in Him, neither ought I. Bring my thinking in line with Your thinking, dear Father. In Christ's Name I pray. Amen."

Scriptures on which to reflect:

****************Letter # 24 ( 1.7.2000).****************